Mehra’s Eight Requirements for Linings, Revisited: Evaluation of Linings for Canvas Paintings—Then and Now

In this paper, Vishwa Mehra’s eight requirements for linings—as written in a report from 1972—are reviewed in a contemporary context nearly fifty years later. Special emphasis is placed on concepts like flexibility, compatibility, and physical integrity, which are still part of conservation discussions. Some of the concepts discussed by Mehra did not have a clear definition, or his understanding of them either was not given or differed from a more contemporary understanding. This
means that his concepts can be used for many different purposes and to justify many different actions. Requirements in conservation were perhaps necessary at a time when the profession was undergoing significant change, but now requirements are generally replaced with recommendations, guidelines, or analysis of the risks involved in a considered action. A way of looking at risk analyses for structural paintings conservation is proposed as a way forward for assessing these treatments