2023 was another successful year for the Icon / Tru Vue Conservation and Exhibition Grant Scheme with several projects coming to completion and a new round of awardees ready to start in 2024.  From toys to banners to oil on canvas paintings, we have supported a wide range of conservation and collection care projects with funding and glazing materials to protect, conserve, and safely present object(s) to visitors and future generations. Below is a selection of completed projects. For the full list please visit the Icon Conservation Register.

 

For those who haven’t heard about the scheme, the conservation and exhibition grant runs yearly with applications open between July and November. Applications are welcome from all countries with distribution of Tru Vue products (Check availability here).

 

The aim is to support conservation and collections care teams across the museum and heritage sector to either protect and conserve an object/s already on display or enable an object not currently on display to be conserved and safely presented to visitors (More information and eligibility criteria here).

 

 

Van Gogh House – conservation and display box for toys.

 

The Van Gogh House is a grade II Georgian Terrace house in south London where Vincent Van Gogh lived between 1873 and 1874. During the conservation of the house, several children’s toys were found under the floorboards. Some of these objects belonged to a young boy named James Wigmore who lived in the house in 1861, before Van Gogh. James was the eldest of 7 boys and it is believed that he was hiding his toys from his younger brothers. The grant was used to conserve the toys and put them on display as they were found, under the floorboards, keeping true to James and his story.
The toys are displayed in a portable Optium Museum Acrylic^® display case that fits under the floorboards but also allows the toys to be carried to schools and events to share their story.

 

 

Royal College of Physicians – conservation and glazing of Dame Margaret Turner-Warwick portrait by David Poole (1992).

 

The grant was used to conserve and glaze a portrait of Dame Margaret Turner-Warwick by David Poole (1992). Dame Turner-Warwick was a leading doctor and a significant woman in medicine. She was the first elected woman president of the Royal College of Physicians. The painting was displayed in the historic Censors’ Room which is a multi-use space, used as a gallery, featured on public tours, and is a hireable commercial space. Although visitor numbers are controlled, due to the limited space it was not possible to maintain a permanent, protective barrier on the floor at a distance from the painting. The conservation risk was therefore from visitors and clients getting too close and causing abrasions to the surface of the canvas. The painting was assessed and lightly dusted with a sable brush to remove urban dust accumulation. Small areas of gesso loss were in-filled. The painting was refitted in the frame with brass picture plates and Plastazote spacers. A clear, twin-wall polycarbonate backboard was added to the build up and sealed with water-activated paper tape. Optium Museum Acrylic was fitted and the painting was rehung in the Censor’s Room.

 

 

Camborne Town Council Library – conservation and glazing of two large oil on canvas paintings ‘St Ives Harbour’ and ‘Portrait of Captain Josiah Thomas’ by William (Cock) Cox.

 

The project has restored, preserved, and ensured the longevity of two unique paintings, ‘St Ives Harbour’ and ‘Portrait of Captain Josiah Thomas’ by William (Cock) Cox, offering immense cultural importance to Camborne and its people. William Cock (1866-1939), who changed his surname to ‘Cox’ around the 1910s, had a considerable reputation as a local Cornish artist. He was noted for his commissioned portrait work of the Holman family who were heavily involved in the Camborne mining industry. The restoration and public display of these artworks honours the original legacy which William Cox outlined when he donated the paintings to the Camborne Library for public display, restoring these paintings to their former glory for the public to appreciate at their best quality. An additional effect of this funding also helped stimulate the Cornish economy in a small sense by giving business opportunities for both Sarah Cove and her restoration team in Falmouth and the Sully’s Framers based in Penryn, bolstering a sense of Cornish collaboration for this project restoring Camborne heritage. The artworks were glazed with Optium Museum Acrylic.

 

 

People’s History Museum Manchester – conservation and display in wall niche of The Manchester suffragette banner.

 

 

The People’s History Museum used the grant to conserve and display the Manchester suffragette banner “Manchester First in the Fight”. It is one of the most rare and important artifacts of the suffragette movement. The banner appeared on the platform alongside Emmeline Pankhurst at many significant suffragette rallies. For almost a century the banner location was unknown, for a time laying undiscovered in a charity shop. Thanks to a crowdfunding campaign and the application for several grants the Museum acquired, conserved, and currently displays the banner. The solution is a wall niche protected with 2 doors made by Optium Museum Acrylic. The system is designed for the long term, with a pole that descends and allows the team to change banners and completely re-think the exhibition space. More information here.

 

 

Trowbridge Museum – conservation and display with barriers of Funeral Bier

 

The Trowbridge Museum used the grant to conserve and exhibit a Funeral Bier from 1889 that comes form the surrounding villages of Southwick and North Bradley. Due to the size and structure (over 2.3m long, over 0.5m wide and over 1m tall), it had to be removed from display because of the damage caused by visitors touching and interacting with the object. With its large flat top visitors are prone to putting their bags or, in some cases, even their small children on it which has the potential to damage the bier. There is a handle that runs the length of the object, which children can potentially swing on and break, damaging the bier and possibly injuring themselves as well. Thanks to the grant, they were able to create a physical barrier with Optium Museum Acrylic that prevents kids and visitors from touching the object while remaining invisible for the best visual experience.

 

 

2023/2024 Tru Vue Conservation & Exhibition Grant Scheme Recipients

 

Finally, congratulations to the 7 winners of the 2023/2024 round. As 2024 unfolds we look forward to seeing these projects come to completion:

 

• Lamport Hall Preservation Trust
• REME Museum
• SRAL
• Two Temple Place
• Durham University Library
• Grimsthorpe and Drummond Castle Trust
• Hunt Museum