Symposium on conservation science

Conservation Symposium:

"Analyze This: Looking at Art through the Prism of Science"
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Friday-Saturday, March 30-31, 2012

The symposium, "Analyze This: Looking at Art through the Prism of
Science", celebrates the diversity of scientific research supported
by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation at museums across the United
States, including the MFAH and the Menil Collection, to strengthen
the training of conservation scientists and the role of scientific
research in the preservation of art. The symposium kicks off with an
opening address Friday evening, March 30, , 2012 and features
lectures the next day by a roster of scientists from a number of
prestigious institutions.

Admission: Free with general museum admission

Brown Auditorium Theater
Law Building
1001 Bissonnet Street
Houston, Texas

Friday, March 30, 2012
6:30 pm

 "The Making of a Luxury Image: Van Aelst's Painting Materials and
  Artistic Techniques"

    Melanie Gifford, research conservator for painting technology,
    National Gallery of Art, and Aniko Bezur, the Andrew W. Mellon
    Research Scientist, MFAH and Menil Collection, present the
    opening address, detailing the collaborative study by the MFAH
    and the National Gallery of Willem van Aelst's painting
    techniques and materials in preparation for the exhibition
    Elegance and Refinement: The Still-Life Paintings of Willem van
    Aelst, on view now. A wine reception and an opportunity to learn
    more about select paintings in the exhibit will follow.

Saturday, March 31, 2012
2-5 pm

 "Sensing Sensitivity: Avoiding Light Damage to Colors with
  Stability Tests on Art Objects"

    Dr. Paul Whitmore, director of the Art Conservation Research
    Center and research professor in the department of chemistry,
    Carnegie Mellon University, will present on how scientific tools
    can help protect cultural heritage by pinpointing areas of
    vulnerability to specific types of degradation.

 "CSI: Picasso"

    Dr. Francesca Casadio, Andrew W. Mellon Senior Conservation
    Scientist, Art Institute of Chicago, will present on how
    materials analysis can be used to identify an artist's materials
    and the specific time and place in which a work may have been
    created.

 "Modern and Contemporary Art: A Scientist's Perspective"

    Dr. Narayan Khandekar, senior conservation scientist, Harvard
    Art Museums, Straus Center for Conservation, will present on the
    special challenges presented by modern and contemporary art.

For more information, the public should visit:

    <URL:http://www.mfah.org/calendar/conservation-symposium-opening-lecture/5301/>
    <URL:http://mfah.org/calendar/conservation-symposium-analyze-looking-art-through/5193/>

Aniko Bezur, PhD
Andrew W. Mellon Research Scientist for The Museum of Fine Arts,
    Houston and The Menil Collection
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
PO Box 6826
Houston TX 77265-6826
713-639-7738
Mobile: 281-900-3133
Fax: 713-639-7740


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 25:43
                 Distributed: Saturday, March 24, 2012
                       Message Id: cdl-25-43-011
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