In the MBAM Restoration Workshop | The Art of Restoring Art

Preserving and repairing works is an art in itself. Precious and indispensable. The Press visited the workshop of the restoration and conservation department of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA), headed by Richard Gagnier. Eight permanent employees are dedicated to the protection and renovation of the museum’s collection, which includes nearly 47,000 works.

Workshop History

The department now responsible for the restoration and conservation of works at the MMFA began in 1964, at the initiative of the museum’s director at the time, David Carter. “Three Americans worked part-time on the restoration of paintings while maintaining their private practices on American soil,” explains Richard Gagnier, the department’s current director. “In 1964, Mr. Carter opened a permanent conservator position for decorative arts.”

In 1978, a painting restoration position was created, followed by another for graphic works (1980) and then, in 1991, a position for painting frame technician and a position for the preventive conservation of works.

Currently, the department has five restorers. Richard Gagnier, chief restorer, specializes in contemporary art (painting, sculpture, installation, new media). Johanne Perron is the graphic arts restorer. Agata Sochon restores old paintings. Valérie Moscato restores modern and contemporary paintings. Nathalie Richard is a restorer of sculptures and decorative arts.

Three technicians also work in the department. The frames of the paintings are the responsibility of Sacha-Marie Levay. The mounting and framing of the works on paper, by Isabelle Goulet. And preventive conservation, by Ana Melissa Ramos-Becerra. “These positions are supported by temporary positions of technician or restorer,” says Richard Gagnier.

Its mandate

The restoration workshop deals with works that need repair, those placed in reserve – which need maintenance (preventive conservation) – and recently acquired works. The department is responsible for ensuring that they are stored, handled and presented properly, including in the appropriate temperature and humidity conditions.

“We must avoid thermal shocks,” says Mr. Gagnier. For photographic works, ideally, they should be in reserves at around 12-15°C, to slow down the physicochemical reactions and reduce degradation.”

The most negative factor for works is often the human factor, says Richard Gagnier. “The work can fall, be hung. The frames protect them, but they often have historical value. They were often created by the artists and are part of the art object. We must take this into account.”

The department is also responsible for transporting the works, receiving them or sending them to other museums. The restorers also assist the curators during the exhibition of the works so that they are lit in the appropriate way and protected, if necessary, by plexiglass.

For some repairs, the department calls on outside resources, such as the Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI), the Centre de conservation du Québec or companies like DL Héritage. To restore large sculptures, for example, or when a microscope is needed to study the composition of a painting before proceeding with its restoration. Or for specific projects, such as the restoration of a Chinese imperial throne from the museum’s collection by Amanda Salmon, a conservator at the CCI, advised by oriental lacquer specialist Marianne Webb.

Examples of restoration

Restoration is a meticulous, solo operation, although exchanges are common between restorers to pass on their knowledge. Richard Gagnier presents, below, the three to four month restoration work that will be undertaken for View of Côte-des-Neiges from Sherbrooke Streeta 1933 oil painting by the painter Kathleen Moir Morris, which was part of the 2015 exhibition on the Beaver Hall group, co-curated by Jacques Des Rochers, curator of Quebec and Canadian art (before 1945) at the museum.

Restorer Nathalie Richard worked on a sculpture by Inuit Ennutsiak (1896-1967). The object will be part of the museum’s new Inuit art collection presentation, titled ᐅᐅᒻ ᒪᖁᑎᒃ uummaqutik: essence of life, from next November.

The MBAM has adopted an acquis in the field of painting frames. At the museum since 1991, Sacha-Marie Levay tells us about the valorization of an old French frame to embellish Still life with pomegranatesby the French painter Émilie Charmy (1878-1974). The work will be part of an exhibition on the Parisian gallery owner Berth Weill (1865-1951), from May 10 to September 7, 2025.

Richard Gagnier’s passion

Richard Gagnier arrived at the MMFA in 2007 to head the department. He came from the National Gallery of Canada (NGC), where he had been an assistant conservator, then a conservator, since 1984. Previously, he had completed a master’s degree in conservation and restoration at Queen’s University in Kingston, after studying chemistry and art history at the Université de Montréal. Because restoration requires knowledge of science and art.

“When I was doing my bachelor’s degree in chemistry, a program by Andréanne Lafond on Radio-Canada during which she interviewed a restorer of works of art completely blew me away. It brought me to Kingston, where I specialized in contemporary art practices.”

Watch him tell us about the restoration he will be carrying out on Larry’s recent conduct (1966), a PVC and kapok work by Canadian Joyce Wieland (1931-1998) which will be exhibited at the museum from February 2025.

Born in 1955, Richard Gagnier, who has also been an exhibition curator, will retire in October. “I’m going to go back to curating,” he says. “Work as a consultant and enjoy life, because it’s a very demanding job.”

How do you become a restaurateur?

In Canada, Queen’s is the university reference for becoming a conservator. With a program comparable to the major American universities that teach art restoration, such as Oberlin in Ohio, NYU in New York and Buffalo State University. Restoration became widespread in Canadian museums in the 1970s and 1980s thanks to public funding. “Almost 45% of conservator positions then disappeared because of cuts,” says Richard Gagnier. “As a result, Queen’s produces about ten conservators per year to keep up with the market.”

Being a restorer requires a great thirst for knowledge. And a keen eye. “My mentor at the MBAC, Marion Barclay, taught me to look,” says Richard Gagnier. “To detect things. Legibility is important to know whether or not to retouch. Today, people are drowning in images. When they see the real object, it has almost no materiality for them. They want to touch. It’s problematic and we have to prevent it! The eye is essential.”