Modern Approach to Lighting Large-Size Paintings Installed behind Glass

As the analysis of lighting devices used to illuminate large-size paintings shows, in museum practice, with the exception of isolated cases, there is no equipment that would exclude the appearance of extraneous images on the painting field under various operating conditions (specialized galleries, palace-museums, churches-museums). This effect is especially evident when protecting the painting layer with glass, which only increases the number of situations of unacceptable distortion of the pictorial image. In addition, traditional methods of lighting large-size canvases use a large set of lighting devices, which, as a consequence, leads to significant power consumption. The aim of the proposed work is an attempt to develop a method using equipment that allows to get rid of the shortcomings inherent in the traditional approach to lighting large-sized paintings and, in particular, in the case of their installation behind protective glass. The paper provides an analysis of the main problems of lighting large-sized paintings that arise when they are installed behind protective glass. Possible technical solutions to overcome them are described in detail. The results of research and development that underlie these solutions are presented.