ArtWatch International is a non-profit 501(c)3 incorporated in the state of New York in 1992 as an international advocate for the voice of art in the conservation and stewardship of historically significant works. It was founded by Columbia University art historian Professor James Beck to serve as a watchdog organization in the arena of cultural policy, protecting works of art and the public interest from vested private and institutional interests. We operate on a project by project basis, establishing task forces to determine the levels and methods of engagement in specific conservation, restoration and cultural policy issues and problems. Some problems have been addressed through scholarly work and publications, other through advisory and consulting arrangements, still others by symposia, debate, lecture forums, and intensive work with the media.
For more from our partner organization, ArtWatch UK, click here:
Update: Pollock Restorations at MoMA Draw to a Close & Corporate America Steps In
Ruth Osborne Last December, ArtWatch posted on three major works by Jackson Pollock then undergoing restoration at MoMA and the Seattle Museum of Art. This was not to be the first time these canvases had been under a restorer’s hand; Sea Change (1947) was varnished in 1970,[1] One (1950) underwent overpainting in the 1960s[2], and […]
Conservation Funding and Corporate Interest – A Look at the Bank of America Art Conservation Project
Ruth Osborne The price tag on conservation for a major work of art is rather steep. The funding of such a project allows a global corporation such as the Bank of America to exhibit its benevolent side to the public. Bank of America’s website for its Merrill Lynch Global Art Conservation Project boasts that it […]
Speculation and Sensationalizing: Art and History through the Lens of CSI Archeology
Ruth Osborne Over the weekend there occurred a surge in news reports about excavations at the graves of the husband and sons of Lisa Gherardini, the supposed subject of Leonardo’s Mona Lisa (1503-6, 1517). NBC reported on Friday that a centuries-old crypt in Florence was opened to extract DNA from these skeletal remains in order […]
Art Under the Laser – New “Noninvasive” Conservation and Analysis Treatments
Ruth Osborne “Shooting a laser at a priceless 14th century painting may seem problematic. But, precisely tuned and timed, the laser system may be the only non-destructive way to get into the mind of long-dead artists…”[1] This is indeed a troubling statement for the future of art conservation. ArtWatch has focused attention on the […]
The Education of Art Conservators – Examining the Field at its Foundations
Einav Zamir & Ruth Osborne About ten years ago, popular media outlets such as National Geographic News and the Boston Phoenix started reporting on what has come to be colloquially known as the “CSI Effect.” According to many American legal professionals, jurors in criminal trials increasingly favor forensic analysis over eye witnesses or circumstantial evidence, […]
Evidence of the Eyes: An Interview with Alexander Eliot
Einav Zamir In the landmark 1967/8 documentary, The Secret of Michelangelo, Every Man’s Dream, Alexander Eliot, painter and former art critic and editor for Time magazine states that “almost everything we saw on the barrel vault came clearly from Michelangelo’s own inspired hand. There are passages of the finest, the most delicately incisive draughtsmanship […]
Recap: ArtWatch International’s Fourth Annual James Beck Memorial Lecture
Ruth Osborne This past Wednesday, April 24th, ArtWatch was proud to present the fourth annual James Beck Memorial Lecture. Each year ArtWatch holds this event to commemorate the scholarly career and the principled stand of its founder, Professor James Beck. The lectures, organized by Michael Daley, the director of ArtWatch UK, provide a platform for […]
ArtWatch International Presents the 2013 James Beck Memorial Lecture and Reception
Einav Zamir ArtWatch International Inc. is pleased to announce our fourth annual James Beck Memorial Lecture. Each year ArtWatch holds an annual James Beck Memorial Lecture and reception to commemorate the scholarly career and the principled stand of its founder, Professor James Beck. The lectures, organized by Michael Daley, the director of ArtWatch UK, provide […]
Where One Hand Ends and the Other Begins: Museum Ethics and the Restoration of Ancient Ceramics
Einav Zamir In February of last year, Kaikodo gallery, a small but well-known commercial venue for Asian art, provided an informational tour of their location to students from the Bard Graduate Center. In what would become a pivotal moment in my development as an art historian, the curator, by way of introduction, held up […]
Restoring Pollock: Making Modern New at MoMA and SAM
Einav Zamir In the wake of extensive media coverage concerning a restoration purposed by the Seattle Art Museum of Jackson Pollock’s Sea Change, the 1947 groundbreaking work exploring the drip technique that would later define his career, it was brought to our attention that the Museum of Modern Art in New York is currently restoring […]