The sculpture, one of six constructed by Henry Moore, was installed in 1971 in its present location, and is one of 22 outdoor works that comprise the John Putnam Memorial Collection.
Lisa Arcomano, the manager of campus collections at the University Art Museum, said in an e-mail that the sculpture sorely needed repairs. Water run-off has caused extensive streaking around the bottom of the sculpture, while the interior figure-eight section of the oval has been worn by general use, as students often sit in its unique opening. The entire surface has also been worn by age.
To restore the work, the University turned to Cameron Wilson, a conservator of public art who has previously treated Moore’s sculptures for both museums and private collections.
Wilson, who has restored works of art on campus before, said he has been working on the project on and off for a month.
Wilson, who explained that the sculpture’s green color is intentional, said he restores the surface by first “heating the metal, then applying the chemicals, and alternating as needed” to achieve the desired consistency and structure of the object. The finishing touches include applying a wax coating to protect the sculpture from the elements.
Wilson’s effort will “match the spirit and intended color and opacity of Moore’s work,” Arcomano said.
Wilson said that knowing Moore’s inspiration for the piece — an elephant skull he received from his friend Sir Julian Huxley — helped him in approaching the project.
“I like what we do because it is physically and mentally challenging,” Wilson said, explaining that a conservator faces a major challenge in keeping the “aesthetic of the artist in mind” during the restoration process.
An anonymous donor started the Putnam Collection in the 1960s as a memorial to University alumni who lost their lives in World War II. The collection contains 22 works by master artists from the last two centuries, but members of the collection’s selection committee are constantly working to commission or identify works by master artists.
Situating works in the Putnam Collection in public spaces has tradeoffs, Wilson noted.
“Moore definitely designed his sculptures to be out in public spaces,” he explained, but added that a problem is “you can’t keep them pristine if you expose them.”
In addition to major restorations, the University also schedules regular maintenance for its collection.
“The Putnam endowment allows us to maintain and conserve the collection,” Arcomano said. “We are able to do one or two major conservation projects every other year, alternating with the cleaning and maintenance of the collection.”
The Tony Smith sculpture “Moses,” which rests in front of Prospect House, was restored last year.
Among the pieces under consideration for conservation in the near future is “Head of a Woman,” a piece installed by Carlo Nesjar that was inspired by a smaller work by Pablo Picasso, Arcomano said.
Installed in front of McCormick Hall in 1971, the scupture was moved to its current spot in front of Spelman Halls in 2002.
Another notable sculpture in the Putnam Collection is Alexander Calder’s “Five Disks: One Empty,” which rests in Fine Plaza.
The 26-foot-tall sculpture was commissioned by Alfred Barr Jr. ’22, a friend of Calder’s, and was installed in 1971.
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