State of Michigan Conservation Program

As part of the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) mission to share its expertise and provide a public service, the Conservation Division has provided contractual conservation services to other artistic, historic and cultural institutions in the state of Michigan for over twenty years. Services performed include conservation assessments; surveys of collections; examination and treatment of paintings, frames, works of art on paper and photographs, three dimensional objects, and textiles; mount design and fabrication; photographic documentation; and scientific analyses of materials.

The Conservation State Program began in 1973-74 with a regional survey funded by the McGregor Fund. Based on this assessment, the DIA received a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) grant in 1973 which provided for the treatment of paintings from the Jesse Besser Museum (Alpena), Grand Rapids Art Museum, Muskegon Museum of Art, Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, and Kresge Art Museum (East Lansing) with the addition of the Saginaw Art Museum in 1975. The NEA grant supported one half of the cost of these treatments until 1976. Between 1976 and 1988, Conservation used the DIA's state equity funds as the matching funds to reduce the hourly costs for services to state non-profit institutions. Currently the state rate is reduced to 25% of the hourly rate using the museum's Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA) grant to subsidize actual costs of examination, analysis, treatment, consultation or other services.

Institutions that qualify for the state program have non-profit 501(c)(3) status, are open to the public, and have fine arts collections. All state work is done on a time available basis with due consideration given to meet each institution's deadlines or exhibition schedules. Staff follows the Code of Ethics and Guidance for Practice established by the American Institute for the Conservation of Artistic and Historic Works. The institution is provided with a condition report and a proposal for treatment with a cost estimate that must be approved in writing. After a signed approval is received, the treatment can proceed. The institution needs to inform the Conservation Division in advance if its proposals are being submitted as part of a grant request (such as NEA, NEH, IMLS,etc.). The state museum must maintain all appropriate insurance coverage relating to the object(s) including the period that the state museum's property is in the custody of the DIA.