A Gift of Preservation

Out of the thousands of family collection items that I stuffed into the car, one single picture had received professional care and treatment.

Back in 2007, my wife and I

Framed and matted watercolor
fashion illustration by June Anderson.

brought one of my mother’s large watercolor fashion illustrations to the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts to have it surface cleaned, matted, and framed.  Jessica Makin, Manager of Housing and Framing, helped us select the right mat and frame to bring out its colors.  She placed the matted work in a sealed package to protect it from humidity and used a filtering acrylic glazing that blocks 98% of the ultraviolet light that causes fading.

We hung the picture in the small dining area in the Florida house.  My father loved it.  Near the end of his life, he always wanted to be surrounded by the good memories.

This framed watercolor was among the thousands of items that I wedged into the car to bring back to my home in New Jersey.  It now hangs above my daughter’s bed.

 
 






An Open Invitation:  Please feel free to share in our Comments section about your experiences with preserving your family collections or to ask preservation questions about items in your care.

© 2010 Lee Price