The Frick Collection Appoints Julia Day as New Chief Conservator

The Frick Collection has named Julia Day as its new Chief Conservator. Day, who previously served at the institution for fourteen years, will now lead the museum’s conservation department. She succeeds Joseph Godla, an expert in furniture, who is retiring from the post he has held since 2005.

Day returns to the Frick following a period as a senior conservator for the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. Her career, now in its third decade, includes significant conservation work at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, where she contributed to the restoration of the Wrightsman Galleries for French Decorative Arts. This experience honed her focus on decorative objects, which was her primary purview when she first joined the Frick in 2008.

Her appointment comes as the Frick completes a major renovation and expansion of its historic 1 East 70th Street buildings. The project includes a significant enhancement of the institution’s conservation facilities, which Day will now oversee.

Colleagues at the Frick have noted her suitability for the role. “There is nothing impulsive about Julia,” commented Aimee Ng, a curator at the Frick. “And that is one of the great qualities of a leader in conservation.”

Day’s leadership of the conservation department will be integral as the museum prepares for the reinstallation of its collection and the public reopening of its renovated home. Sources