Art Restoration Courses in Naples, Italy

Istituto Europeo del Restauro, Ischia (NA):
The Istituto Europeo del Restauro (European Restoration Institute) in Ischia (NA), Italy, is a key centre for the Cultural Heritage restoration and preservation sector that operates in the fields of training, research and professional specialization in cooperation with important Italian and foreign universities and industries. We offer many training paths within articulated study programmes, sensitive to the European cultural-occupational policies and addressed to an international public of operators and students.

The study programmes of the different courses were generated after several important demands from the sector operators, concerning the need to deepen and to update one’s personal technical-scientific and cultural knowledge, to enhance entrepreneurial know-how, and to confront oneself with teachers and colleagues from other countries.

At the Istituto Europeo del Restauro, training and research are complementary in the professional activities conducted by a team made up of professional restorers, university professors and students, who in this way can carry out direct experience in field-work.

The teachers of the courses are highly qualified. Very often they are the most expert in their field, and their personal prestige stands as a further guarantee of the Institute’s authority and reliability.

Taking part in courses and in restoration activities with teachers and students coming from different countries offers a unique opportunity for professional growth, and furthermore guarantees an educational-cultural variety which otherwise would not be possible in a more limited reality.

This is also the place where Italian and foreign realities – not only relating to the cultural heritage preservation but also to the industrial world – meet Its aim is to promote a synergic relationship between the two sectors, creating also socio-cultural opportunities. Important partners in the industrial field offer their economic, scientific and ethical contribution, supporting the initiatives of the Institution and its young students.

Annual and Half-yearly Courses:
We offer an annual course for the restoration of wooden works of art, and a half-year course for the restoration of wall paintings.
The study plan contemplates compulsory attendance eight hours a day from Monday to Friday and the duration goes from 900 to 1600 training hours.

The materials, equipment, clothing and accident prevention materials are provided entirely by the Institute.

Monothematic Courses:
Our monothematic course programmes are short but intense, the ideal for people with work or study commitments. “Full-immersion” training, together with our teaching staff’s high level of proficiency and the students’ living and teaching environment, encourage a sure and rapid learning. Courses include:

    - Biodeteriogenic Microorganisms of Wood Carving
    - Integrations on mosaic flooring and murals
    - Writing materials and illuminating techniques in the Middle Ages
    - Photography of works of art
    - Laser cleaning/ablation for the conservation of cultural heritage
    - Gilding techniques
    - Identification and control of insects that are harmful to the conservation of cultural heritage
    - Illuminating Images
    - Carving
    - Methodological orientation for the conservation and restoration of seals
    - The Executive Tecniques of Wall Paintings
    - Intervention Phases fot the Restoration of Wall Paintings
    - The Removal and the Tearing of Wall Paintings

Monthly Courses:
Specially conceived for specialists and graduates or undergraduates in the heritage conservation sector who wish to acquire in-depth knowledge of the theoretical notions obtained during their academic studies.
The courses are carried out directly on the field, thus giving participants the opportunity to experience a real operative situation.

A) The “Restoration Site” course where students and teachers together make up a regular intervention team destined to carry out the restoration of a great work in the field.
B) The “Restoration Laboratory” course in which students can access the Institute’s laboratories and take part in one or more operations on mobile works of art (sculptures, panels, decorations, gilded artefacts) in order to become familiar with modern methodologies and problems of this type of restoration.

Experimental Course for the underwater restorer:
During this theoretical-practical course, students will learn how to apply the innovative laser system for underwater restorers.
The course is divided into two groups:

Class A is for those who do not yet have a diving licence.

Class B is for those who have a diving licence.

The duration is 72 hours per week; room and board, insurance, the Institute polo shirt and individual diving equipment are included in the fee.

Summer School:
Theoretical and practical lessons about wood restoration are held from Monday to Friday, from 9.00 a.m to 13 p.m., giving the student free time in the afternoon. Study programs can be directly organized with the professor, requesting the topic at the time of enrollment.

The registration fee includes materials, equipment, insurance, clothing, personal accident prevention means  and the program "Learning Italian".