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History
of the Charles H. Boehm Collection
The Bucks
County Intermediate Unit several years ago created a Board of Trustees
for what was then titled the Bucks County Traveling Art Gallery. Affectionately
called TAG, its origin dates back to September 1949. Walter Baum, artist,
and Charles Boehm, County School Superintendent, worked together to gather
artwork for the children of Bucks County. They believed that by placing
artwork in the schools, students would appreciate their local art heritage.
As the years
went by the artwork in the collection grew as well the value of the pieces
of art. The Intermediate Unit identified the need for a Board to provide
oversight to the collection. At that point in time, it was next to impossible
to circulate paintings with high values. The Bucks County Intermediate
Unit's Art Education Trust was born. During 1998, the collection was named
the "Charles Boehm Collection" in tribute to Charles Boehm.
In 1997,
a collaborative project with the Michener
Art Museum was generated to provide an opportunity for an appropriate
storage facility for the collection. In 1998, as part of the collaboration,
the two entities wrote a competitive grant to Senator Conti to restore
some of the paintings and host a fifty-year celebration of the collection.
The celebration brought thousands of children to the Michener to view
artwork from the collection on display. Students competed to have their
writings about a particular piece of art as the descriptors for the collection
showcase. Many students saw their writings in the museum, while others
read about the collection artwork on a website of the show. Teachers attended
workshops showing how art and how other curriculum areas can be integrated
as part of regular instruction. The show was a tremendous success for
the Arts Education Trust.
During 2000,
the Senator Conti Legislative Grant was approved for two areas. It contains
a conservation report survey of the collection and a pilot program to
bring the Arts Education Trust collection back to schools and children.
It has been tentatively called "Art on the Move".
The conservation
report survey process began during the summer of 2000. The Michener Museum
issued a RFP (request for proposal) for the survey of the paintings of
the collection. The survey itself includes a prep person to remove each
piece of artwork from its frame. The conservator physically examines and
measures each piece of artwork. After a piece of artwork has been examined,
it is remounted in the frame with new felting and an acid free backboard.
A detailed report and photographic record is created for each item. Additionally
a contract will be issued to evaluate the watercolors, lithographs, pastels,
and pen and ink artwork for a complete conservation report like the paintings.
Additionally, each of the paper items will be stored flat in acid free
paper or envelopes for the best conservation possible.
Art on the
Move is the second component of the grant. This pilot program is bringing
original pieces of art to local district school buildings. Letters were
sent to all of the districts asking for pilot buildings for the project.
Four schools volunteered to be in the pilot program the first year. Issues
of security, how to hang the artwork, as well as where to hang the collection
have been addressed. Curricular connections have been developed by a committee
of teachers and will continue to be developed by the teachers and students
of the schools for use by other students in the future.
The Arts
Education Trust has been busy recently. The trust hopes that future grants
will enable full conservation of the collection and funds for future activities.
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