Terra Foundation Curator Peter John Brownlee at the symposium “Samuel F. B. Morse’s ‘Gallery of the Louvre’ in Focus”

“Samuel F. B. Morse’s ‘Gallery of the Louvre’ in Focus” at National Gallery of Art

April 20 & 21, 2012
National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

Known today primarily for his role in the development of the electromagnetic telegraph and his namesake code, Samuel Morse began his career as a painter. Created between 1831 and 1833 in Paris and New York, Gallery of the Louvre was Morse’s masterwork and the culmination of his studies in Europe.

In 2010 Gallery of the Louvre underwent a six-month conservation treatment in the studio of Lance Mayer and Gay Myers, specialists in American painting who have restored such major works as Emanuel Leutze’s Washington Crossing the Delaware and Rembrandt Peale’s The Court of Death. The conservation repaired damages that had occurred over time and yielded insight into Morse’s working methods.

In this 2-day public symposium, academics, conservators, and curators from around the world gather to discuss the historical context of the work, its conservation treatment, and the techniques used. Please click here to access all of the audio files on the National Gallery of Art website, including presentations by:

  • Peter John Brownlee, Associate Curator, Terra Foundation for American Art
  • David Bjelajac, Professor of Art and American Studies, George Washington University
  • Jean-Philippe Antoine, Professor, Department of Visual Arts, Université Paris 8
  • Franklin Kelly, Chief Curator and Deputy Director, National Gallery of Art
  • Lance Mayer and Gay Myers, Independent Conservators
  • Nancy Anderson, Curator and Head of the Department of American and British Paintings, National Gallery of Art
  • Andrew McClellan, Professor and Dean of Academic Affairs for Arts and Sciences, Tufts University
  • Alexander Nemerov, Vincent Scully Professor of the History of Art, Yale University
  • Olivier Meslay, Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs, Dallas Museum of Art
  • Richard Read, Winthrop Professor, School of Architecture, Landscape and Visual Arts, University of Western Australia
  • Catherine Roach, Assistant Professor, Department of Art History, Virginia Commonwealth University