“A conservator makes the case that in 19th-century Europe, restoring Renaissance masterpieces wasn't just a matter of upkeep: it also led to the kind of close study that constitutes art history as we know it. Were it not for the cleaning and repairing of works by Giotto and Titian, Hayes proposes, we wouldn't look at art the way we do today.”
— ARTnews
“Important new book. . . . [Sheds] new light on neglected practitioners while offering a fresh perspective on familiar art historians.”
— Luke Uglow, APOLLO
“This book is for anyone with an interest in Renaissance artworks and the history of their collection and conservation. . . . The accuracy of the information and images are superb.”
— Kimberly Frost, News in Conservation
“The principal distinction of this carefully researched and dense account of the subject is that its author, Matthew Hayes, is a practicing paintings conservator. Rather more unusual is Hayes's keen and abiding interest in his profession's philosophical intent and historical evolution. This is not a ‘how-to’ book, but rather a ‘why and when’ one.”
— Marco Grassi, The New Criterion
“[An] enjoyable, intelligent, and well-written book on the history of art and of conservation in the nineteenth century.”
— Giorgio Bonsanti, The Burlington Magazine
“A book of great interest, aimed at capturing the interaction between art history and conservation during the nineteenth century, i.e. the century that saw the respective professional figures getting a ‘modern’ shape.”
— Giovanni Mazzaferro, Letteratura artistica
“A detailed, intelligent account of the development and correlations between painting conservation and the emergence of art history in nineteenth-century Europe.”
— Andrea Walton, ARLIS/NA
“The volume paints an interesting picture of the different materialisations of the dialogue between art history and conservation throughout the century.”
— Maartje Stols-Witlox, Journal of Art Historiography