Seismic Analysis of a Modern Artwork Through Detailed FE Modeling

Cultural heritage artworks constitute significant traces of human actions throughout history, underlying the importance of their preservation and transmission to future generations. Nevertheless, due to environmental, anthropogenic and natural actions, they are subject to deterioration, decay and potential loss. Cultural heritage artifacts, such as statues, are vulnerable to strong impacts due to their fragile behavior. For these reasons, although protected in museums, these artworks are characterized by a notable risk towards seismic actions, especially considering their potential overturning. The expected behaviour of statues depends on the peculiarity of each good, the type of connection to the support, the mass centre’s position, the stress flow along the static configuration. Given the exceptional context of these artworks, structural analysis requires detailed surveys and accurate modelling, limiting the uncertainties normally acknowledged in civil construction works. In this research, a detailed finite-element (FE) model has been carried out to investigate the seismic response of a modern statue. The artwork is part of the Marino Marini Museum collection, a museum situated in the centre of Florence (IT) hosting a variety of artistic goods created in the 20th century by the Italian artist and sculptor Marino Marini. A photogrammetric survey of the statue was conducted, and a complete three-dimensional mesh was obtained. The model of the statue, imported in a FE environment, has accounted for unilateral constraints to simulate the interaction between the statue and the floor. The seismic analysis has considered a seismic input compatible with the soil underlying the museum. The outcomes of the research, evaluated in terms of stress and displacements of the statue, permitted estimating the risk affecting the artwork towards seismic actions, providing useful information for stakeholders aimed at its conservation.