Dartmouth Events

Saving Tullio Lombardo's "Adam": a collaboration of art and science

The 2015 Winter Donoho Colloquium will be presented by The Metropolitan Museum of Art sharing the story of how they restored a marble Renaissance masterpiece using art and science.

Monday, February 9, 2015
5:00pm – 7:00pm
Filene Auditorium, Moore Building
Intended Audience(s): Public
Categories: Arts, Exhibitions, Lectures & Seminars

On the evening of October 6, 2002, the pedestal supporting Tullio Lombardo’s 15th-century marble Adam collapsed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Vélez Blanco Patio. The life-sized sculpture, which has been in the Museum’s permanent collection since 1936, was severely damaged. This iconic representation of Adam, inspired by antiquity, was among the earliest monumental nudes of the Renaissance, and is widely considered the most important monumental Renaissance sculpture outside of Italy. Prior to the accident it remained in a near pristine state with no breaks and virtually no loss to the carving. The impact of the fall caused the marble sculpture to break into 28 large pieces and hundreds of small fragments.

A team of conservators, conservation scientists, curators, materials scientists, and engineers was brought together to determine the most effective, reversible, and least invasive treatment for the large marble sculpture. This fascinating project was unusual in its use of virtual and physical testing techniques, both of which were critical to the conservators’ decision making process. The talk will cover many aspects of this complicated effort including the development of the innovative conservation treatment as well as the studies the Museum undertook with materials scientists and structural engineers.

For more information, contact:
Victoria Smith
603-646-8737

Events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.