Conservation Department

The Fine Art Branch of the Conservation Program at the Hungarian University of Fine Arts trains painting, wooden sculpture and stone sculpture conservators, while students in the Branch of Applied Arts Object Conservation can specialize in five fields (wooden objects and furniture conservation, metal and goldsmith objects conservation, paper and leather conservation, textile and leather conservation and siliceous objects conservation).

The program prepares students for independent conservation, research and activities, and for producing professional documentation. Primary objectives include providing students with specialized artistic and professional training, and fostering an understanding of the multi-faceted tasks in the various fields. In addition, students also gain proficiency in the applied artistic and technological procedures. In the microscope laboratory of the department, students can conduct and evaluate scientific tests, and process information through computer imaging. This facility also supports high level theoretical and practical training and research.

In the framework of graduate training, students acquire skills related to the protection of art objects and monuments, painting techniques, the study of materials, physics, chemistry, iconography, museology and the history of apparel. The part-time program offers Applied Arts Object Conservation training in cooperation with the Hungarian National Museum. The objective of the program is to train experts who are able – either independently or with the collaboration of museologists and scientific experts – to carry out and evaluate the production techniques of (and material tests on) art objects, to assess their condition, and to plan and carry out the rescue, cleaning, conservation and restoration of these objects. They also acquire the necessary competence in terms of establishing and monitoring museum environments, which serve the conservation of art objects.

Graduating students of the Branch of Applied Arts Object Conservation have organized an exhibition series entitled Preserved Art Treasures since 1996. While, before 1999, these shows took place at the Museum of Applied Arts, as of 2000, they have been organized at the Hungarian National Museum.

Since 2002, these degree shows have also featured the works of students from the Branch of Fine Arts Conservation Branch. A bilingual catalogue is published in conjunction with each show.