Interview conducted in 2009 as part of the INCCA program (www.incca.org). It is a database with two forms of access to information: the first contains information that is freely accessible to the public; the second form is only accessible to members who contribute research, documentation, interviews, generally unpublished, to exchange information. The interview with Manoel Veiga was carried out, not only with the purpose of sharing with colleagues from the INCCA platform, but also because it was necessary to request his help when restoring a work. Thus, the full interview is available, presenting central topics such as: working methods, use of materials, aging, documentation and conservation and restoration. The sequence of topics and questions was prepared based on the model developed and suggested by the INCCA project.




ABOUT THE INTERVIEWER:

Specialist in conservation-restoration of modern and contemporary works. Professor at the Federal University of Minas Gerais.


INTRODUCTION:

Magali Sehn: Can you talk a little about recent work? Any significant changes in the materials?

Manoel Veiga: I work with acrylic paint on canvas and I hardly use brushes, that's been 8 years. In the previous works, I used the same materials but the painting was built with a brush, although without virtuous gestures.

MS: How do you develop the idea? With previous drawings, models, etc. In what material?
MV: I don't sketch, it wouldn't make sense since my process involves chance, I only do color tests on small pieces of canvas.

MS: Do you follow the design and its dimensions faithfully to the project or do you vary during its manufacture?
MV: Even though I did color tests, I can change the mixes a little bit during the process.
 
MS: Can color tests be considered finished works?
MV Initially I did not consider color tests as finished works but I kept several over time to serve as a reference / future reference. More recently I started to think about sets of these tests as finished work. This is in process.

MS: Do you work personally in all the processes of carrying out a work? Do you have a helper? What kind of work do you do?
MV: I have no helpers.

MS: Do you sign your works? What does the signature on works of art mean to you?
MV: I've only signed on the back for many years, at least from 1998 onwards.


MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES

MS: You mentioned that you use acrylic paint. Any specific brand? Have you added new materials? Why?
MV: I have been using a series of paints from Windsor & Newton called “Finity” for several years, because they have great pigment quality and because each tube contains only one type (chemical family) of pigment. My working process requires this kind of control because I work using the physical and chemical properties of the materials.



PREPARATION BASES AND GROUNDS 

MS: What kind of preparation do you use for your paintings? Do you buy prepared and stretched canvas or do you prepare it yourself?
MV: I buy cotton fabric in roll, already prepared with universal acrylic base. The manufacturer is Fedrix, from the USA.

MS: Do you use only the white preparation base as a background or do you apply a layer of white paint over the background? In this case, what type of paint is normally used?
MV: Until last year, I didn't use white pigment in painting. All the white that appeared in the final result was the initial acrylic preparation. Recently, the process became more complex and I started to introduce the acrylic base as if it were white paint, generating more complex relationships between the initial background and the subsequent color layers.


PAINTING LAYER

MS: How do the visual qualities of the material (color, texture, brightness, opacity, transparency, texture, etc.) determine the meaning of the work?
MV: In my case, the visual properties of the materials, by themselves, do not determine the final meaning of the works, but contribute to it to the extent that they enable the creation of complex relationships of planes on the surface and of them with the background.

MS: Do you apply a protective layer, such as varnish?
MV: No.

MS: I would like you to describe how you apply the painting? What resources do you use? Already mounted on the stretcher? Position?
MV: To work, I stretch the canvas in a plywood whose area is that of the final image plus a small addition so that the sides are painted once the canvas is stretched. Then the plywood with the canvas goes to the floor where it remains until the end of the process. The painting is applied with a brush, either by touching or letting it drop. Then there is minimal contact with the painting, almost all the process being indirect and the main tool is a common garden sprayer, used to add water throughout the process, causing the painting to diffuse over the canvas.


SUPORT

MS: What kind of support do you use? Cotton, linen, etc? What are the reasons?
MV: Cotton. For the relationship between cost and benefit. The ideal would be the linen because it is less hygroscopic but it is very expensive.

