Credentials

Master of Science Degree in Art Conservation, Winterthur Museum / University of Delaware

Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Studio Art, Philadelphia College of Art (renamed University of the Arts)

Bio & Background

Barbara Johnson, Conservator Private Practice

Barbara Johnson has now established a Private Practice in Allentown, PA, after serving the Denver area for 20 years, providing art conservation services for museums, galleries, insurance companies and private clients, working in her art conservation studio and on-site locations.

Post-graduate Work

Following completion of a Master of Science Degree at Winterthur Museum, Barbara received a position as a post-graduate intern for a year at the American Museum of Natural History, NY.  She followed this with a position for five years as Associate Objects Conservator at the Upper Midwest Conservation Association in Minneapolis, MN (later renamed Midwest Art Conservation Center). 

Winterthur Art Conservation Graduate Fellowship

After gaining the necessary experience in science, art history and studio art, in 1990 Barbara was awarded a three-year masters degree fellowship in Art Conservation, co-sponsored by Winterthur Museum and the University of Delaware. At Winterthur during the first year, she studied fabrication methods, materials deterioration, chemistry, preservation and treatment of a number of art conservation disciplines, including: Paintings, Paper, Photographs, Textiles, Objects and Furniture. During the second year the focus was Objects Conservation; care and treatment of inorganic materials like ceramics, glass, metals and stone, and organic materials such as wood, leather, feathers and plant materials. Studies included materials science in the Winterthur analytical laboratory using scientific instrumentation. Summers during the Winterthur program were spent working in the art conservation laboratories at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii and the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles, CA. During the program third year, she worked as an intern at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, and National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.

Early Art Conservation

Barbara has been working in the Art Conservation field since 1987. She began as a technician in a paper conservation laboratory in Philadelphia at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, providing support activities for the paper conservators. She then moved to Westchester County, NY to work at the Textile Conservation Workshop as a pre-program intern, performing a range of textile conservation treatments. All the while, Barbara was building on her undergraduate BFA degree in Studio Art by taking additional courses in chemistry and art history.

Early Artwork

Barbara has always brought forth artistic sensibilities in her work experience. Early in her career she studied Interior Design, worked in a silk screen printing artist workshop, and restored paintings in a private business. She won awards for her advanced and extraordinary Fiber Art Sculptural Costumes in her undergraduate studies at the Philadelphia College of Art. During her studio art education she also brought artistic creativity and fine craftsmanship to other disciplines such as fiber art weaving, wood, metal jewelry, Plexiglass, painting and printmaking.