This week I started ‘Painting for Restoration’ classes and my first task was to create a copy of a painting in pencil.

This is the drawing in progress. The materials I used were watercolour paper and an H-pencil.

In my ‘Restoration of Painting’ classes, I continued working on restoring the missing pieces of Carpaccio’s painting. I finished drawing in the missing details with pencil ready to be painted.

I used the cut out pieces of the image and the drawings to guide me when filling in the areas with guache. The aim is to make the areas slightly lighter than the original because once the varnish is applied, the colours will appear darker. The guache needs to be applied in lines using the tip of the paint brush and paint needs to be applied in a similar way to the painting as to look cohesive with the rest of the image but not identical, since restorers need to be aware of which areas have already been restored.

This week, Elena also gave a demonstration on how to clean a painting. The technique involves using a variety of tools, including a paint brush and cotton wool, whilst applying various chemicals, such as ammonium carbonate, petrol and alcohol, to remove dirt from the painting.

I got a chance to clean the painting myself.

I took notes of the cleaning process as well as the initial steps in restoring a hole in a painting.

One of the new places in Florence that I’ve been this week to is the Mercato Centrale. I love wondering around the stalls and seeing all the fresh food on offer.

This is the first piano with the strings upright, designed by Domenico del Mela in 1739. I saw it as part of the exhibition on musical instruments in the Galleria dell’Accademia, where I also learnt about Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655-1732), who invented the pianoforte in 1700.

When I’m not studying or sightseeing, I like to hang out at the hostel that I’m staying at. This is a quick drawing of the terrace lights leading up to my room.