On Monday July 9th, the Friends of NERAM hosted a High Tea in HINTON: Treasures of Australian Art to showcase the exhibition, and to raise funds for New England Regional Art Museum’s Adopt-An-Artwork program.
The event focused on Nora Heysen’s Still life 1933, a seminal work from the Howard Hinton Collection which requires a range of conservation treatments and had an adoption cost $4,590.00. Amongst the savory and sweet dishes of the High Tea, ticket and raffle sales and generous donations, the full amount was raised and the artwork will now travel to International Conservation Services in Sydney for treatment.
“It is wonderful to see such an important and beautiful work from the collection adopted and conserved,” said NERAM Director Rachael Parsons. “Conservation of art works not only ensures that these pieces look their absolute best, but that they will be stably preserved and able to be displayed for many years in the future.”
“We are so grateful for the support of all the attendees in reaching the adoption target and to the Friends of NERAM who continue to show marvelous and creative support of the Museum and its programs. It was a wonderful afternoon spent with members of our community and such a fantastic result.”
New England Regional Art Museum’s Adopt-an-Artwork program enables members of the community to make a tax-deductible donation to NERAM to sponsor the conservation treatment of a specific artwork in the NERAM collection by International Conservation Services.
Since the program was launched in 2015 the Adopt-an-Artwork program has raised over $170,000 towards the treatment of 100 paintings, prints, drawings and watercolours. The program has also increased community awareness of conservation issues through associated activities including presentations, the Operation Preservation exhibition and social media.
Still Life requires several treatments including cleaning, removal of old varnishes and work on surface cracking. It will travel to Sydney along with two recent adoptions by the New England Art Society, Muriel Medworth Garden’s Gift 1945 and Viola Quaife The Brown Coat 1919.
NERAM would like to express their gratitude to the Friends of NERAM and all of their High Tea guests for their generosity, as well as all of our Adopt-An-Artwork supporters. Together we are ensuring the future of NERAM’s collections.
