How To Damage Art

This two-part series highlights how everyday interactions impact the longevity of artworks, inviting audiences to engage with both the causes and solutions of art damage.

Open Studios: "Please Touch the Art" invites visitors into our conservation studio where they can touch partially-exposed paintings, witnessing how seemingly harmless actions—touching, pressing, or handling—can cause irreversible damage. Guided by expert conservators, this hands-on experience offers insight into the delicate materials that make up artworks and the meticulous process of restoration, while giving visitors a peek into a conservation studio.

Talk:

Under Tension: Rethinking Art's Fragility explores the hidden forces that compromise artworks. Through the lens of canvas tension, this talk unpacks issues like sagging, warping, and tearing, highlighting how invisible stresses affect the longevity of paintings. Rather than simply explaining how to protect art, this session challenges the audience to rethink art’s vulnerability and the unseen dynamics at play.