Listening - A physicist talks about the investigative science tools that art galleries use/Prompts

From OER in Education

Questions - Discussion prompts - Infra-red and investigating works of art

Dr Lawrence Robinson a physicist talks to Roger Frost about the investigative science tools that art galleries use and the OSIRIS infra-red camera which can ‘see’ under the paint of paintings

  • List some of investigations used by art conservators? [What is an art conservator?]
  • What can infra-red imaging do?
  • How is does near infra-red compare to visible light?
  • What does infra enable us to do and show? [Big question]
  • Way is which their camera different to previously used cameras? [Big question]
  • Draw an image (e.g. a line) that helps you to put these terms into place: visible light; near infra-red; 0.5 micron; millimetre; 0.7 micron, blue; 1 micron; metre; 1.7 micron
  • Tell how you imagine using the camera to take a picture of a work of art.
  • Name the technical term for using infra-red in this way?
  • Describe any of the discoveries that the infra-red camera has revealed
  • How can the camera ‘see’ through oil paint?