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Preserving The John Deere Corporate Collection

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Preserving The John Deere Corporate Collection

Corporate archives serve as invaluable repositories of historical knowledge for organizations. Archives provide insights into the company's past, which they can leverage to inform present decision-making and future strategies. These archives serve several vital functions and are crucial in supporting various aspects of a company's operations and activities. They are sources of inspiration and are crucial in preserving corporate memory, facilitating research, ensuring compliance, and contributing to a company's overall success.

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The Benefits of Digitization: Hampton University Archives

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The Benefits of Digitization: Hampton University Archives

The Conservation Center is dedicated to the long-term preservation of artworks and heirlooms, and our job is to preserve and care for the art, antiques, heirlooms, and archives to allow them to have a future life. The focus of conservation is on stabilizing the current conditions of an item and ensuring its safety for the future. Often, this involves services beyond conservation treatment. Custom framing and displays, installation, storage, and handling all impact the long-term safety of art and heirlooms.

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The Care of Custom Framing: Showcasing the Relics from Loyola University Chicago

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The Care of Custom Framing: Showcasing the Relics from Loyola University Chicago

Conservation is often only half of the treatment plan for many items at The Center. After conservation is complete, our Custom Framing and Fabrication Department is continually called upon to design and construct one-of-a-kind display options for unusual objects.

Five Relics from Loyola University Chicago

Five Relics from Loyola University Chicago

“Madonna della Strada Chapel at Loyola University Chicago received the donation of five relics from the Kerwin daughters whose parents Mary and Charles C. Kerwin have a long association with Loyola University and the Archdiocese of Chicago. The relics are from Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, Saint Clare of Assisi, and a piece of the True Cross of Christ. These items are special connections for the faithful of our community and serves as reminders of heroic people for whom we can model our lives on. The Kerwin daughters were extremely generous in that their donation included the conservation of the relics so that they can be viewed and prayed with by our community.”

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Picture Perfect

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Picture Perfect

How to preserve a personal photograph collection and the history it represents.

Published biannually, Luxury Portfolio magazine features the latest luxury perspectives on Real Estate, Design, Travel and Lifestyle. The latest issue features “Picture Perfect” written by Lisa Klein, an interview with our CEO Heather Becker discussing how to care for your photography collection.

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Through The Eyes of Lincoln: A Very Special Pair of Opera Glasses

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Through The Eyes of Lincoln: A Very Special Pair of Opera Glasses

Located in the Land of Lincoln, The Conservation Center sees its fair share of memorabilia connected to the 16th President of the United States. Among various Lincoln memorabilia, in 2014 we had the honor of restoring the courting couch, the sofa on which a young Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd actually sat throughout their courtship in the home of Mary’s sister, Elizabeth. So when a Lincoln relic causes our conservators to stop in awe, rest assured it is a truly special item.

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Kerry James Marshall's "Ipso Facto"

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Kerry James Marshall's "Ipso Facto"

In 2016, The Center had the pleasure of working on a personal piece for Kerry James Marshall titled Cleanliness Is Next to Godliness and we were very honored when the artist gave us the opportunity to work on another piece from his personal collection. “Ipso Facto” is a painting executed on two plywood panels joined together with batons and screws. The diptych is primed and painted with what appears to be moderately applied acrylic. Both panels depict a figure’s rear. The left panel is painted in white, with various colors playfully peeking through the brush strokes, and the other is painted in black surrounded by small white flowers with intimate red and green details. The piece is unvarnished and while unsigned, the painting is characteristic of Marshall’s work.

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Truisms

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Truisms

A friend and long-time supporter of The Center recently brought in a piece to update its display. The artwork, which is composed of many individual artworks— plaques with various texts by Jenny Holzer— was to be rearranged and given new framing materials. The result is a work that is more cohesive and visually pleasing.

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Hinge-Worthy: Updating the Hinges on a Mark Bradford Piece

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Hinge-Worthy: Updating the Hinges on a Mark Bradford Piece

Sometimes pieces arrive at The Center in good condition, but have inappropriate framing treatments. We are frequently asked to reframe art, or to provide solutions to address faulty framing. For instance, one piece came to us in great condition, it had simply slipped from its mount inside its frame. The piece was a mixed media work by Mark Bradford, an installation and conceptual artist from Los Angeles who had first experimented artistically in his mother’s hair salon, and now has pieces in museums around the world.

