Displaying items by tag: Disrepair

Nearly one million euros is needed to restore the Monte-Cristo castle that was once home to famed novelist Alexandre Dumas, author of classics including "The Three Musketeers."

The castle in northern France has fallen into disrepair and is threatened by humidity.

The current managers of the estate say 921,000 euros ($1.0 million) is needed to get it back in shape.

The municipal association that runs the estate is looking for public contributions to help with the restoration. If they can raise five percent of the funds, they will get further help from the national Heritage Foundation.

Henry Moore’s (1898-1986) severely damaged sculpture Knife Edge Two Piece (1965) will finally be restored according to the Parliamentary Art Collection. The sculpture, which is prominently displays outside of the Houses of Parliament in London, is England’s most revered work by the British sculptor.

Moore and the Contemporary Art Society donated Knife Edge Two Piece to England in 1967 but the work fell into disrepair after administrative changes left it with no legal owner. Eventually, the British government suggested that the House of Commons take ownership for the sculpture and that the Parliamentary Art Collection take responsibility for the its care.

The bronze sculpture, which is marred by discoloration, deterioration, and incised graffiti, will undergo conservation beginning February 16, 2013. Conservator Rupert Harris will lead the effort, which involves removing the sculpture’s protective lacquer and abrading its surface to eliminate the damage. The work will then be repatinated and treated with wax in order to protect it from future environmental damage.

The conservation project is expected to cost a little over $50,000 with most of the funding coming from the Parliamentary Art Collection. The Henry Moore Foundation will contribute about $17,000 to the effort. The Knife Edge Two Piece restoration project is expected to reach completion at the end of March 2013.

Knife Edge Two Piece, 1962 – 1965, a bronze sculpture by Henry Moore stands outside the Houses of Parliament and is well known for appearing in the background of many political television interviews.

Moore, one of the most prolific artists of the 20th century, donated the work to the nation in 1967.

It was “accepted” by the Ministry of Public Works, but no formal arrangements were made for its future care.

The Ministry disbanded in 1970 and was integrated into the Department for the Environment. Since then, the sculpture, worth an estimated £5 million, has been damaged and neglected.

The current Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has denied ownership of the work, as have the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), English Heritage and the Government Art Collection.

The Henry Moore Foundation believed that the sculpture was owned by the City of Westminster, but Westminster Council confirmed it did not own the work, as did the Greater London Authority.

The land on which the sculpture stands on Abingdon Green is a former Second World War bomb site, belonging to the Parliamentary Estate, but the Estate has also denied ownership.

Moore once said of the spot: “When I was offered the site near the House of Lords for the sculpture, I liked the place so much that I didn’t bother to go and see an alternative.”

Languishing without an owner, the sculpture has been vandalised and covered in graffiti, with one inscription from September 1976 still clearly visible.

The art historian John-Paul Stonard described the corroded and discoloured sculpture as “the most damaged Moore that I have seen on display in Britain”.

Anita Feldman, the head of collections at the Henry Moore Foundation, said the sculpture was in need of “major restoration” costing £17,000.

She said: “It has been very distressing to see such an important work become so dilapidated.