Manning Simons (1846-1911)
By Louis P. Dieterich (1841-1922), 1912 | Oil on canvas, 37 x 32
Manning Simons was born in Charleston in 1846. He graduated from the College of Charleston and later from the Medical College of the State of South Carolina (1868).
He helped organize the St. Francis Training School for Nurses, for which he served as instructor. Later he served as professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Medical College.
He served as president of the South Carolina Medical Association and the Southern Surgical and Gynecological Association.
Conservation Needs:
Proposed treatment includes removing grime and discolored varnish layers, filling in paint losses and abrasions, reducing canvas distortion, revarnishing, and reframing.
Frame requires surface cleaning, repairing gesso losses, casting and placing a new ornamental piece at the bottom left corner of the frame, and gilding and toning.
Goal
The goal for the project is $150,000 which will pay for all the work to conserve these visual treasures. The cost for each portrait’s conservation ranges from $1,200 to $15,000.
This cost includes the conservation/ treatment report, conservation of the canvas and frame, and any costs associated with the treatment such as curatorial research and documentation, photography, transportation, and insurance.
Donor Recognition
Donors who adopt a portrait will receive named recognition during the portraits absence in the form of a sign reading, “Portrait being conserved through the generous support of [your name].”
When the portrait is returned a celebratory reception will be held at which the donor will be honored for his or her support of the project. Finally, the finished portrait will be reinstalled in the Waring with a permanent sign reading, “This portrait was conserved in [year] by the generous support of [your name].”
As a thank you gift, donors will be offered a reproduction of their “adopted” portrait, printed on canvas and suitable for framing.
Project Kick-Off
In order to kick-start the project, the WLS sent the portrait of Alexander Baron off for conservation.
Dr. Baron was selected for two reasons: first, the sitter, Dr. Baron, was a founding member of the Medical Society of South Carolina, whose generous support of the Waring has enabled us to conserve and digitize numerous items from the collection.
Second, the artist of the portrait was Samuel B. Morse, whose portraiture career in Charleston included painting the city’s leaders.