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Lester’s Legacy: A Book of Memories

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Lester’s Legacy: A Book of Memories

The Center has conserved and digitally replicated everything from family albums, all types of journals, archives, letters, and rare or cultural materials that are irreplaceable. This story focuses on how The Center assisted a client with creating two digital and archival scrapbooks that documented the original material from personal memories and events. The custom made digital scrapbooks were then bound in leather with custom designed clam shell boxes for protection and safe handling. This is an example of how The Center continually strives to save, preserve, and protect works - whether a family heirloom or a rare work of art.

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Conservation-Grade Framing and Display: A Word from the Pros

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Conservation-Grade Framing and Display: A Word from the Pros

Framing and displaying an artwork properly can help draw attention to a work, enhance its visual appeal, and keep it safe. Poorly framing or displaying a work of art, on the other hand, can lead to discoloration, fading, acid burn, and other severe and unnecessary damage.

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Shattered in Shipment: Saving a Work from Broken Glass

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Shattered in Shipment: Saving a Work from Broken Glass

At The Conservation Center, we are acutely aware that accidents happen, so that is why we offer our services at EXPO Chicago every year.  Our team of art handlers and conservators prepare annually to assist in every way possible as hundreds of pieces of art are installed in Navy Pier over two short days.  This year we assisted with a piece that suffered damage from international shipment.  Somewhere along the way, the glass shattered and the paper piece underneath was in need of a quick rescue.

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Timeless Techniques: Treating a Gilded Mirror

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Timeless Techniques: Treating a Gilded Mirror

The Center's Gilding Department specializes in the preservation of frames and objects with gold, silver, and metal leaf applied to the surface. A wonderful example of the type of projects our Gilding Conservators frequently undertake recently came to us in the form of a mirror in need of conservation.

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Timeless Treatment: Conservation of L’adorazione dei Magi

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Timeless Treatment: Conservation of L’adorazione dei Magi

While The Center is always excited to work on challenging contemporary projects in which new media and methods are used, we still enjoy the oldies and goodies.  Recently our Senior Paintings Conservator, Amber Schabdach conserved L’adorazione dei magi, an oil on panel piece circa 1600.  L’adorazione dei magi, or The Adoration of the Magi, was brought to The Center to address handling damage.  

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Displaying Waterbodies: A Look into Conservation Collaboration with former Chicago Bear, Israel Idonije

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Displaying Waterbodies: A Look into Conservation Collaboration with former Chicago Bear, Israel Idonije

It seemed like any other Wednesday in September at The Center.   Things were relatively quiet after a previously hectic week at EXPO CHICAGO, and the Client Services team was expecting an appointment with Israel Idonije who had a large watercolor piece that needed display options.  When the client arrived with the watercolor, the team quickly realized that “display options” was an understatement.   The Conservation Center prides itself on interdepartmental collaboration and the consultation soon included several conservators from many departments, all of whom were ready to Bear Down and tackle the task at hand.  

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Protecting Paper: An Illustrated Guide to Sink Mats

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Protecting Paper: An Illustrated Guide to Sink Mats

A housing technique commonly used at The Center: Creating a sink mat to house paper pieces. Below, Toby Joyce, Director of Conservation Framing, demonstrates the technique:  

The paper piece is carefully situated on top of the supporting mount board with an engaged stepped mat. Weights are used to hold down the paper, and ensure that the piece is centered through to the final step. 

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Not a Walk in the Park: Creating a Safe Case for Jeff Koons' "Balloon Dog Plate (Red)"

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Not a Walk in the Park: Creating a Safe Case for Jeff Koons' "Balloon Dog Plate (Red)"

Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog Plate (Red), recalls birthday parties and carnivals from childhood. The playful subject matter is in stark contrast with the appearance of a metallic medium. In actuality, the piece is made from porcelain with a specially designed metallic glaze, likely to resemble Koons’ 10 foot tall stainless steel Balloon Dog sculptures. An interesting and intriguing piece, its contradictory appearance and composition implores the viewer to touch the piece. The Conservation Center was recently tasked with creating a mount and display case for this 2000 edition Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog Plate (Red). The piece is one of an edition of 2,300 Balloon Dog Plates. As the finish and structure of the piece is extremely fragile and sensitive, it is quite the task to handle the piece and design a mount to properly house the piece to ensure it is preserved and protected.

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