Sheldon and Caroline Keck

Sheldon Keck (Sheldon W. Keck) and Caroline Keck (Caroline K. Keck) were an American married couple, paintings conservators who made significant contributions to the development of techniques in the conservation and restoration of paintings. In addition, they served as leading figures in the growth and development of the art conservation profession throughout much of the 20th Century.

Background

Sheldon Waugh Keck was born on May 30, 1910, in Utica, NY, son of Fred R. and Myra Waugh Keck.

Caroline Martin Kohn Keck was born on October 6, 1908, in New York NY, daughter of Albert and Laura Underhill Kohn.

Sheldon and Caroline met in 1933 in Cambridge, Massachusetts when they both were students in the "Methods and Processes in the Fine Arts" art materials course, taught at the Fogg Art Museum (currently part of the Harvard Art Museums) by its director Edward Forbes.

Sheldon and Caroline married on October 31, 1933.

Art Conservation Careers

Sheldon Keck received his initial education and training in the arts at Harvard University (1932), receiving a BA in art history. He was a student of Paul J. Sachs, and served a year-long apprenticeship as an art conservator at the Fogg Art Museum, under the supervision of innovative painting restorer R. Arcadius Lyon. [13]

In 1934, Sheldon was appointed the first paintings restorer for the staff at the Brooklyn Museum, New York (1934) [10]. In April 1935, the Brooklyn Museum Quarterly published Sheldon's report detailing his first completed treatment at the Museum, the beginning of a lengthy series of publications and lectures sharing techniques in art conservation. [13] Sheldon Keck was apparently among the first in the US to use medical x-ray technology in the examination, conservation analysis and authentication of paintings, employing a Metalix portable device - the first of its kind - manufactured by Philips. [15]

By 1943, US President Franklin Roosevelt had created the second of two Roberts Commissions, in this case with the specific charge to collaborate with the War Department in the protection of cultural treasures impacted by the war in Europe. Activities conducted under the Commission included documentation of damage to cultural property and its appropriation by the Axis Powers, was well as the restitution of these treasures. Sheldon Keck had enlisted in the U.S. Army that July. His experience in art restoration (and his relationship with Paul Sachs, by then director of the Fogg Museum and a member of the Commission), lead to Keck being selected for service with the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program (MFAA). Keck's deployment overseas was delayed until 1945, when he was sent to work under the U.S. Ninth Army in the area around Aachen Germany. Sachs accompanied others in the MFAA in surveys of the region's cities, towns, churches, etc., occasionally entering the combat zone. Later, Keck was assigned to the MFAA's Central Collecting Point in Marburg, where he examined seized Nazi documents for evidence of further looting throughout north Central Europe. Ultimately, Keck was instrumental in the restitution of works belonging to some of Europe's most prominent private collections. [17]

Caroline Keck graduated from Vassar College in 1930 with a degree in History [5], continuing at Radcliffe College with a Master’s Degree in art history. She began work on a doctorate at the University of Berlin in 1934, but was forced to return to the US once the Nazi party had taken control of the German government. [10]

With Caroline's support and advice, in 1990 the University of Delaware's art conservation department began offering doctoral degrees [14], the first program of its kind in the US, which by 2005 had evolved into a PhD program in Preservation Studies (PSP).

Shared impact

The Kecks were considered to be pioneers in the scientific approach to the conservation of paintings and art works in general. For centuries, art restoration had emphasized repair and replacement for works that had experienced losses and other damage, with the purpose of renewing the appearance of a work; an approach that unfortunately often resulted in significantly - and even irreparably - altering the piece.

The Kecks helped bring professional standards to the practice, emphasizing the sharing of technique and methodologies over the maintenance of trade secrets. They also stressed thorough documentation of the procedures applied to each work, with the intent that any changes made could be understood and readily reversed. From 1934 to 1961, the Kecks operated a laboratory and studio in the State Street neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, becoming involved in the training of numerous conservators and consulting for many of the nation's most prominent art museums. [10] [14]

Over the decades, the Kecks' approach to the methods and skills of conservation was featured in exhibitions, including: "The Examination and Conservation of Works of Art" at the Brooklyn Museum curated by Sheldon Keck, with John I.H. Baur, Curator of Contemporary Art (1938) [16]; “Take Care” at the Brooklyn Museum (1954); and “Exposition of Painting Conservation” (1962) also at the Brooklyn Museum.

In addition, "De David à Toulouse-Lautrec", an exhibition of American-owned French artworks coordinated and curated by Sheldon Keck, opened at the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris in 1955.

In 1950, the Kecks became charter "Fellows" of the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (IIC), an organization founded by George L. Stout, Harold Plenderleith, Wallace Akers, Paul Coremans and others. Sheldon served for two terms as president of the organization, from 1974 to 1980, and chaired a panel of conservators from the IIC's American Group which developed the first code of ethics for the field of conservation. [17]

In 1960, Sheldon and Caroline Keck founded the Conservation Center at the New York University Institute of Fine Arts, often cited as "the oldest graduate degree-granting conservation program in the world" [7]. A collaborator on the project was Craig Hugh Smyth, one of Sheldon's colleagues from the MFAA and at that time University Institute's Director. Sheldon Keck served as director of the Conservation Center until 1965.

