The discovery of molds on paintings forced the Brest museum to close for at least four years

After the discovery of molds threatening eighteen of his works, the Brest Museum of Fine Arts will remain closed for more than four years, announced the Breton metropolis on Friday, suggesting that this phenomenon could be due to global warming. “The heart of a museum is the preservation of collections. And today we must preserve this collection at all costs »said Sophie Lessard, director of the Brest Métropole Museum of Fine Arts during a press conference.

Discovered during winter closure, these molds had already prevented the reopening of the Brest museum planned on 1^is FEBRUARY. Eighteen paintings on the 190 exhibits are affected, including a paint from the 18th century^e century of the Austrian painter Angelica Kauffmann. “Fortunately, we reacted as quickly as possible and limited this spread. The development of molds can be dazzling. In 24 hours, you can have a collection that is completely contaminated »described Sophie Lessard. “Mold, if we let them spread, feed on proteins that are in paintings”she described. They can then cause irreversible alterations of the pictorial layer. Dehumidifiers, fans have been installed in permanent galleries in order to stabilize the environment and daily controls are carried out.

 

There are eight museums in Denmark that have been affected by these same phenomena and it is clearly climate change that is questioned today.

Sophie Lessard, director of the Bres Museum of Fine Arts

“At first we will have to contain this infestation”underlined Réza Salami, delegated advisor to Metropolitan cultural equipment, who spoke of “Stabilize the situation until 2029”date on which a new reserve will be open guaranteeing “Optimal conditions” for the conservation of works.

The museum’s 15,000 works will be transferred there so that the current building of the museum, opened in 1968 and poorly ventilated, is rehabilitated or rebuilt. “There are eight museums in Denmark that have been affected by these same phenomena and it is clearly climate change that is questioned today”said Sophie Lessard, saying that she had received calls from other French museums faced with similar issues.

Alerts for ten years

In 2019, the museum had already had to close for two weeks to apply a fungicide treatment to eradicate a proliferating mycelium since 2014 in the reserves of the museum. A background treatment and renovation of these too wet storage premises had been decided. .

Recalling that most of the works in the Brest museum had been “Anniés” by the bombings of July 1941 “For lack of being evacuated in time”Sophie Lessard estimated that the closure decided this year was a “Essential decision” To transmit collections “To future generations”. “A heavy decision to take but that it was necessary to take”confirmed the mayor’s mayor of Brest and president of the François Cuiller metropolis.