Surface Treatment Strategies for Outdoor Painted Sculpture

Conservators entrusted with maintenance and conservation of outdoor painted sculpture have acute challenges--sculptures that are exposed to harsh and uncontrolled environments, highly prone to rapid deterioration and a wide range of paint coat failures, and subject to public interactions. This workshop series aims to provide conservators with practical and theoretical tools to design effective treatment strategies for these outdoor works with a curriculum informed by the expertise and interaction of a diverse range of professionals.

• A 2028 workshop at the Getty Center for eighteen participants from Europe, Asia, and North America included the basics of surface preparation and coatings technology; the pros, cons, and logistics of working on-site versus at an industrial paint applicator; different methods of mitigating coatings defects; and local treatment to prolong intervals between costly full-scale repainting treatments.
• A 2023 workshop, in partnership with the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, the Netherlands, included lectures, hands-on exercises, and a site visit to a paint applicator that focused on methodological applications of paint systems.

Through its Outdoor Sculpture project, the Conservation Institute has developed strong relationships with conservators specialized in the treatment of outdoor painted sculpture, as well as paint industry professionals, paint applicators, and artists' estates and foundations. The curriculum for Surface Treatment Strategies for Outdoor Painted Sculpture workshop series results from the combined expertise and interaction of this diverse range of professionals.

Flavia Perugini, Project Manager, Senior Project Specialist, Reem Baroody, Project Associate; Ellen Moody, Project Specialist