The International Center for Heritage Conservation Foundation (Cicop) recommends that “preventive conservation be carried out for the sculpture” dedicated to San José de Anchieta, currently located in the roundabout of the same name located at the entrance to La Laguna, and that “it does not present a serious deterioration in its state of conservation”, although it does show various damages “due to the exposure of the work to an urban atmosphere subjected to direct exposure to road traffic” and “the little care that has been taken with the sculpture ”.
This is reflected in a study carried out by the Cicop Foundation, at the request of the mayor of La Laguna, Luis Yeray Gutiérrez, on the state of the sculpture, and the reasons that advise a change in the location of the work are explained. The mayor had announced, during the plenary session last Thursday, that this report was already available, in which the Cicop Foundation “invites the City Council to carry out an improvement of the statue due to the circumstances in which it is found , product of erosion for so many years in this roundabout,” he said.
Specifically, in said study it is explained that “the general structure of the work does not present a serious deterioration in its state of conservation, since superficially it is not physically compromised; however, it does have a large amount of chloride corrosion due to the reaction of atmospheric SO2 which is oxidized to SO3 by rapidly reacting with water to form sulfuric acid”.
In addition, “the location of the work in the access to the historic center of the city, is characterized by having a large concentration of road traffic throughout the day”; and also “it is located a few kilometers from the coast of Santa Cruz, with the added problem of exposure to marine aerosols with a very high relative humidity, reaching levels between 50-80%”. “All this advises its transfer to a less polluting environment,” says the report.
Likewise, it is pointed out that the work “is also exposed to direct solar radiation, causing large thermal changes, responsible for the pathologies suffered”, also experiencing “the direct and permanent action of the wind, which, transporting particles in suspension, performs a constant erosion on the surface of the sculpture, producing wear on the surface of the bronze, alterations, increasing contamination and depositing elements on the sculpture”, since in the place where it is located “it is not protected from the action of the wind and, therefore, directly receives the air current, constantly eroding it”.
Likewise, “chromatic alterations are observed, which contaminants and environmental particles have been generating over time, these are coatings with a more or less low degree of adherence, also associated with corrosion compounds. This deposition has caused a constant interaction with the metal, causing greater corrosion in the areas of folds and recesses”.
It also points to the alterations “caused by biodeterioration due to the action on the sculpture by bird droppings”, which “cause very serious chemical processes, since these depositions contain acids that interact with the support creating serious corrosion to the bronze” . And it is observed “at the base of the sculpture absences of material, due to blows and accidental causes that, added to the lack of maintenance, present an aspect that requires a consolidation and replacement intervention”.
Finally, the report highlights “the lack of maintenance that this work has enjoyed throughout its existence, with no data on interventions being known.”
It should be remembered that the sculpture, the work of Brazilian artist Bruno Giordi, was inaugurated on November 27, 1960, and was promoted by a commission appointed for this purpose by the City Council and financed by the lagoons and the Brazilian Government.
For all these reasons, the report prepared by the Cicop Foundation concludes that “it has been observed that the damage present in the work is mostly a consequence of exposure to a polluted atmosphere and the little care that has been taken on the sculpture. If it had been treated with regular and effective maintenance, it would not present most of the alterations”.
In addition, “a characteristic problem of this metallic sculpture exposed to the outside is the high chemical instability of the constituent material, for this reason constant maintenance is recommended to know, in addition, the evolution that it is having that compromises its durability”.
Therefore, “annual cleaning with water mist is recommended, thus avoiding damaging the protective layer that is applied and eliminating the residues deposited on the work, as well as maintaining control over the protective layer, since it is the one that reduces the interaction of the medium with the sculpture”.
For all that is stated in the report, “a change of location and preventive conservation is proposed for the sculpture in order to observe its evolution and keep it in a correct state of conservation, thus minimizing the damage it could suffer in the place it occupies. nowadays”.
Regarding the location, the Cicop Foundation proposes in the study the gardens of the Central Campus of the University of La Laguna, relocating the commemorative plaque in memory of Doctor Antonio González to a place closer to the historic building of the ULL.
Both the City Council of La Laguna and the Cabildo have already confirmed that the sculpture will be provisionally located in said garden, while the work on the pedestrian walkway project at the Padre Anchieta roundabout lasts. In fact, the island councilor for Highways, Enrique Arriaga, pointed out that the transfer will take place throughout this month, although there is still no exact date, according to DIARIO DE AVISOS.
In addition, during the plenary session last Thursday, the Councilor for Works and Infrastructure, Josimar Hernández, announced that once the work on the roundabout is completed, the sculpture will have its final location in a square attached to said roundabout. Specifically, on a newly created platform called Plaza del Padre Anchieta, which will be located in front of the buildings of the Faculty of Biology at the start of Avenida Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez. The statue would be placed on a new plinth that raises it so that it can be seen from the entire link, and that could be illustrated with a mural to better understand the life of Father Anchieta.
