George L. Stout Memorial Lecture
Innovations in Inquiry: The Future of Art Conservation and the Legacy of George Stout
Arlen Heginbotham
Thursday, May 22, 2025
7 - 8:30 pm
Calderwood Hall
George Leslie Stout, director of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum from 1955–1970, was an innovator and visionary in the early development of modern art conservation. He saw clearly the critical importance of understanding the materials from which art is made, understood the benefits of applying modern scientific methods to the technical study of art, and was committed to scholarly exchange and international collaboration as a means for advancing the practice of art conservation.
Arlen Heginbotham, conservator at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, will discuss some of the ways in which the field of art conservation is continuing to advance and innovate, using advanced technology to study the material of art, in increasingly interdisciplinary and collaborative ways. While the pace of progress in art conservation is dizzying, Heginbotham illustrates how the goals and vision laid out by George Stout still serve as valuable guideposts for a field in transition.
About The Speaker
Arlen Heginbotham is currently Conservator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture at the J. Paul Getty Museum. He received his A.B. in East Asian Studies from Stanford University, his M.A. in Art Conservation from Buffalo State College, and his Ph.D. in Earth Sciences from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Arlen’s research interests include the technical study of Asian export lacquer, wood identification by chemical analysis, the use of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy as a tool for studying copper alloy artifacts and their patinas, and digital X-radiography for conservation. He has authored over 40 peer reviewed publications and has co-authored, with Gillian Wilson, the catalog French Rococo Ébénisterie in the J. Paul Getty Museum and is an editor and author of the recently published Guidelines for the Technical Examination of Bronze Sculpture from Getty Publications.
Stout Memorial Lecture
Held each year in honor of George L. Stout, the Museum’s Director from 1955 to 1970 and a founder of modern art conservation, the Stout Memorial Lecture celebrates excellence in preservation and understanding of cultural heritage.
Tickets
Advanced tickets are required and include Museum admission. Adults $22, seniors $20, students $15, free for members and children 17 and under.
Seating in Calderwood Hall is first come, first served. Seating begins 45 minutes before the event. Late seating is not guaranteed.
To request accessible or wheelchair seating please call the box office at 617 278 5156.