FAIC Institutional History

FAIC Outreach Projects

Exhibits:

Know what you see: the examination of paintings by photo-optical techniques An exhibition organized by Louis Pomerantz for the Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works in conjunction with the 1976 annual meeting of the AIC held in Dearborn, MI. Its aim was to acquaint the public with the concerns and cares of the conservator. Topics included the methods of assessing the condition and authenticity of art objects such as the use of x-rays, ultraviolet fluorescence, infrared photography, and microscopy. Also stressed was the importance of environmental control and the quality of lighting. The exhibition opened on May 30,1976 at Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, Michigan, and was circulated nationally by Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service from 1976 through 1978. It was a follow up to the October 6–November 7, 1970 exhibit “Know What You See” shown at The Renaissance Society's Galleries at the University of Chicago. That exhibit was organized by Louis Pomerantz and sponsored by the Illinois Arts Council and the Ciba-Geigy Corporation. It included original works of art: “Judith,”by Giovanni Martinelli from the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, an untitled village scene by Jan Steen, and a pastel drawing of a dancer by Edgar Degas. When the Chicago was circulated throughout Illinois, Cibachrome color transparencies were substituted for the art works.