The Art of Art Conservation with Troy Amuso in Great Barrington

Friday, October 23, 7–8:30pm | Great Barrington, MA | $25

Master conservator Troy J. Amuso gives the illustrated talk “The Art of Fine Art Restoration: Causes & Remedies” at Saint James Place on October 23. It’s presented by Troy Fine Art Services, and all ticket sales benefit The People’s Pantry and Saint James Place.

Amuso walks through the environmental and human factors that damage oil paintings over time, including humidity, light exposure, improper cleaning, and neglect. He draws on before-and-after images and case studies from Northeast collections, among them a still life recovered after a house fire, to show how conservators stabilize, clean, and restore a work while preserving its historical integrity.

Amuso began in 1977 as an apprentice to the Dutch conservator Yan Vanderviver in Westchester County, New York, and worked in studios in New York, Connecticut, and Los Angeles before founding Troy Fine Art Services in 1996 with his wife, Denise DiGrigoli. The business has studios in Fairfield, Connecticut, and Sheffield, Massachusetts. His stated standard is that every restoration be archival and reversible.

The benefit supports Saint James Place, the restored church and parish house at 352 Main Street, and The People’s Pantry, which started at the church in 1999. Saint James Place says it provided the pantry a rent-free home for about a decade.

Saint James Place, 352 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA. Tickets at universe.com or 413-528-1996.

Sources differ on when the church was built, so I left that date out. The People’s Pantry’s current location also appears to be changing, so I didn’t say where it operates now. The 1996 founding date and apprenticeship details come from Amuso’s website and the Universe ticket page, and the 1999 start and rent-free arrangement from The Berkshire Edge.