THE RESTORATION PROGRAM OF THE WHITESTONE SCULPTURE OF THE VIRGIN OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION FROM THE VILLAGE OF DOBRYANY HORODOK DISTRICT
Authors: Orobets Julian , Rybchynskyy Oleh 
Published: July 2022

The article demonstrates the peculiarities of the artistic sculpture of the Virgin Mary in the sculpture of the late XIX-first half of the XX century. The main positions of the restoration program and the course of its implementation are revealed. The plastic nature of the folds and compositional principles suggest that the sculptor worked in the mid-XIX - early XX centuries. The textural and petrographic properties of the stone are the basis for the assumption that the author worked in the village of Demnya because the complex of the church of St. Nicholas and the one analyzed in the article have many similarities. Comparing some of the sculptures of famous authors of the late Baroque and Classicism, we can identify fundamental similarities: portrait features, execution of tears, and the nature of the image of the lips, feet and hands. In the sculpture of the Mother of God from the village of Dobryany, Horodok district, the influence of the works of Peter Viitovych, Leonardo Marconi, Vuytsyk, Plishevsky and Soltys is noticeable. The works of these authors are characterized by realism, careful expression of the anatomy of the human body, true depiction of movement and clear composition. Before the restoration work began, the white stone sculpture was in poor condition. Below the figure, on a memorial plaque, it is written that masters from the village of Demnya restored it in 2000. 5 layers of whitewash were found on the sculpture. The sculpture in the village was whitewashed with lime in honour of holidays and solemn events. Initially, the figure was not covered with paint. The figure of the Virgin was divided into two parts. The lower bullet with the snake and the feet was broken off from the rest of the body. These parts were previously fastened to an anchor made of black iron and cement. Anchor slashed hard and spread the stone. As a result, the folds of the dress and previous masterpieces were peeled off at the bottom. After a thorough examination, non-professional fastening of the folded arms was revealed. There were inaccurate traces of cement additions and cracks in the places of glueing. A profiled base was also glued to the ball on a dense layer of cement. In general, due to the colonies of bio-growers and large areas of whitewash, the work lost its aesthetic appeal and symbolic content. The first stage of restoration consisted of the layer-by-layer sounding of limestone. After opening the limestone, the object was dry cleaned. Dry cleaning was done with scalpels, nylon brushes, and small brass and steel brushes, not durable places were tapped with a chisel in order not to damage the original surface of the stone. When the lime filler was poorly removed, the method of wet cleaning was used, a detergent solution dissolved the lime filler. The detergent solution was applied with a flute brush and the fluffy surface was cleaned with a nylon brush. The detergent solution is made for better penetration of surfactants into the pores - soap softens the surface of the water, which helps to dissolve the dirt in the pores of the stone. Subsequently, the stage of structural strengthening of the stone was performed. To achieve this goal, the organosilicon hardener Remmers KSE 300 was used. The solution was applied with a brush. To crystallize the organosilicon hardener a technological break was taken for two weeks, moving on to the stage of glueing parts. Bonding of elements took place with the help of epoxy glue from TENAX. Before applying the glue, the elements were coated with a 3% alcohol solution of polymer "Paraloid B72". The upper and lower parts of the sculpture were attached to epoxy resin and two stainless steel rods. The lost fragments of the folds of the Virgin's clothing were made of fibreglass reinforcement attached to the holes of the stone with epoxy glue. After completing the stage of glueing the sculpture, the addition of lost elements was performed. A mineral carbonate solution was used. After a two-week technological break, the stage of toning the supplemented parts began in order to achieve organic homogeneity of the figure. The next step is to cover the stone with a long-acting biocidal solution. At the end of the restoration, the work should be covered with lime water to even out the overall tone of the sculpture. The sculptural composition of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary from the village of Dobryany, Horodok district, is of great artistic and historical value. During the restoration of the sculpture the compatible materials were used as well as generally accepted and original restoration tools, which will allow the exhibition of the work of art in an authentic place near the chapel., After returning the work to its holders, it is recommended to exhibit it under an architectural cover to prevent the aggressive effects of precipitation and the negative changes in temperature and humidity in autumn-winter.