The CMA Fund for Conservation

The CMA’s conservation department holds a worldwide leadership position in the preservation and treatment of a wide range of art. Working in an 18,000-square-foot suite of state-of-the-art laboratories, the conservation department operates in one of the finest spaces in the country for analysis, study, and conservation of museum collections.

Art meets science in the museum’s conservation labs. Using simple hand tools and microscopes, as well as high-tech tools, such as X-radiography and infrared reflectography, our conservators work with patience and precision to examine artworks and perform conservation treatments. Walking through the conservation suite on any given day, you may find a conservator closely examining a unique 15th-century engraving, carefully mounting a sixth-century Egyptian Coptic textile for display, working on an Impressionist’s masterpiece to bring it as close as possible to its original state and the artist’s intent, or preparing a fragile porcelain vase to travel in the building or across the world without harm from movement or environmental changes.

To learn more about how to support the CMA Fund for Conservation, please contact membership@clevelandart.org.