Polymeric Materials in Modern-Contemporary Art

Dear Colleagues,

The study of polymeric materials in modern and contemporary art, such as binders, varnishes, adhesives, plastics, foams, optical fibres, etc., and their preservation is highly challenging. An ever-evolving array of polymers is adapted to artistic and industrial needs by manufacturers and individual artists, with consequent wide variation in formulations. As these materials age and degrade, their chemical stability, appearance, and mechanical properties can be compromised. This fact motivates research into preventive and interventive conservation techniques. Polymeric material characterization is key to these endeavors and often challenging. 

Evolving scientific characterization methods, whether in situ or on extracted micro-samples, and enhanced data analytical techniques contribute to modern and contemporary art study in exciting new ways. 

This Special Issue will highlight the latest scientific and technical research into investigations of polymeric materials widely found in modern and contemporary art from a broad perspective. Contributions are invited on, but not limited to, these subjects: 

• Polymeric materials in modern and contemporary art;
• Matrix and additive identification and their interaction;
• New technologies and evaluation methods;
• Ageing and degradation mechanisms and phenomena;
• Influence of VOCs on polymeric materials;
• Advances in conservation treatments;
• Effectiveness of new cleaning methods;
• Preservation.

Dr. Valentina Pintus
Dr. Odile Madden
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.