Blog @ the Nelson-Atkins

Senior Conservator Kate Garland recently completed a project cleaning a 10th-century Persian earthenware Platter with Kufic Inscription. Garland noted that the platter appeared to have many fills as well as several areas where overpainting was done by a 20th-century restorer to conceal old breaks.

The platter was cleaned with acetone solvent to remove as much of the dirt and overpaint as was safely possible. As she slowly cleaned, using a wooden stick and cotton tip soaked in the acetone, Garland pointed to areas around the platter’s edges where restorers added paint over the original glaze.

Continue reading "Treatment of Persian 'Platter with Kufic Inscription'" »

Conservation on 11th-14th-century Islamic objects has been a recent focus for Museum conservators. Among those projects was a survey, repair on a vase, and careful cleaning of an inkwell. A recent project for Kress Fellow Conservation Intern Jiafang Liang has been on the late 12th-early 13th century Persian bowl pictured below. It is composed of earthenware with a lead glaze and depicts a scene of a courtier and attendants, hence its descriptive title: Bowl with Scene of Courtier and Attendants. During her examination, Jiafang found evidence of previous restoration. She pointed out areas where that work is more obvious, including cracks in artificially painted glaze as well as differences in enamel paints, design and texture.

Continue reading "Looking Closely at a Persian Bowl" »

Dear friends,

I am certain that, like me, you have been following the events unfolding in Egypt with vivid interest. Just a little while ago Mubarak officially transferred the powers to the military, and all of Egypt is celebrating what is sure to be a historic moment: a major bloodless revolution powered by the connectivity that technology brings to all of us. The assertiveness of the young Facebook generation and the daring of many contributed greatly to this change. Of course, the next days and months are critical in reinventing a nation with the democratic values that have been so strongly heralded by the people.

These same tools are ones that have brought the world closer together and today, as they celebrate, I feel particularly close to the Egyptian people.

Early in my career I had the opportunity to work in Egypt and immediately developed a love for the country and the rich variety of cultures that have emerged from Pharaonic times to the present. Many of my meetings were at the Cairo Museum, and I would stay at a nearby hotel, all around Tahir Square, which now will be known for these peaceful transformative events.

In watching this, my emotions rose and I was reminded of 1989 when the Berlin Wall came down. I had the privilege of flying into Berlin to witness those events first hand and was joined by my maternal grandmother who, in her youth, had to flee that same city. Chipping a part of that wall with her remains one of the highlights of my life.

We are living incredible times, and I couldn’t refrain from sharing these thoughts with you.

Best,

Julian

If you visit the minimalism and conceptual art galleries over the month of February, you may see someone touching the art. Rose Daly, objects conservation graduate intern, will be assessing the condition and treating the sculpture End of Day: Nightscape IV.

This is a unique opportunity to see art conservation in action, which is almost exclusively done behind the scenes in the Museum. Art conservation is the department concerned with the preservation and restoration of the art collection.

Continue reading "Louise Nevelson's "End of Day" Sees Light of Day" »

The exhibition may have ended, but the Cups remain Forever.

British artist Clare Twomey's installation of 1,345 Cups was an investigation into the ideas of permanence, responsibility and the perceived value of works of art. Twomey was inspired by a gift of 1,345 pieces of British ceramics by Harriet and Frank Burnap in 1941. The Burnaps stated repeatedly in the Deed of Gift that the collection be held by the Museum "in trust forever."

Continue reading "Cups of Plenty" »