Lydiane Chomienne

Lydiane Chomienne (1979, France) is a restorer of paintings. A graduate of the Institut national du patrimoine, she is a pioneer in the field of restoring tempera paintings on monumental canvases. As the creator of innovative techniques, she has profoundly revolutionised the way these large-scale works are managed. Under the auspices of the Centre de recherche et de restauration des musées de France (C2RMF), she oversees major restoration projects for public collections, particularly for extensive complexes of 16th-century French art. Working at the intersection of heritage and contemporary practices, she has developed an approach to restoration that is conceived as a space for research, experimentation and dialogue with contemporary artistic creation.

Her residency project centres on the study of significant Roman collections, some of which have never been shown before, forming part of the corpus of monumental tempera paintings. The focus on these faux tapestries reveals the existence of a flourishing production in Rome during the 13th century. Studying these works could shed new light on the history of painting techniques and inspire contemporary artistic practices. At Villa Medici, she will alternate between selecting works from the collections, conducting on-site material analysis, and engaging in scholarly discourse on intervention protocols. The project also involves the creation of an international network of researchers and the restoration of one of these works in public.