ABSTRACT
The sculptural ensemble “Hombre y mujer” is a expressionist figurative representation of two human figures, created by the artist Margarita Cavestany in 1958 in zinc for a front of building in Avilés (Asturias), currently being restored.
The main objective is to characterize its materials and to study its state of conservation. The ensemble is a high relief of zinc formed by several pieces, individually made with a casting technique with the hollow back reinforced in parts with mortars and bricks.
It has been studied through SEM/EDX, XRD and FTIR. The results have allowed to characterize the nature of the different fillings and welds, a grout present in the torso of the man and to identify different degradation products from zinc. Many of the crystalline phases detected are the result of surface corrosion to form a patina, while others more unstable come from the interaction with fillers and atmospheric pollutants.
