Project Summary:

In the fall of 2021, lead conservator Beth Nunan had the opportunity to work closely with colleagues to conserve a historically important painting by iconic artist Georgia O’Keeffe.

Painted in 1948, Spring is a familiar subject matter of organic forms against a landscape and marks a turning point in O’Keeffe’s personal and artistic life. Spring is one of the few paintings during a three-year period where O’Keeffe suspended her seasonal sojourns to New Mexico, remaining in New York to settle her late husband’s estate. Measuring approximately four by seven feet, Spring is the largest landscape painted by O’Keeffe up to that date. Its expansive scale, subject matter, and rarity of works from this momentous period, collectively make it an important artwork in her oeuvre. A history of water damage caused by a leak in the ceiling of O’Keeffe’s Abiquiú home combined with previous treatments resulted in discolored synthetic varnish and overpaint layers, as well as subtly lifting cracks and pinpoint losses. 

Working in the exhibition halls of the Georgia O’Keeffe museum while open to the public provided a behind-the-scenes look at the treatment, and an accompanying video gave visitors the opportunity to learn more about the painting’s history of conservation.