Paul B. Coremans facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Paul Coremans
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| Born | 29 April 1906 |
| Died | 11 June 1965 (aged 57) Noorden, Netherlands
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| Nationality |  Belgian |
| Alma mater | Free University of Brussels |
| Known for | Cultural heritage management |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Analytical chemistry |
| Institutions | Royal Museums of Art and History |
Paul Bernard Joseph Marie Coremans (born April 29, 1908 – died June 11, 1965) was a Belgian scientist. He was a pioneer in protecting and studying important cultural treasures like paintings and sculptures. He also founded and became the first director of the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage. This institute still helps take care of Belgium's art and history today.
The Institute held a special event in Coremans' honor from June 15–17, 2015.
Early Discoveries
Paul Coremans studied Latin and Greek in Antwerp from 1920 to 1926. In 1932, he earned a doctorate in analytical chemistry from the Free University of Brussels. Analytical chemistry is about figuring out what things are made of.
Soon after, in 1934, he was invited to set up a lab at the Royal Museums of Art and History in Brussels. His job was to use science to check if artworks were real and how well they were preserved. He also helped organize the museum's photo collection.
Coremans used special lab tools to study art. He used radiography (like X-rays), thermography (heat sensing), and ultraviolet light. These methods helped him quickly learn about hidden details in artworks. He also studied how to keep museum air at the right temperature and humidity. He even took more courses in things like metal study and art history.
Saving Art During World War II
During World War II, Paul Coremans took on a very important mission. He was asked to lead a project to document Belgium's cultural heritage. He gathered volunteers to photograph monuments and public art all over the country.
This project added 160,000 new photos to the museum's collection. It created the "Central Iconographic Archives of National Art." Coremans also helped young people avoid being forced to work in Germany. He hid them in the museum buildings.
His team also carried out emergency missions. They saved parts of the Saint Gertrude of Nivelles shrine. They also rescued old paintings from churches in Tournai. Coremans worked hard to protect artworks in museums in Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, and Brussels. He made sure these valuable pieces were moved to safe places and kept in good condition. In 1942, he became the director of the Royal Museums of Art and History laboratories.
After the War: Building a Legacy
After the war, Coremans helped return artworks stolen by the Nazis to their rightful owners. This work made him think about how to protect art during wartime. He surveyed other countries and published a guide in 1946. This guide shared European experiences from 1939 to 1945.
His museum services grew, leading to a new organization in 1948. It was first called the "Central Iconographic Archives of National Art and Central Laboratory of the Museums of Belgium (ACL)." Coremans became its first director. In 1957, it was renamed the "Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage."
In 1948, he started teaching at the University of Ghent. He was the first in Belgium to teach students how to use science to examine artworks. He believed that understanding the physical makeup of art was as important as its history or beauty. This led him to organize the ACL into three parts: Documentation, Conservation-Restoration, and Laboratories. This was the start of using many different sciences together, known as interdisciplinarity.
One of the Institute's first big projects was restoring the famous Ghent Altarpiece in 1950. Many other restorations followed, all using this team approach. To share these new methods, the Institute started publishing its own journal in 1958.
Coremans also helped create the National Research Centre "Flemish Primitives." This center published many books and helped the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage become known worldwide.
His busy work led to the need for a new, custom-built home for the Royal Institute of Cultural Heritage. The new building was finished in 1962. It became a model for other similar institutions around the world. For Coremans, it was a chance to improve training. He created regular courses for advanced students on how to scientifically examine and preserve cultural objects.
Paul Coremans spent his last years dedicated to teaching. He wanted to spread the idea of using many different fields of study to protect art. He taught courses in 1963 with the Belgian American Educational Foundation and New York University.
He passed away on June 11, 1965, in Noorden. His colleague, René Sneyers, took over as the second director of the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage.
Paul Coremans is known around the world for his passion for artistic heritage. He helped develop new ways to protect and understand the world's valuable art.
See also
