Restoring Pugin Study Day

About

Saturday 1st June | 2024 | 2pm-6.30pm
Nottingham Cathedral
£25 (includes refreshments)

Paint detectives have been at work in Nottingham Cathedral this year uncovering the lost original paint scheme by the renowned "Father of English Gothic" AWN Pugin.

Nottingham Cathedral is offering Study Day to disclose our findings and celebrate the life and work of AWN Pugin. There will also be a talk from Rosemary Hill, Pugin's acclaimed biographer. Colleagues at Nottingham Trent University Digital Architecture Lab will be demonstrating thermodynamic models of the Cathedral designed to improve environmental conditions.

Three afternoon sessions at Nottingham Cathedral and Cathedral Hall:

2pm-3.30pm
Talk followed by Q&A : Revealing Pugin's Hidden Treasures with Cliveden Conservation
Learn about the methods and challenges and share the Wow moments of this incredible journey.

Nicola Collins, Project Manager, Cliveden Conservation will give an introduction to Cliveden Conservation and their involvement with the research phases of Restoring Pugin. She will describe notable Cliveden Conservation projects such as the Elizabeth Tower in London (Big Ben) to conserve both the decorative paint schemes and architectural elements of chapels and buildings designed by AWN Pugin.

Ana Logreira, Senior Conservator, Cliveden Conservation, will talk about leading the team of conservators and trainees in the Restoring Pugin Project. Ana will present the results of the recent paint trials, which have uncovered the earliest phases of decoration within the chapels and ambulatories of the Cathedral's east end. Hidden beneath successive layers of later paint, the trials and tribulations of this large scale research will be discussed. She will also be sharing images of the beautiful array of stencils and schemes discovered during this phase of the project.

3.30-5.00pm
Cathedral tours:
The conservators will lead a series of 30 minute tours of the Cathedral throughout the afternoon with a focus on the original 1844 paint discoveries in the east end.

5.00-6.30pm
Talk followed by Q&A : Pugin – Romantic, Visionary and Tortured Genius
Rosemary Hill, acclaimed author of God's Architect: Pugin and the Building of Romantic Britain. Rosemary will speak on the life and work of AWN Pugin.

Refreshments will be available in the Cathedral Hall and gardens between 3.30 and 5pm

FREE SIDE EVENT
10am-1pm at Nottingham Trent University Digital Architecture Lab
NTU, Maudslay building, Goldsmith St, Nottingham NG1 5JS.
NTU Digital Architecture Lab have been working with the Cathedral for the last year to develop innovative tools to help us reduce damp and condensation. They have created a digital twin of the Cathedral and via dozens of sensors have created a 3D thermodynamic model which they will demonstrate. The digital twin has also enabled them to build a computer game help young people understand about our built heritage, and a VR experience showing how the Cathedral decorations have changed. You will be able to experience these during the session.