The National Endowment for the Humanities has awarded Cornell's Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art a grant of $148,680 to improve storage conditions for its collection of Asian works of art.
This important collection, with strengths in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indian and Southeast Asian art, is one of the finest and most comprehensive of its kind among university art museums in the United States and is the largest in New York state outside of Manhattan. The Johnson Museum's Asian art collections serve as an important resource for Cornell students and faculty as well as for the community at large. Stored Asian art collections are regularly requested for viewing by Cornell and area university classes, researchers and other visitors.
"The Asian collection is an integral part of the museum's overall activities," said Franklin Robinson, Johnson Museum director. "This rehousing and preservation is absolutely essential and a very significant step forward for the museum."
"The NEH-funded project will upgrade substandard housing conditions within the main storage area designated for approximately 7,000 works of Asian art," said Ellen Avril, curator of Asian art at the Johnson.
"New flooring, new lighting and installation of a compact storage system will alleviate current overcrowding, enhance preservation efforts through custom rehousing of objects and improve access to these collections," Avril said.
The project is the third storage renovation project undertaken by the Johnson Museum. In 1993, a compact storage system was installed to improve storage of the museum's collection of 17,000 prints, drawings and photographs, funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum Services. In 1994-95, with support from the NEH, a compact storage system was installed in the museum to house large sculpture, decorative arts and oversize works on paper.
| Cornell Chronicle Front Page | | Table of Contents | | Cornell News Service Home Page |