The song goes, “Everything old is new again”…well, we’ve got lots of old around here, but at least some of it is looking newer…
As you’ll remember from our Spring Purchase Party, this year’s party theme was one of restoration, rather than purchasing. We identified several works from our collection that were not in a state suitable for display and offered them to party-goers as “adoption opportunities” through our Adopt-a-Painting program. The way the program works, a funder provides the needed money to restore a work or frame, or whatever is needed to make it presentable by museum standards. We then hire out the job and once the work is completed, the donor gets recognition on the placard anytime the work is on view.
We had several takers on the pieces offered, raising thousands of dollars in the process, and some of the restoration has now been completed. See the before and after views of Riverscape by John Heyl Raser, which was originally a gift from Dr. Levi Mengel himself! The wording for the new placard is below, and although this donor chose to remain anonymous, if you’d like to be named or honor someone by restoring a work in their name, let us know as we have more candidates for adoption. This work is now back in our possession and will go out on display next week, so come by and see it in person.
John Heyl Raser (American, 1824-1901), Riverscape, oil on canvas, Bequest, Dr. Levi Mengel, Restored through the Adopt-A-Painting Program by an Anonymous Donor, 1946.127.1