MS: What importance do you attach to the support?
MV: Painting is a system and all the choices of supports and materials will be reflected in some way in the final result or in the permanence of the work. The support is the starting point and for that very reason it is essential, either for the final visual aspect, or for the resistance of the work over time.

STRETCHER BARS 

MS: What type of stretcher bars do you normally use in your work?
MV: I don't use stretcher bars with wedges. The restorers I spoke with differ on whether or not this type of frame is indicated. I prefer the fixed one, which, for a given weather condition in a given city, will always vary in the same way, generating the same type of stress for the work. The wedge is more unstable and the option of readjusting the pressure by rearranging the wedges appears to be somewhat reckless for many restorers because too much or too little tension can be put, which can generate unpredictable damage to the work. As for the material of the stretcher bars, it depends on the availability in the place where the work will be stretched. For example, in São Paulo I usually use Caixeta (A. triplinervia). In Recife I still use Cedar because the price is reasonable and is still relatively easy to find. Cedar is the best because it is the less hygroscopic wood.


DISPLAY METHODS

MS: Are there any minimum conditions that the space should offer for displaying the work, such as lighting conditions?
MV: I prefer a situation of diffused and uniform light in the environment.


STORAGE


MS: How do you store the different objects? Where? How?
MV: In the studio, I store my work wrapped around tubes (not “inside” tubes) and place them on open shelves so that they always have good ventilation. As the humidity in São Paulo is low, this situation is perfectly adequate.


AGING AND DETERIORATION

MS: Did you have any deterioration problems in some types of works? What are the causes? Fragility, materials used, climatic conditions?
MV: I only once knew of a client whose work was attacked by fungi. But the obvious cause was the location where it was installed, in a beach house and on an extremely damp stone wall.

MS: Do you think that aging can influence the expressiveness of your works? Do you think that the state of conservation can interfere in the reading of the work? What kind of change? Dirt, breaks, abrasions, chromatic changes?
MV: I don't believe that chromatic changes will happen since I use very stable pigments. On the other hand, as these works in recent years always have large white areas, I am concerned that scratches or some stain may happen. This would really compromise the reading of the work because it would be like static noise in relation to the fluid stains that I create.

MS: What are the acceptable limits of aging?
MV: In this case, I can only say that I would not like excessive white parts to darken (acrylic base of the screen that appears in the final result).

MS: What procedures do you recommend for the correct preservation of your work?
MV: Simply install the work on a dry wall and clean it with a dry brush.


DOCUMENTATION

MS: What is the documentation process that you normally use in your works? Do you have some kind of file?
MV: I photograph my entire production in high definition (digital camera) myself and keep everything in a database built by me using Microsoft Access. There I introduce both technical information and the history of exhibitions and sales of each work.


RESTORATION

MS: Have you personally restored any of your works? Why? What is the criterion adopted?
MV: Until today, I have only done some cleaning on the edges due to careless handling in galleries. I prefer a qualified restorer to do the job, but I will be happy to collaborate whenever consulted, within my knowledge of the subject.

MS: Do you know if any of your works have been restored by someone else? What do you think of the treatment? Would you have done it any other way?
MV: Only that case mentioned above and the treatment was adequate, I even collaborated with the restorer here in São Paulo.


BIBLIOGRAPHY

MS: Would you like to mention any essay, article or review about your work that interested you? 
MV:
2000 "Manoel Veiga - Inventário de Espaços e Tempos", Moacir dos Anjos, Fundação Joaquim Nabuco, Recife PE
2003 "Manoel Veiga - Evanescências", Guy Amado, Paço das Artes, São Paulo SP
2005 "Manoel Veiga - Primeiro Caderno de Pintura", texto de minha autoria, Galeria Virgílio, São Paulo SP
2007 "Acaso e rigor (ou da alquimia pictórica de Manoel Veiga)", Adolfo Montejo Navas, Museu Murillo La Greca, Recife PE
2009 "Manoel Veiga", Clarissa Diniz, Galeria Dumaresq, Recife PE


___

Concrete data of brands and material providers: canvas manufacturer Fedrix (www.taramaterials.com/ArtistCanvas). Paint manufacturer Windsor & Newton (www.winsornewton.com).