On the importance of the restorer’s job

The Art Museum in Kherson is a must-see for every guest of the ancient Taurica, let alone the local inhabitants. Why? Because the museum has a collection of exquisite works which would honor not only regional, but also national expositions. And although the history of the museum in Kherson as an individual institution dates back to a mere 35 years ago, today its collection numbers more than 10,000 unique objects. They are paintings by Ukrainian and international artists, graphic pieces, sculptures, objects of decorative art etc. embracing a period from the 18th century to our day. The museum has a number of exhibits running on a daily basis: “The Ukrainian and Russian art in the 18th – early 19th centuries,” “Icon painting,” and rotating exhibits by renowned contemporary artists.

Recently the Shovkunenko Museum celebrated an important event: experts from the National Research and Restoration Center Anatolii Bezkrovny and Daryna Tsytovych restored 13 valuable items. For almost two years on end the visits of restorers from Kyiv have been part of the program “Preserving the Cultural Heritage,” launched by the Ustyn Maltsev Charitable Foundation.

The Day has interviewed Natalia SAVVYCH, chief curator of the Shovkunenko Art Museum in Kherson, to find out about the state of the rare collections, the museum’s unique displays, and restoration as indispensable component in the “life” of any work of art.

“Restoration is the process which many of our displays need. However, the level of ‘surgery’ varies from painting to painting. Some have to be rescued immediately, others may have minimum damages. We have started a special list for the first category, which now includes some 1,700 items. This is a small percentage of the entire collection.

MYKOLA HLUSHCHENKO. BOATS AT THE SEASIDE

“If a museum has its own restorer, he or she constantly monitors the condition of the oldest exhibits and maintains the damaged items. It can be so that today a painting is perfectly ‘healthy’ and beautiful, but in a couple of weeks we begin to notice cracks in the canvas, sagging, peeling, etc. Unfortunately, our museum has no restorer among its staff. But thanks to the Ustyn Maltsev Charitable Foundation we have an opportunity to periodically invite experts from Kyiv.”

Does government provide money for restoration?

“Yes, we have restored a good many exhibits with the money from the budget. We have sent some 30 items to the National Research and Restoration Center. From the Odesa branch of the Center Natalia Marynenko, an expert in ceramics restoration, came to our museum to survey the collection and picked out eight items of decorative art for restoration. In general, our collection is in a good condition.”

Which are the most valuable exhibits in your museum?

“Among the recently restored works is first of all Ivan Aivazovsky’s Storm Abates (the 1870s), two works by Volodymyr Orlovsky, Landscape (a study) and Kyiv Outskirts (late 19th century), large canvases by Yevhen Stolytsia (Sea Shore) and Kostiantyn Kryzhytsky (A Sunny Day). They are true jewels of the 19th-century painting, with a striking wealth of colors and shades and individual treatment of conventional plots. You can spend hours in front of each of these pictures, and they will stay vivid in your memory long after you leave the museum.

ANATOLII PLATONOV. URBAN MOTIF

“Speaking of the oldest exhibits of our museum, they are the late 17th-century icons from Northern Russia. The icon painters remain unknown, for back then it was not common to sign your work. The paintings are in good condition, but still they need some attention. The most important is that all these items are constantly on display, and every visitor can see them. So I would like to use this opportunity and invite everyone to visit our museum. Our highly professional staff will be delighted to share a wealth of interesting facts from the famous artists’ biographies, the history of their masterpieces, and the development of fine arts in our region.”