MUNCIE, Ind. – A 17th-century Spanish painting of the patron saint of music and musicians will receive a face-lift thanks to the Ball State University Museum of Art Alliance.

The alliance will fund the $15,000 conservation of the museum's "St. Cecelia," an oil painting created between 1660 and 1670 by an unidentified artist from the Andalusian School.

The work has been in the Ball State Museum of Art's collection since 1929. It is part of the Frank C. Ball Collection, partial gift and promised gift of the Ball Brothers Foundation.

"This is the only good Spanish painting we have, and yet we have not exhibited it in 20 years," said Alain Joyaux, director of the Ball State Museum of Art. "It has too many condition problems and is so dark that you can barely make out the image."

Damage to the paint, varnish and canvas can be caused by deteriorating materials, dust, humidity, dryness, temperature fluctuations, insects and human hands. Oil paint hardens over time and can break into a network of fine cracks.

Conservators who inspected "St. Cecelia" in 1984 cited its disfiguring varnish; discolored, dusty and uneven surface coating; dry, brittle canvas; and cleavage between the paint and canvas. Care recommendations included removing the varnish, revarnishing, lining and inpainting.

The cleaning and restoration work will be completed by the Intermuseum Conservation Association in the next year or two. It will enhance the work's physical stability and aesthetic appeal so future generations can enjoy it, Joyaux said.

"St. Cecelia" measures just over 6 feet tall by about 3.5 feet wide. The painting depicts the third-century Roman martyr standing by an organ, the musical instrument associated with her since the 16th century.

Peter and Linda Murray's "Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architecture" describes the story of the music saint: "Her legend states that she, a Christian, refused to marry a pagan noble, Valerian, but converted him and his brother Tiburtius: they were martyred, but not before an angel appeared to Valerian and Cecilia and crowned them with roses and lilies." Cecilia was ordered to recant but refused, and she was condemned to die.

Her body was discovered in a catacomb in the ninth century and was reburied in the church of St. Cecilia in Trastevere in Rome. When the church was restored in 1599, her body was found incorrupt, although it crumbled after exposure to the air.

Cecilia's cult and her representation in art began to flourish after that, according to Walter A. Liedtke, author of "Flemish Paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art I."

"St. Cecelia" is one of the more than 10,000 works in the Ball State Museum of Art's permanent collection, which includes a wide range of American, European, Asian, African, Oceanic and pre-Columbian paintings, prints, sculpture and decorative arts.

The Museum of Art Alliance works to stimulate public interest and participation in the museum's collections, exhibitions and programs. The alliance also assists in increasing the museum's revenues for operation and acquisitions.

Alliance members participate in monthly educational meetings and serve as volunteers by hosting special events.

The art museum is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday and 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. It is closed on university holidays. Admission is free. Phone: (765) 285-5242.

By Ted Buck, Communications Manager