Claire Bergeaud

About us

Painting conservator / preventive conservation consultant

Claire Bergeaud, one of the co-founders of Cartel Collections, is a preventive conservation consultant and a specialist in conservation-restoration of historical, modern and contemporary painted works. Since 1999 she has served as a consultant for many of France’s national museums. She carries out appraisals, establishes guidelines for conservation management, transport and exhibits, and assists with programming for renovation and construction of museums, heritage buildings and collections storage.

Since starting in 1981, she has provided restorations for works held in many French national and territorial museums, and since 1995 she has provided condition monitoring of the paintings collection at the Paris Picasso Museum.

She teaches preventive conservation in a range of institutions that include the Université de Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and the Institut National du Patrimoine, as well as providing on-site professional development sessions for existing museum staff.

From 2000 to 2004 she was a restoration adviser for the preventive conservation department of the Centre de recherche et de restauration des musées de France, and since 2001 she has been a member of the restoration committee of the Direction régionale des affaires culturelles, Nord-Pas-de-Calais. She is also a member of the restoration and preventive conservation committee of the Musée du Louvre and a member of ICOM.
Author of book and several articles in the field of restaoration and preventive conservation.

She is Chevalier of the Order of Art and Letters.

Projets
Personnels

Condition monitoring of the paintings collection at the Paris Picasso Museum

Expertise and consulting in preventive conservation

Conservation treatments of the paintings collection.
Conservation of Picasso's Quatorze Juillet theatre backdrop, Les Abattoirs Museum

Expertise and consulting in preventive conservation

Picasso’s theatre backdrop required special provisions in both display and storage spaces in the Abattoirs, including regular protection from light. The project consisted of improving existing equipment.
Conservation of the "Still Life with Eggplants" by Matisse

Expertise and consulting in preventive conservation

Consolidation of matte finish painting surface, composed of a protein binder (glue-based paint). Preparation of a conservation plan to reduce action of agents of deterioration, in cooperation with the Centre de Recherche et de Restauration of France.
Alaux's Cycloramas (musée du Louvre)

Expertise and consulting in preventive conservation

The feasibility study included technical planning, budgeting and scheduling for the work. Historical study of the restoration of cycloramas.
Cy Twombly's ceilings (musée du Louvre)

Expertise and consulting in preventive conservation

Feasibility study for the installation of a Cy Twombly painted ceiling in the bronze antiquities gallery at the Louvre. The feasibility study included technical planning, budgeting and scheduling for the work, as well as elaboration of other action in support.
Planning study for the Nantes Museum of Fine Art

Museum restoration or creation assistance

Assessements for the storage facilities.
Planning study (Pierres Soulages Museum)

Museum restoration or creation assistance

Collections analysis and architectural programming assistance for the architectural and museography firm Zaborski Michalska.
Project management (Beaux-Arts museum of Quimper)

Technical assistance and project coordination

Development of plans and budgets for treatments and moving of the paintings collection; assistance in preparation of contract specifications; support for project implementation.
Protection and in-situ conservation of Monet's Water Lilies.

Museum restoration or creation assistance

Since the canvases were glued to the walls of the Orangerie and could not be moved because of their sensitive composition, a preservation procedure was developed with the Centre de Recherche et de Restauration des Musées de France to assure their conservation, while also permitting the implementation of works on the building. Measures were defined to block or reduce to a minimum all factors of deterioration that could be expected due to demolition and construction: vibrations, variations of temperature and humidity, dust, water damage, shock and pollutants. These measures focused on:
- A detailed preliminary record of the paintings surfaces, executed with restorer Franciska Hourrière,
- Definition of conservation procedures
- Regular condition monitoring, with adjustments of conservation measures as necessary throughout all phases of the works.