Speakers

Silvia Prati is an Associate Professor of Environmental and Cultural Heritage Chemistry at the Giacomo Ciamician Department of Chemistry, University of Bologna. Her research focuses on the development of advanced analytical methodologies for the study, conservation, and sustainable restoration of cultural heritage, with particular expertise in non-invasive and micro-invasive spectroscopic techniques and in the design and testing of green, safe cleaning protocols for artworks and historical surfaces. She is responsible for the development of innovative cleaning technologies in the European GoGreen project, scientific responsible for the University of Bologna unit in the spoke 5 in the project CHANGES, and scientific coordinator for UNIBO within the Italian node of the European research infrastructure E-RIHS.

In addition to her research activities, she serves as the Deputy for the Didactic Activities for the Chemistry Department and as representative for the scientific area on the University of Bologna Teaching Committee.

Francesca Ramacciotti is a research fellow at the Department of Chemistry ‘G. Ciamician’ at the University of Bologna. From 2019 to 2023, she was a PhD student in Cultural and Environmental Heritage at the University of Bologna. Her main area of research is the development and testing of micro- and nanostructured materials for cleaning works of art. Specifically, the methods she has developed aim to remove aged varnish from paintings and spray paint overlays from contemporary murals. Her research is part of the European GoGreen project, dedicated to promoting sustainable solutions for conservation and restoration.

PhD, chemist, is head of Science at the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and professor by special appointment of Molecular Spectroscopy at the University of Amsterdam (UvA), Netherlands. Since 2025, she is the interim chair of the Dutch network for research for moving heritage, Netherlands Institute for Conservation+Art+Science+ (NICAS). Keune is specialized in ageing and degradation studies of pigments and oil paintings at the micro- and molecular level. She initiated and (co)led many national and international interdisciplinary research projects funded by programmes as Horizon Europa, EU-H2020, EU-JPI, NWO-NICAS and NWO-TALENT. One such project is the GoGreen project (Horizon Europa, 2022-2026) of which Keune is the coordinator.

Maartje Stols-Witlox is associate professor paintings conservation at the University of Amsterdam. She is art historian and paintings conservator, and currently director of the Master’s Programme in Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage (University of Amsterdam). Stols-Witlox’ research interests include historical painting techniques investigated through reconstruction of historical recipes, conservation methodology and history, with emphasis on green sustainability.  Within GoGreen, Maartje is task leader for research into historical conservation methods as a source for low-tech greener alternatives, and is involved in the development of education materials.

Edith Joseph received a PhD degree in chemistry on the application of FTIR microspectroscopy to cultural heritage materials (University of Bologna, 2009). Currently, she is Full professor at the Haute Ecole Arc Conservation Restauration, University of Applied Sciences and Arts HES-SO. Her research interests focus on the development of green and sustainable conservation strategies for the preservation of cultural heritage. Her research interests include the application of spectroscopic techniques for the study of environmental processes and their interaction with artworks. She is author of more than 60 papers published in international journals and books.

Giovanna Poggi is associate professor in physical chemistry at the Chemistry Department of the University of Florence. She was involved in several EU Pprojects including HORIZON EUROPE GREENART. Her research deals with the synthesis and characterization of nanoparticles and their application to paper and wood deacidification. She is also working on hydrogels and organogels for the cleaning of works of art and on the development and use of biocompatible polymers in several applicative fields.

Post-doctoral researcher in Conservation Chemistry and Materials at the Center of Cultural Heritage Technology of the IIT in Venice. She specialises in the study of the mechanism of corrosion of ancient glass, using high-resolution analytical techniques to investigate the material transformation from the microscopical to the nanometric scale, from bulk to surface layer composition. Her research is actually focused on the design of nanomaterials that are ideal for stopping the alteration process, thereby limiting the interaction between the surface of the ancient glass and its conservation environment.

She is actively involved in several HEU and CBE JU projects, including BioSusTex and SurfToGreen, which aim to develop innovative bio-based chemicals and processes for the textile sector and beyond.

Gwendoline R. Fife is an art conservation consultant working as researcher for the Rijksmuseum on GOGREEN (Horizon Europe). With a background in chemistry and paintings conservation she has worked for over 20 years in museums and institutions. Regularly publishing her research, she has been providing international lectures and workshops on sustainable solvent approaches in conservation practice since 2009. She is also the Director of Sustainability in Conservation’s Greener Solvent Project.

