Cambiando el paradigma del biodeteriorolas microalgas de la Alhambra y el Generalifecomo oportunidad para la creación de nuevas técnicas artísticas

Zusammenfassung

Biotic agents such as algae, fungi and bacteria coexist with cultural and artistic assets, accelerating their deterioration and producing undesirable modifications if their growth occurs in an uncontrolled manner. The hydraulic architecture of the monumental complex of the Alhambra and the Generalife, in Granada (Spain) is an ideal place for their proliferation, due to the materials that make up the ornamental fountains and the cultural prominence of water in this place. Through the project «Advanced application of algae from the Alhambra and the Generalife in artistic techniques and conservation-restoration», with the acronym of Ficoarte II and funded by the Andalusian Plan for Research, Development and Innovation PAIDI 2020, ERDF Program, (cod. P18-FR-4477), theproperties of substances produced by microalgae belonging to this emblematic monument and which are frequently treated as biodeterioration agents are being investigated, with the aim of creating new materials for artistic purposes, mainly dyes and pigments, of natural origin and low toxicity and environmental impact. Thus, pigments of different colorations have been selected from species belonging to the genera Coelastrella, Haematococcus (green algae) and Cyanosarcina (cyanobacteria), which commonly grow in the Alhambra and its surroundings. The cultivation conditions have been optimized, with the aim of developing a higher production of photosynthetic pigments and subsequently, the properties of these microalgae have been studied to be used in artistic techniques.