In 1969, the Kecks - under the auspices of UNESCO - established the Latin American Center for Conservation of Cultural property in Mexico City. [10], inaugurating a formal training program for Mexican art conservators as well as international participants.[11]

In 1970 the Kecks established a successor program to the Center they created at the Institute of Fine Arts, this time in Cooperstown, NY. In affiliation with the State University of New York at Oneonta and the New York State Historical Association, the program became known as the Cooperstown Graduate Program in the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. [12] In 1983, this program was transferred to Buffalo State University in Buffalo, NY.

Continuing their support for advanced education in art conservation, the Kecks helped found yet another graduate program, this time a collaboration between the University of Delaware and the Winterthur museum. Presently known by the anagram "WUDPAC", the program began in 1974. [14]

In 1993, the Keck Award [10) was initiated by the American Institute for Conservation, presented annually to individuals demonstrating a "sustained record of excellence in the education and training of conservation professionals".

In 1987, using the money from the sale of a Georgia O’Keeffe painting from their personal collection, the Kecks set up a fund for the Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation (FAIC), the earnings from which support the operations, conservation education, research, and outreach activities of the FAIC and AIC. [10]

Deaths

Sheldon Keck died on June 12, 1993, while in

Caroline Keck died on December 17, 2007, in Cooperstown, NY. Together, they left their library and archives to the Univ. of Delaware/Winterthur program, and to the University's Paul Coremans Endowment Fund in Art Conservation. [14]

Descedants include two sons - Lawrence and Albert - and (as of 2008) two grandchildren. children.

Lawrence Waugh Keck

Albert Keck: Following undergraduate degree, 1961 in Newark, New Jersey working for Rabin and Krueger galleries as an art conservator. [6] Eventually becoming a special education teacher in Boston. Returned to Cooperstown in 1990 to care for his ailing parents.

Awards and recognition

Sheldon Keck

Fulbright Fellow (1959

Guggenheim Fellow (1960)

jointly:

New York State Award (1975) for contributions to art preservation

American Association of Museums Katherine Coffey Award (1984) for distinguished accomplishment in the museum profession

dedications: Sheldon and Caroline Keck Award (AIC) for "a sustained record of excellence in the education and training of conservation professionals.” Keck Award (IIC) to an "individual or group...for promoting understanding and appreciation for the accomplishemnts of the conservation profession"

Publications

"A Future for the Past" (1954) a film on art conservation featured within the "Take Care" exhibition; considered among the first uses of moving images within a museum gallery setting. [10]

References

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/15/arts/15keck.htmlCaroline K. Keck, Art Conservator, Dies at 99, Ken Johnson, Jan. 15, 2008

[2] http://findingaid.winterthur.org/html/HTML_Finding_Aids/COL0664.htm Caroline K. Keck Papers, The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera, The Winterthur Library, Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Winterthur, DE

[3] https://www.monumentsmenandwomenfnd.org/keck-lt-sheldon-w "Sheldon Waugh Keck (1910-1993), A pioneer in art conservation...", Monuments Men and Women Foundation, Dallas, TX

[4] http://archive.okeeffemuseum.org/repositories/2/resources/62 Caroline Keck Papers, Georgia O'Keeffe Museum Archives and Research Center, Santa Fe, NM

[5] https://newspaperarchives.vassar.edu/?a=d&d=vq19300701-01.2.13&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN--------, Vassar Quarterly, Volume XV, Number 3, 1 July 1930

[6] https://exhibits.library.oneonta.edu/files/original/432171737ccbc361dca0c0ebd4e2fa9fbbe4b11b.doc Interview with Albert Keck by Cara Bramson (2008), Cooperstown Graduate Program Research and Fieldwork Course (HMUS520) Oral History Project, Fall 2008.

[7] New York University Institute of Fine Arts#Conservation Center

[8] https://artconservation.buffalostate.edu/about Patricia and Richard H. German Art Conservation Department, Buffalo State College/State University of New York

[10] https://www.culturalheritage.org/membership/awards/keck-award "Awards and Honors", American Institute of Conservation

[11] https://resources.culturalheritage.org/pmgtopics/2003-volume-ten/10_13_Valverde.html "The Education of Photograph Conservators in México". María Fernanda Valverde (2003)

[12] https://www.loc.gov/preservation/outreach/tops/buffalo/index.html "Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Art Conservation Department at Buffalo State College (formerly the Cooperstown Graduate Program in the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works)". Topics in Preservation lecture series (Febuary 29, 2012)

[13] https://www.culturalheritage.org/docs/default-source/publications/periodicals/newsletter/aic-news-vol-18-(1993).pdf?sfvrsn=199e0f20_4 "In Memoriam: Sheldon Keck". AIC News, vol.18 (1993)

[14] https://www.culturalheritage.org/docs/default-source/periodicals/08_march_aicnews.pdf?sfvrsn=b1422167_6 "In Memoriam: Caroline K. Keck". AIC News, vol. (1999)

[15] Philips Metalix-Portable. Second Edition. For the Medical Profession Only. [Medical Instruments Trade Catalogue]. (Philips, ca. 1930).

[16] https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/exhibitions/1616 "Restoration, Examination and Preservation". Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1937 - 1939. 01-02_1938, 031-2.

[17] https://www.monumentsmenandwomenfnd.org/keck-lt-sheldon-w "Sheldon Waugh Keck (1910-1993)". Monuments Men and Women Foundation, Dallas TX.

[18] https://www.archives.gov/research/foreign-policy/related-records/rg-239 "Records of the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas [Roberts Commission] (RG 239)". U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

[19] "De David à Toulouse-Lautrec: Chefs-d'oeuvre des collections américaines". Exposition, Paris, Musée de l'orangerie (1955).