Wall Drawing #120 (1971) van Sol LeWitt

Painstaking work

For over ten months, the dirt that has accumulated on the surface of Wall Drawing #120 over the past fifty years will be removed for four hours every day. Before this painstaking work could begin, material-technical and art-historical research was conducted to determine the correct approach to the conservation.

Realization and acquisition

Wall Drawing #120 was installed at the Kröller-Müller Museum in August 1972 on the occasion of the exhibition Diagrams & Drawings. This exhibition included a large number of drawings by artists such as Carl Andre, Robert Morris, Richard Serra and Michael Heizer. The museum acquired Wall Drawing #120 on 28 August 1973 and it has since been part of the permanent presentation.

Wall drawing #120 van Sol Lewitt (detail)

Extensive research

The presentation around the conservation includes certificates of the work, correspondence with the artist, ideas for other wall drawings and books on LeWitt’s work. Together, this provides insight into the art-historical research conducted prior to the conservation and the decisions made subsequently. 

Read more about the research and the findings