Oral History Center University of California The Bancroft Library Berkeley, California Conservation and Craftsmanship: Brian Considine, Senior Conservator of Decorative Arts & Architecture at The J. Paul Getty Museum Interviews conducted by Cristina Kim in 2017 Interviews sponsored by the J. Paul Getty Trust Copyright © 2017 by J. Paul Getty Trust Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley ii Since 1954 the Oral History Center of the Bancroft Library, formerly the Regional Oral History Office, has been interviewing leading participants in or well-placed witnesses to major events in the development of Northern California, the West, and the nation. Oral History is a method of collecting historical information through tape-recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. The tape recording is transcribed, lightly edited for continuity and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewee. The corrected manuscript is bound with photographs and illustrative materials and placed in The Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley, and in other research collections for scholarly use. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account, offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is reflective, partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ********************************* Copyright in the manuscript and recording is owned by the J. Paul Getty Trust, which has made the materials available under Creative Commons licenses as follows: Manuscript is licensed under CC-BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and recording is licensed under CC-BY-NC (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Brian Considine, “Conservation and Craftsmanship: Brian Considine, Senior Conservator of Decorative Arts & Architecture at The J. Paul Getty Museum ” conducted by Cristina Kim in 2017, Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, under the auspices of the J. Paul Getty Trust, 2017. Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley iii Brian Considine Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley iv Brian Considine was the Senior Conservator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture at The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles until his retirement in June 2016. In his twenty-three years of service at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Considine oversaw the construction of the museum’s conservation lab and countless exhibits and installations, including the Bernini and the Birth of Baroque Sculpture exhibit, Devices of Wonder: From the World in a Box to Images on a Screen exhibit, the Frank and Ray Stark Outdoor Sculpture collection, the Getty’s four 18th century panel rooms and the conservation of King Tut’s Tomb in Eygpt. Considine is an expert and connoisseur of 18th century French decorative arts. He learned and developed his craftsmanship in marquetry and gilding at the Goujon workshop and the École Boulle in Paris, France. In addition to his work at the Getty, Considine has contributed greatly to the global field of conservation and art. He is an active member the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC), the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (IIC) and The Decorative Arts Society. He also continues to serve on the NEA’s Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Program’s Board. In this interview, Brian Considine talks about his experience working at the J. Paul Getty Museum, the changing field of arts conservation, and the intersection between craftsmanship and quality. Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley v Table of Contents—Brian Considine Interview 1: January 25, 2017, morning session 1 Audio File 1 Hour 1 Birth and childhood in Princeton, New Jersey — Three siblings — Hard-working family ethos — Father’s family roots in business — Mother’s family’s roots in dairy farming — Parents’ interest in art and antiques, childhood visits to museums, especially the Franklin Institute — Childhood immersion in historic furnishings and ancestral home near Richmond, Virginia — Maternal grandmother’s work and responsibilities as mistress of a historic plantation — Summers spent working at the farm: “I loved being at the farm. The day school ended … I was on my way to Virginia.” — Closeness with grandmother Margaret Hughes Burkee — Almost choosing the life of a dairy farmer — College at the University of Pennsylvania 1967-71, anti-war activism — Studying architecture — Meeting future wife on a blind date in 1968 — Wife’s work as an artist and educator — 1968 summer job in Paris — Robert Kennedy’s assassination while en route to Paris, activism in Paris — Graduation, summer 1972 beginning furniture making apprenticeship near Great Barrington, MA — Interest in making furniture, in spite of parents’ hopes for more practical work — Spring 1974 purchase of farmhouse near Hanover, VT — Opening a furniture business — The beauty of wood, the challenges of making chairs — Considine’s chair at the Museum of Fine Art in Boston — The “Please Be Seated” program — 1979 beginning as a furniture conservation assistant at the Boston MFA Hour 2 Meeting Jonathan Fairbanks — Joining the conservation department, mentorships, lessons learned — First project: restoration of a pine Statue of Liberty — 1982 offer from Ann Poulet to learn gilding from the Goujon family in Paris — Growing awareness of Mr. Getty’s estate — A week at the Getty Villa meeting Barbara Roberts and others — Getty offers a job and funding for the Goujon workshop —1983 move to Los Angeles, building a lab from scratch at the Getty, meeting and networking with conservators around the world — Jonathan Fairbanks and the start of furniture conservation as an academic discipline —June 1984 move to Paris, two years at the École Boulle learning gilding from the Goujons — The Goujon family — The work: “We really didn’t have any mediocre pieces come into the workshop at all.” — Keeping an eye out for “Getty objects” — Gut reactions and having a good eye — Deciding how much restoration to do on each object — The three-feet rule Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley vi Hour 3 37 Being a non-traditional pupil in the Goujon workshop — Initial resistance to an American conservator in the class — Learning to fit in: “Whoa! I’m not in Kansas anymore!” — Cultural differences — Learning the delicate techniques for handling gold leaf — Exploring France on the weekends, expanding appreciation for objects of many eras — Marquetry at the École Boulle — Gillian Wilson’s visits to France and acquisitions for the Getty — Changing and conflicting notions of how objects should be configured for display — Organizational shifts in the mid-1980s at the Getty — Peter Fusco arrives in 1984, is charged with overseeing sculpture while Gillian Wilson directs decorative arts — Working relationships with Peter and Gillian — Becoming head of the department in 1988 when Barbara left — Defining the role of conservator, putting the collection first — A disagreement about treatment Interview 2: January 25, 2017 afternoon session 48 Audio File 2 Hour 1 Early and mid-1980s at Getty: “There was this tremendous feeling of potential.” — Leadership by director John Walsh — establishing the Getty Conservation Institute, the Getty Research Institute, and the Getty Research Library — “Dizzying” acquisition boom — 1987 stock market crash and scaling down plans by 30% — Decreased acquisition budget — Impact on conservation department — The slowdown in acquisition of decorative arts relative to other departments — Competition from wealthy dealers, challenges of acquisition through auctions — Conservation’s input during acquisition — The first conservation lab — Helping to plan the new lab — Projecting and planning a lab for future needs — Designing in collaboration with Richard Meier — Fighting for a window, communal space, other lab necessities — More on designing period rooms — Thiery Despont hired to design the galleries — Researching and writing specs to help inform Despont, disagreements with Despont and Gillian Wilson — Support from Debbie Gribbon — The Regence room and the Place Vendôme room — Subcontracting the restoration of objects, sending them to France for treatments — Making authentic restorations with limited evidence — Textiles of the lit à la polonaise and the lit à la turque — Continued reliance on relationships with French craftsmen Hour 2 “We couldn’t have done a third of what we did without the relationships.” — Machine textiles no match for handmade — Specialization of textile conservation — Despont as a not ideal designer for the period rooms — The challenge of mixing and matching objects of different eras and origins — the Ledoux room: origins, restorations — Research to understand the original Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley vii presentation of the Ledoux panels — Bruno Pons — Producing replicas from various sources — Relating to opulent decorative objects — Learning history from material culture — Making reproductions, reliving the experience — Conservation work on the whole museum, air quality