Adopt-A-Monument Summer Update

More Than Twenty Monuments Received Conservation Maintenance through the Adopt-A-Monument Program

August 26, 2019

It’s summer—the ideal time for the conservation of outdoor sculptures. This spring and summer, the Municipal Art Society provided annual maintenance for more than 20 statues in the five boroughs through our landmark Adopt-A-Monument program. MAS recognizes the many donors who have risen to the challenge of the less celebrated but crucial maintenance of these works of art. Through endowed maintenance funds for sculpture, namely, the H. van Ameringen Fund, General Worth Fund, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation Heinrich Heine Fountain Fund, Alexander Holley Fund, George Trescher Monument Fund, and the Paul and Klara Porzelt Maintenance Fund, MAS has established a long-range plan of annual monitoring the condition of the 38 monuments originally restored under the Adopt program.

  • Die Lorelei
    Before and after repairs on the arm of the Heinrich Heine Fountain (Die Lorelei) in the Bronx's Joyce Kilmer Park. Photo: Cultural Heritage Conservation and Municipal Art Society.
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  • Grand Central Stones
    Before and after graffiti removal and cleaning of the Grand Central Stones in the Bronx's Van Cortlandt Park. Photo: Tatti Conservation
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  • Bronx Victory monument and Abraham Lincoln memorial
    Left: Bronx Victory monument in the Bronx's Moshulu Parkway. Right: Abraham Lincoln statue in Brooklyn's Prospect Park (Concert Grove). Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew.
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  • General Henry Warner Slocum statue
    During and after conservation of General Henry Warner Slocum monument in Brooklyn (Plaza Street East and Grand Army Plaza).
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  • Lafayette Memorial
    Before and after cleaning of Lafayette Memorial in Brooklyn's Prospect Park. Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew
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  • George Washington Memorial
    After maintenance of George Washington Memorial in Manhattan's Union Square. Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew
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  • Alexander Lyman Holley
    During and after maintenance on Alexander Lyman Holly Memorial in Manhattan's Washington Square Park. Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew.
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  • Slocum Fountain in Manhattan's Tompkins Square Park
    Before and after cleaning of Slocum Fountain in Manhattan's Tompkins Square Park. Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew
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  • Korean Memorial and Free Form
    Left: After maintenance of Korean Memorial in Manhattan's Battery Park. Right: After maintenance of Form in Queens' Flushing-Meadows Corona Park. Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew
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  • Soldiers and Sailors and Neptune Fountain
    Left: After maintenance of Soldiers and Sailors monument in Queens (173rd Street and Hillside Avenue). Right: After maintenance of Neptune Fountain in Staten Island's Snug Harbor. Photo: NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew
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Each artwork is first inspected, then a team removes surface dirt and graffiti, washes the sculpture, and applies a special wax coating for artworks made of bronze. The sculptures are cleaned and stabilized for aesthetic appearance and to halt deterioration. Maintenance treatments are performed by private conservators or the NYC Parks Citywide Monument Conservation crew, all hired by MAS. Our successful collaborative efforts with Jonathan Kuhn, Director of Art and Antiquities, NYC Parks, and Parks’ chief conservator, and John Saunders are evident in works pictured here as well maintenance performed by private conservators, Tatti Conservation, Cultural Heritage Conservation, and Wilson Conservation, our longest invaluable partner.

Bronx:

Bronx Victory Monument, Moshulu Parkway
Heinrich Heine Fountain, Joyce Kilmer Park
Grand Central Stones, Van Cortlandt Park
General Josiah Porter, Van Cortlandt Park

Brooklyn:

General Henry Warner Slocum, Plaza Street East and Grand Army Plaza
Lafayette, Prospect Park and Ninth Street entrance
Abraham Lincoln, Prospect Park, Concert Grove

Manhattan:

General Worth, Worth Triangle
Slocum Fountain, Tompkins Square
George Washington, Union Square
Lafayette, Union Square
Korean Monument, Battery Park
Peter Cooper, Cooper Square
Alexander Holley, Washington Square

Queens:

Form, Flushing-Meadows Corona Park
Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, 173rd Street and Hillside Avenue

Staten Island:

Neptune Fountain, Snug Harbor
Clarence T. Barrett, Stuyvesant Place and Borough Hall

This fall, two other major monuments will receive annual maintenance:
Admiral Farragut, Madison Square Park
Rocket Thrower, Flushing Meadows Corona Park

In addition to the above list, Matthew Reiley, Chief Conservator, Central Park Conservancy, and his crew, kindly provide annual maintenance of monuments in Central Park that were originally rescued and restored through the Adopt-A-Monument program. Among these are the familiar, much-loved, sculptures: Still Hunt, Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott, King Jagiello, the Richard Morris Hunt Memorial, and the Columbus Monument. We are grateful for this enduring partnership.