Midnight Mass
Artist: Anne Marie Fanet Vieillard
Date: 1917
Classification: Painting
Dimensions: 73 x 50 cm
Materials: Oil on canvas
Adopted By: The Italian & International Chapter
Description
MEDIUM PRIORITY PROJECT
This immersive and silent representation of Christmas Eve Mass, the night of December 24, 1917, takes place on the Western Front of World War I, in the heart of the Argonne Forest. Anne Marie Fanet Vieillard, a native painter of Normandy, realized it in earthy, pastel shades that restore the sacredness of the moment. The Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art of the Vatican Museums has an interesting nucleus of works from this artist, that was donated in 1974 to Pope Paul VI by Abbot Pierre Tuarze, rector of Pont-Aven, a meeting place for French Symbolist artists. The restoration of the painting will also be an opportunity to study the production of this talented and lesser-known French painter.
TOTAL COST: € 18.120,04 ($ 17,710.53)
Restoration Procedures
Frame:
- option 1 - application of expansion system if possible
- option 2 - replacement with new expansion frame
Support:
- consolidation and relining of the panel
- if the canvas is fragile, a light lining with thin synthetic canvas and thermoplastic resins will be added
Pictorial film: varnish removal, plastering, reintegration, and final varnishing
Detail
Adopted By:
The Italian & International ChapterPatrons:
Olessia Kantor and the Italian & International Chapter
Inventory N°: 24242
Artist: Anne Marie Fanet Vieillard
Date: 1917
Dimensions: 73 x 50 cm
Materials: Oil on canvas
Wishbook year: 2023
Midnight Mass - Final Restoration Report
The painting depicts soldiers gathered in prayer during Christmas mass in 1907. The state of preservation showed small holes and several folds of the painted surface and support. Also visible on the paint film were anthropogenic scratches resulting in the fall of the very light preparation and color. The painting was probably also folded and rolled up, considering the several deformations present on the surface.
A close look at the side edges reveals the presence of 3 sets of perforations due to various restoration and repositioning interventions on the frame, which does not appear to be the original.
At first visual inspection, the restoration varnish appeared altered and dark, flattening the technique of making the painting and graying the muted tones of the colors used for the representation.
The artist's idea was to reveal the meaning of the Christmas Mass through an oil painting performed with quick brushstrokes, making the thin industrial preparation of the canvas appear visible.
Midnight Mass - Restoration Update
The first step in the restoration procedures will be a scientific analysis.
The Scientific Research Laboratory will scan the painting using the M6-XRF laser (below are images of the machine).
Macro-X scanning fluorescence (MA-XRF) analysis is a technique to investigate historical paintings. The elemental distribution images acquired by this method enable the visualization of hidden pictorial layers and, thus, an understanding of the artist's creative process and the conservation history of the painting. M6 Jetstream consists of a measuring head that is moved over the surface of a painting using a motorized X, Y stage. This motorized stage has a minimum pitch of 10 mm and a maximum range of 80-60 cm (h-v).
By combining the images of the elemental distribution obtained by scanning subareas, objects larger than the maximum displacement radius of the motorized stages can be studied as a whole.
Midnight Mass
Details
Adopted by: The Italian & International Chapter
Patrons: Olessia Kantor and the Italian & International Chapter
Inventory: 24242
Artist: Anne Marie Fanet Vieillard
Date: 1917
Classification: Painting
Materials: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 73 x 50 cm
Department: XIX Century and Contemporary Art
Laboratory: Painting & Wood
Wishbook year: 2023
Description
MEDIUM PRIORITY PROJECT
This immersive and silent representation of Christmas Eve Mass, the night of December 24, 1917, takes place on the Western Front of World War I, in the heart of the Argonne Forest. Anne Marie Fanet Vieillard, a native painter of Normandy, realized it in earthy, pastel shades that restore the sacredness of the moment. The Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art of the Vatican Museums has an interesting nucleus of works from this artist, that was donated in 1974 to Pope Paul VI by Abbot Pierre Tuarze, rector of Pont-Aven, a meeting place for French Symbolist artists. The restoration of the painting will also be an opportunity to study the production of this talented and lesser-known French painter.
TOTAL COST: € 18.120,04 ($ 17,710.53)
Restoration Procedures
Frame:
- option 1 - application of expansion system if possible
- option 2 - replacement with new expansion frame
Support:
- consolidation and relining of the panel
- if the canvas is fragile, a light lining with thin synthetic canvas and thermoplastic resins will be added
Pictorial film: varnish removal, plastering, reintegration, and final varnishing
Media
Christmas Mass 1917 in the Argonne Woods
Restorations Update: Midnight Mass - Final Restoration Report
The painting depicts soldiers gathered in prayer during Christmas mass in 1907. The state of preservation showed small holes and several folds of the painted surface and support. Also visible on the paint film were anthropogenic scratches resulting in the fall of the very light preparation and color. The painting was probably also folded and rolled up, considering the several deformations present on the surface.
A close look at the side edges reveals the presence of 3 sets of perforations due to various restoration and repositioning interventions on the frame, which does not appear to be the original.
At first visual inspection, the restoration varnish appeared altered and dark, flattening the technique of making the painting and graying the muted tones of the colors used for the representation.
The artist's idea was to reveal the meaning of the Christmas Mass through an oil painting performed with quick brushstrokes, making the thin industrial preparation of the canvas appear visible.
Restorations Update: Midnight Mass - Restoration Update
The first step in the restoration procedures will be a scientific analysis.
The Scientific Research Laboratory will scan the painting using the M6-XRF laser (below are images of the machine).
Macro-X scanning fluorescence (MA-XRF) analysis is a technique to investigate historical paintings. The elemental distribution images acquired by this method enable the visualization of hidden pictorial layers and, thus, an understanding of the artist's creative process and the conservation history of the painting. M6 Jetstream consists of a measuring head that is moved over the surface of a painting using a motorized X, Y stage. This motorized stage has a minimum pitch of 10 mm and a maximum range of 80-60 cm (h-v).
By combining the images of the elemental distribution obtained by scanning subareas, objects larger than the maximum displacement radius of the motorized stages can be studied as a whole.
© 2025 Patrons of the Arts
in the Vatican Museums
Vatican Museums V-00120,
Vatican City State (Europe)
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