From Studio to Cityscape: Collaboration and Conservation of Painted Outdoor Sculpture

Co-organized by the Robert Cripps Institute for Cultural Conservation, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the National Gallery of Victoria, this free panel explores the conservation of painted outdoor sculpture through the perspectives of artists Ling and Jumaadi, in conversation with local conservators Dr Eliza O’Donnell and Dr Caroline Kyi. Centering on works realized through artist and delegated fabrication, the discussion will consider how artistic intent is translated through fabrication and materials, and how these choices influence aging, maintenance, and long-term conservation strategies. 

Bringing artists and conservator(s) into direct dialogue, the discussion will highlight the critical role of public art custodians in interpreting artistic intent, documenting fabrication histories, and guiding treatment and re‑treatment decisions in outdoor environments. The conversation underscores the value of early and ongoing collaboration among artists, and custodians in developing informed, sustainable conservation strategies for painted outdoor sculpture.  

About the Artists

Jumaadi, an Indonesian–Australian multidisciplinary artist whose work draws on Javanese folklore, shadow puppet traditions, and personal histories, recently realized his first permanent public artwork, Upside Down Garden, in Sydney. This ambitious hanging sculptural installation that blends brightly painted metal forms, sound, and light to explore transformation, memory, and the relationship between humans and nature.   

Ling, a Melbourne based artist known for large-scale public installations, murals, and sculptural works, brings a practice rooted in blending graffiti aesthetics with impressionistic brushwork and industrial processes. His outdoor sculptures, often incorporating post-consumer objects, transform urban environments through scale, texture, and material experimentation.   

About the conservators

Dr Caroline Kyi is a specialist wall paintings conservator with over 20-years of local and international experience as a conservator and conservation scientist. Caroline has worked the higher education and on the cultural and commercial sectors on moveable and built cultural heritage. She trained as a Wall Paintings conservator (Courtauld Institute of Art, London) with a PhD in Chemistry (University of Melbourne).

Dr Eliza O’Donnell is a newly appointed Mary Lugton Postdoctoral Fellow with a background in paintings conservation and experience working with Indonesian artists and cultural collections in tropical climates, she brings a wealth of knowledge in relation to understanding issues of art attribution and cross-cultural research and practice. Eliza completed her Bachelor of Arts and Master in Cultural Materials Conservation at the University of Melbourne.

The William Macmahon Ball Theatre is located at the University of Melbourne Parkville campus.