During the Summer of 2021, a team of conservators preserved a unique component of the Museum’s Main Building—a series of ornate murals painted by Elmer E. Garnsey (1862–1946). The Garnsey Mural Conservation Project united efforts to investigate early 20th-century American mural painting, conserve works of art integral to the Museum, and highlighted the significance of the Richardson Memorial Library.

From 1915 to 1938 Gallery 203 served as a grand entrance to the library. The Museum commissioned American artist Elmer E. Garnsey to adorn the space with decorative murals and a painted domed ceiling. More than a century later, these architectural decorations show signs of deterioration, fading, and grime. Although partially conserved in 1977, the murals will now be preserved with a full conservation treatment to structurally stabilize artist materials and restore their original splendor. Today this gallery displays works of art from the 19th century. The library, an art historical resource for scholars and the public, is currently housed in the South Building.

The scope of the conservation project included a campaign that studied, cleaned, restored, and protected the painted walls and ceiling. Armed with a contemporary tool kit of conservation-grade resources and informed by research, testing, and technical analysis, conservators restored Garnsey’s architectural decoration of applied artist materials so the murals continue to endure.