NASHER SCULPTURE CENTER WELCOMES NEW CONSERVATOR
1/30/2008 12:00:00 AM
John Campbell Joins Nasher, Leads Sculpture Conservation Efforts
Dallas, Texas -- Nasher Sculpture Center is pleased to announce the recent addition of sculpture conservator, John Campbell. A trained conservator specializing in modern and contemporary sculpture, Mr. Campbell’s appointment advances Nasher’s ongoing mission to be the global focal point for the exhibition, interpretation, and preservation of modern sculpture.
“We went through an extensive search process to fill the conservator position,” said Jed Morse, Acting Chief Curator. “We had a lot of candidates, both nationally and internationally, but John really stood out in terms of his experience and specialization.”
Mr. Campbell will lead a conservation program that is essential to the scholarly, educational, and preservation efforts of the Nasher Sculpture Center. The Nasher Collection, numbering over 340 sculptures by many of the most important artists of the 20th century, requires regular care and maintenance, especially the works displayed outdoors. The special technical information gained through conservation and material analysis also enhances the Nasher’s educational programs. In addition, the Nasher Sculpture Center offers conservation services for other museum, private, and municipal collections, providing a much-needed resource for the region.
“Due to the region’s diverse and quickly changing climate, including extreme summertime heat, ice storms, and strong winds carrying abrasive particles, outdoor sculptures face many challenges to their preservation,” said Mr. Campbell. “Weather extremes can take a significant toll on the condition of the art, particularly the surface finishes. It is therefore necessary for the conservation department to have a particularly active and diligent program for maintaining the outdoor works.”
Mr. Campbell most recently worked for a private conservation studio in New York City specializing in contemporary art. Prior, he was at the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA) for approximately 3.5 years during the institution’s transition from its temporary space in Queens to its newly renovated building in Manhattan.
He holds Master level degrees from the New York University Institute of Fine Arts program in Art Conservation and Art History. He also has an BS degree in Materials Science and Engineering and BA degree in Art History from the University of Washington, Seattle.
In addition to his work on the Nasher Collection, Mr. Campbell has conserved sculptures by artists such as Constantin Brancusi, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Barnett Newman, Marcel Duchamp, George Rickey, Sol Lewitt, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami, and Matthew Barney.
Mr. Campbell has a special interest in the ethical and technical issues regarding the preservation and treatment of kinetic works of art in addition to research related to the materials and techniques related to the fabrication of modern and contemporary art. While at MoMA, he conducted an important technical study of Matisse’s seminal sculptures, The Backs.
About the Nasher Sculpture Center:
Open since October 2003, the Nasher Sculpture Center is dedicated to the display and study of modern and contemporary sculpture. The Center is located on a 2.4 acre site adjacent to the Dallas Museum of Art in the heart of the Dallas Arts District. Renzo Piano, a world-renowned architect and winner of the prestigious Pritzker Prize in 1998, is the architect of the Center’s 55,000 square foot building. Piano worked in collaboration with landscape architect Peter Walker on the design of the 1.4-acre sculpture garden.
The Nasher Sculpture Center was the longtime dream of the late Raymond and Patsy Nasher, who together formed one of the finest collections of modern and contemporary sculpture in the world. The Raymond and Patsy Nasher Collection includes masterpieces by Calder, de Kooning, di Suvero, Giacometti, Hepworth, Kelly, Matisse, Miró, Moore, Picasso, Rodin, and Serra, among others, and continues to grow and evolve.
The Nasher Sculpture Center presents rotating exhibitions of works from the Nasher Collection as well as special exhibitions drawn from other museums and private collections. In addition to indoor gallery space, the Center contains an auditorium, education and research facilities, a cafe, and a store.
The Nasher Sculpture Center is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11am to 5 pm and Thursday from 11am to 9 pm. Admission is $10 for adults, $7 for seniors, $5 for students, and free for members and children 12 and under. For more information, visit www.NasherSculptureCenter.org.
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Ashley Marshall
The Richards Group
214-891-2954 (work)
214-336-0044 (cell)
ashley_marshall@richards.com