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Conserving the Past for the Future 		(spacer)
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Conserving the Past for the Future

About the Exhibition

Finding your way around


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Damage caused by collectors

Candle Bracket
France, style of Louis XVI, about 1780
Gilded bronze
Elizabeth Severance Prentiss Fund 1944.469.1

Past use of an object by collectors often inflicts irreversible damage. This bracket was modified so electric light bulbs could be used in it. This required drilling into the metal and attaching wires. The wiring can be removed and the holes filled, but the loss of original material is permanent.

Condition Issues

The state of preservation of an artwork depends on a number of factors. Some are external, such as environment, handling, and previous restorations; others are internal, involving the composition and construction of the work itself.

The museum staff strives to maintain the most suitable display techniques, gallery environments, and storage conditions to ensure the long-term survival of its artworks. However, each work enters the collection with a unique history.

Conservators must contend with the physical, chemical, and aesthetic influences from an object's cumulative past. In the condition section of the exhibition we explore three influences on the condition of an object: the environment, burial, and defects within artistic materials ("inherent vice").

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