Student Blog: Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

​I am spending my third year of study in sculpture conservation at the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (HSMG) in Washington, DC. Also known as the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, the Hirshhorn has a vast collection of postwar and contemporary art. As a sculpture conservation intern, I am working on a variety of projects to support the museum's exhibitions, loans, and collections maintenance.

As an objects major with a textile minor, many of my projects have been composite, requiring an interdisciplinary mindset. One of these projects is the documentation and treatment a 2009 Soundsuit by artist Nick Cave.

​This piece is an 11-foot-tall wearable sculpture that includes a knit bodysuit, sequin-covered metal frame, 64 beaded baskets, and a painted papier-mâché “Easter Bunny". As the work is slated for an international loan later this year, a comprehensive condition assessment was conducted. Given that many of the elements in Cave's sculpture are found materials, the current condition of each element of the work was carefully examined and documented.​​

​To prepare the artwork for loan, minor stabilizing treatments were performed on the vintage papier-mâché bunny and beaded baskets. The treatment of the papier-mâché bunny included localized consolidation of lifted paint on the Easter egg and ears.

​The baskets, constructed from plastic beads on safety pins, were dusty overall with areas of localized corrosion. Several of the baskets also had balls of degraded Styrofoam on the interior holding beaded wire bouquets. To treat these unique pieces, all 64 baskets were surface cleaned, and areas of corrosion were reduced. In consultation with the artist's studio, the degraded Styrofoam was replaced with carved Ethafoam. ​​

The composite nature of this project has been a wonderful foray into the conservation of modern and contemporary art.

— Abigail Rodriguez​, WUDPAC Class of 2022​

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