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backstory: Conservation and Care

You often hear me say how much I enjoy spending time looking around in our art storage area and rediscovering objects there.

The wonderful pieces in the museum’s collection come to us from many different sources and each with its own interesting provenance and history. Some, like the Smith sculpture I wrote about recently, can be a little mysterious in their need for conservation. Others clearly need conservation, as is the case with two works I was looking at recently: Concert European, a 19th century drawing on paper by Georges Seurat, and On the Bridge, a 1948 painting by Yasuo Kuniyoshi. Both were showing the effects of time and needed to be conserved. Skilled partners help with that restoration. Generous Friends make possible the ongoing—and sometimes very specialized— care that is required. We are grateful to all who are involved in making the restoration possible and look forward to exhibiting the works when they are back from the conservator.

Tracy Fitzpatrick
Director, Neuberger Museum of Art

Find me on Twitter @tracyfitzart