2025 Poster Session

Benito Quinquela Martín, one of Argentina's most iconic painters, left an everlasting influence on his hometown of La Boca through his public paintings. Among his most significant contributions are the 13 oil murals painted on Celotex® panels that have adorned Escuela N° 9 since 1936. In these pieces the artist intended to capture with his distinctive colors, the working-class life of the La Boca port, building a bridge between everyday life and art for the students of this school.




Over time, the murals have suffered significant deterioration due to environmental factors, structural issues. The conservation team of the TAREA Center of the National University of San Martín has started a conservation program for these murals, by adopting an interdisciplinary approach, studing Quinquela Martín's contemporary artistic technique (oil, wax and resin on Celotex®) to find the best intervention solutions that respect both the message and the materiality.




The project faces important challenges, as the structural and circumstantial problems of the school complicate long-term conservation. The placement of these pieces in an educational space requires creative strategies for the implementation of preventive conservation practices and policies. 




To date, five murals have been treated, each presenting unique dares, as the conservation issues vary considerably among them. Celotex®, being a highly hygroscopic cellulosic agglomerate, has proven unsuitable for the long-term preservation of these pieces.  The environmental conditions in the classroom, such as light, humidity and temperature fluctuations, are adjusted to the students comfort, rather than for the conservation of the murals,  accelerating the deterioration of the paintings.  This situation is compounded by the inadequate interventions they have undergone in the past.




This neglect over the years has contributed to a loss of value in these murals, both from a historical-cultural and aesthetic perspective. However, the current restoration aims not only to preserve the paintings but also to recover the emotional connection and heritage value they represent for the La Boca community, and particularly for the students of Escuela N° 9.