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he completion of a three-year project to fully renovate and
restore the Hillwood estate continues Marjorie Merriweather
Post’s commitment to providing a state-of-the-art showcase
for her world-class collection of Russian imperial and 18th-century
French decorative art. When Mrs. Post bought the Georgian-style
estate in the late 1950s, she hired architect Alexander McIlvaine
to significantly enlarge and redesign the 36-room mansion
to include lighted display cases with pullout identification
label drawers for her finest pieces. When Hillwood reopens
September 26, the new facilities will further enhance the
exhibition and preservation of the collection for the enjoyment
and education of the public.
Hillwood has undergone major structural
repair, as well as the restoration of its interiors and select
objects on display. A new Visitor Center with improved orientation
facilities has been added, as well as a resource center housing
catalogues and books pertaining to the collections and an
interactive computer kiosk on the second floor of the mansion.
In addition, an advanced lighting system recessed into the
ceilings of the main exhibition rooms make it easier to view
and study the objects on display.
During the renovation process, the entire
collection was temporarily removed from the mansion’s
exhibition rooms – the Entry Hall, the hexagonal Russian
Porcelain Room, the French Drawing Room, the Icon Room displaying
treasures by Fabergé, the French Regency-style Dining
Room, the Breakfast Room, the Pavilion, the English-style
Library, the Russian Liturgical Gallery and the bedrooms upstairs.
A traveling exhibition of more than 180
of the museum’s finest pieces toured the United States,
allowing more than 250,000 visitors at eight museums across
the country to enjoy the collection. The remainder of works
was safely stored in specially designed racks and containers
on the estate to facilitate study and conservation efforts.
Conservators carefully treated and cleaned furniture and French
tapestries, they polished and rewired the chandeliers and
period light fixtures throughout the museum, and they also
restored many of the picture frames in the collection.
"There were two key aspects of the
renovation and restoration of the estate," said Hillwood
conservator Albert Marshall. "One was pinpointing just
the right specialists and materials to recreate original surfaces
discovered throughout the house, and the other was the carefully
installing new wiring, ventilation and security systems while
maintaining the integrity of the interior decorative elements.
A major challenge was restoring and replicating materials
manufactured in the mid to late 60s, when Mrs. Post bought
and redesigned the mansion, at the same time preserving the
essence of the environment she had created."
Restoration of Interiors
Curatorial and conservation staff researched
methods to replace damaged or deteriorated interior finishes,
such as wall coverings, with similar or identical materials.
Over the years, fabrics had faded or deteriorated, while the
steady flow of visitors had worn the floors and other surfaces.
Damaged fabrics were replaced with those of the same quality,
requiring the extensive research of original receipts and
historical photographs in the museum's archives. Appropriate
materials and manufacturers had to be selected, and new fabric
was woven and installed in both the Icon Room and the Pavilion.
In particular, the Icon Room wall covering from the noted
fabric house Scalamandre was meticulously recreated from the
original, as was the dramatic purple silk velvet covering
in the Pavilion. Also, the gold-colored silk-on-silk velvet
in all the built-in cases throughout the mansion was rewoven
in Italy.
The majority of surfaces, however, were
restored rather than replaced. Crews of specialized craftsmen
were enlisted to restore the intricate marquetry floors, and
treatment of the Front Hall's plaster surface brought back
the original brilliant interior. The pine wood paneling in
the two libraries also was cleaned to reveal intricate detail
work that had become obscured by a buildup of dust and wax.
Structural Repair
Structural improvements included upgrading
environmental conditions to better protect the interiors and
the collection, and the most important mechanical work involved
installing a new heating, cooling, and ventilation system
that pipes hot and cold water into the mansion from a new
central plant. The mansion's underground walls also were waterproofed
to protect the structural integrity of the foundation, and
the house was completely rewired and provided with upgraded
fire suppression and security systems.
Because work in the mansion involved heavy
construction and the interior walls could not be removed,
interior protection was installed and a secondary set of freestanding
walls was constructed. Once the renovation and restoration
process was complete, the chandeliers and period fixtures
were reinstalled and tested, the draperies were cleaned and
re-hung or replaced, and thousands of objects were carefully
reinstalled throughout the mansion.
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