The “Conservation, documentation and security works in garden galleries and the Lapidarium on the ground floor of the palace” project has come to an end. It encompassed an important stage of works on the ground floor of the Wilanów Palace. Fortunately, the renovation and modernisation of the upper level of the palace did not cause any damage to the structure of monuments, which were effectively protected by special wooden structures during the works.
The condition of paintings and sculptures decorating the ceilings and covings of the garden galleries has been significantly improved. At King Jan III’s request, they were modelled on similar solutions in Italian architecture. After the removal of secondary layers of engobes and faulty restorations, the sculptural decorations gained expressiveness and refinement. In turn, Michelangelo Palloni’s frescoes, after cleaning and removing most of the repaintings and retouches from old renovations, regained their vivid colours and their details became more legible. Although the scenes from Palloni’s story of Cupid and Psyche require further restoration work, as well as merging and reconstruction of irreversibly damaged fragments of the composition, they are already a significant aesthetic accent of the gallery. Structurally reinforced stucco decorations also require the continuation of restoration work in order to fully restore the artistic finish of their surfaces. Future projects, including wall decorations and architectural elements, will gradually supplement the effects of the works completed in 2019 to restore the overall Baroque character of the entire galleries.
Text: Elżbieta Modzelewska
Photos: Zbigniew Reszka