Ilaria Bonaduce is Associate Professor of Analytical Chemistry at the University of Pisa, specializing in mass spectrometry, chromatography, and analytical pyrolysis. Her research focuses on organic materials in paints and polychrome objects to reconstruct artistic practices and understand ageing and degradation. In collaboration with scientists, art historians, and conservators, she develops methods to study material change and inform conservation.

Claire Betelu hold a PhD in Art History and a master in Conservation restoration of Painting (2015). She was the head of the Conservation Department of the University Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne from 2021 to 2025. She teaches painting and restoration techniques since 2010. She is collaborating to the GoGreen Project as Associate Partner in WP 3-Green Cleaning Methods- and WP7- Green Education

Mathieu Thoury, physicist and CNRS researcher, has directed the IPANEMA laboratory since September 2023. He develops synchrotron and laboratory imaging approaches to investigate the physico-chemical evolution of ancient materials. His research addresses the preservation of fossil biomolecules, corrosion processes in archaeological metals, and the chemical transformations of oil paints over time.

Laure Cazals is a PhD candidate at ENS Paris-Saclay and has been working on the GoGreen project since October 2022. Her research focuses on the development of new methodologies to evaluate the chemical action of organic restoration treatments, both on the surface of objects and at depth. By combining statistical data processing and collection methods, she seeks to obtain high-resolution chemical data, sensitive to the presence of traces, while maintaining a reasonable dose on the sample.

Loïc Bertrand is a senior researcher in the Chemistry Department at ENS Paris-Saclay. He develops multiscale photonic analytical techniques for cultural heritage applications, primarily based on synchrotron radiation, and collaborates with mathematicians on advanced computational approaches for processing spectroscopic imaging datasets. He coordinates methodology in the GoGreen project.

Beatrice Menegaldo is a PhD candidate at the Courtauld Institute of Art, London (UK). She earned her Master’s degree in Conservation Science and Technology for Cultural Heritage from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice (Italy) in 2023. Her PhD research, conducted within the EU-funded GoGreen project, investigates the application of greener methods for the removal of adhesives and coatings from painted surfaces and the assessment of their cleaning efficacy using advanced analytical techniques.

Chiara Biribicchi is the Greenberg Steinhauser Postdoctoral Fellow within the scientific research group at the Conservation Center of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). Prior to her time at LACMA, Chiara pursued a PhD in Environment and Cultural Heritage as part of the Earth Sciences doctoral program at Sapienza University of Rome, where her research focused on the development of low-impact cleaning systems for cultural heritage conservation. She also holds a Master’s degree in Conservation of Cultural Heritage from the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence, Italy, with a specialization in the conservation of paintings, polychrome wooden sculptures, and contemporary art.

Soraya Alcalá is Head of Paintings Conservation at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where she oversees the treatment and research of paintings across the collection. Trained in cultural heritage conservation at the University of Barcelona and the University of Pisa, she brings both scientific foundation and a global perspective in cultural heritage conservation to her work. Her international career includes positions at renowned institutions such as the American Museum of Natural History, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the National Museum of Art of Catalonia, and the Opera della Primaziale Pisana. In addition to her institutional roles, Soraya operated a successful private conservation studio in New York for nearly a decade, working with a wide range of museums, galleries, and private collectors.Her research centers on innovative cleaning methods, particularly gel-based systems, and materials analysis. She frequently leads professional workshops focused on the cleaning of sensitive artworks, and her work has been published in Journal of Cultural Heritage, Heritage Science, and Microchemical Journal.

Francesco Brenda a 1st year PhD student in Industrial Chemistry at the Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna (XL cycle). At UniBo, his research focus is the application of the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to industrial and laboratory scale chemical processes, aimed at investigating potential environmental impacts and providing strategies towards a more sustainable development.

Qing Wu studied her BA and MA in Art Conservation at the Bern Academy of the Arts, Switzerland, specializing in painting and sculpture. Her Ph.D. investigated materials and technological features of historical gilding systems at the University of Zurich. After her PhD, she worked at the Cologne Institute of Conservation Science, Germany. She is now using her skills in the intersection of conservation and materials analysis as a postdoc at the Haute École Arc, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland (HES-SO), to develop innovative green methods for metal cleaning in the “GoGreen” EU project.