The joint team effort between US and Cuban architects, engineers, and tradesmen to build a conservation center is 80% complete.
The building is gorgeous as well as practical and desperately needed to safeguard Hemingway’s papers and collection in the harsh tropical climate. In fact, we designed this 2,400 square foot building intentionally simply. The Ministry of Culture can easily replicate it in all provinces. Cuba is a nation rich in culture, but with few facilities to store and protect the collections.
In March, the US technical team made two trips to finish the electrical work, connect the HVAC equipment, install gutters, and to create a materials list for the final sea container.
Finca Vigía Foundation executive director Mary-Jo Adams (left) with Grisell Fraga Leal executive director of Museo Hemingway inside the document conservation wet laboratory of the Restoration Center.
As we approach the finish line, we require more funds to complete the work. $1.1 million has been raised, but we still need $200,000 to complete the building and train our colleagues in Cuba how to sustain and maintain it going forward. New money raised will be used to purchase materials and equipment for the laboratories and archival storage vault. Materials needed included everything from range hoods, water de-ionization systems, light tables, cold storage for photograph negatives, a back-up generator, and archival storage shelving. Plus lots of smaller but important items for paper conservation such as water colors, inks, leather, linen, brushes, scissors, pens, and rare Japanese tissue paper for mending. We will also employ document conservation consultants to help set up the laboratory, train Cuban conservators, and transfer the vast Hemingway paper collection into the archival storage vault.
Please help us achieve our goal by making a tax-deductible donation. And thank you to those who have already supported us.
With best regards,
Mary-Jo Adams
Executive Director
Finca Vigía Foundation