Two people perform conservation on a large wall mural

Conservator Leslie Rainer reduces stains from the mural. Mural: © 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/SOMAAP, Mexico City

In 1990 Mexican conservator Agustín Espinosa led a team that examined and carried out preliminary conservation treatment of América Tropical. This phase of conservation included plaster reattachment, filling of cracks and losses, cleaning, and removal of residual whitewash and tar. Plaster reattachment was of great concern, given the damage to the mural and the loss of plaster in the upper corners caused by the 1971 Sylmar earthquake. In preparation for construction of the protective canopy, further stabilization of the mural was undertaken by the Conservation Institute in 2002, and preparators from the J. Paul Getty Museum installed a rigid protection in front of the mural.

Final-phase conservation treatment was carried out after installation of the protective canopy. This included surface cleaning, injection grouting, loss compensation, removal of tar and residual tar staining, and minimal reintegration in areas of damage and conservation treatment.

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