The Saint Louis Art Museum presents Restoring an American Treasure: The Panorama of the Monumental Grandeur of the Mississippi Valley, a unique and ambitious project through which the Museum will assemble conservators to restore a massive painting commissioned by Dr. Montroville W. Dickeson and painted by artist John J. Egan around 1850. While the subjects depicted vary widely across time and cultures, the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers serve as the backdrop for many of the 25 scenes of this large painting, the last surviving of its kind.

This exhibition will be on view from June 12 through August 21, 2011 in the Main Exhibition Galleries of the Saint Louis Art Museum. Restoring an American Treasure: The Panorama of the Monumental Grandeur of the Mississippi Valley was organized by the Saint Louis Art Museum with conservation oversight by Paul Haner, Museum paintings conservator, and curatorial oversight by Janeen Turk, senior curatorial assistant.  Haner will lead a team of conservators including Mark Bockrath, who assisted the Museum in 2009 with the in-gallery conservation project Reviving Antiquity: Restoring Hubert Robert’s Views of Ancient Ruins.

This restoration project is made possible through the support of U.S. Representative William “Lacy” Clay and U.S. Senator Christopher S. “Kit” Bond by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services. Any views, finding, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Exhibition support has been provided by Enterprise Holdings Foundation.  Financial assistance for this project has been provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency. Free admission to this exhibition has been provided by PNC Arts Alive.

The Saint Louis Art Museum is one of the nation’s leading comprehensive art museums with collections that include works of art of exceptional quality from virtually every culture and time period. Areas of notable depth include Oceanic art, pre-Columbian art, ancient Chinese bronzes and European and American art of the late 19th and 20th centuries, with particular strength in 20th-century German art. The Museum offers a full range of exhibitions and educational programming generated independently and in collaboration with local, national and international partners. 

Gallery closures and art movement throughout the Museum are anticipated as we make progress toward our exciting expansion project. Thanks for your patience.

Admission to the Saint Louis Art Museum is free to all every day. For more information about the Saint Louis Art Museum, call 314.721.0072 or visit www.slam.org.