Salisbury, Md. - After a prolonged closure, The Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art is moving to a new space. The museum closed to the public in July 2022 following a massive HVAC system failure. The failure created unsafe conditions in many of the museum’s galleries and led to mold spreading on carvings and other artwork, according to the Ward Foundation.
The Foundation, which operates the museum, said in a statement that their collection is being cared for with the utmost attention. Affected work is expected to be professionally cleaned and then stored in a safe location until the relocation.
The museum has reportedly been in consultation with insurance agencies, mold remediation specialists, and decoy and art conservation experts and said they are confident in full restoration and preservation of the collection.
“This institution was founded to honor the art and legacy of the Ward brothers and to celebrate the transition of decoy making from a humble folk craft to a recognized form of decorative art – we will continue to live that mission,” said Ward Foundation Interim Executive Director, Brittany Andrew.
In addition to the HVAC failure, several galleries in the 30-year-old building were found to be operating below code or will soon require replacement, the Foundation said. The Ward Foundation and Salisbury University concluded they were unable to make the financial investment required to maintain the building as a museum-quality space.
The University is assisting the Foundation with the relocation and jointly exploring alternative spaces on campus or within Salisbury to continue programming.
Salisbury University says the hope is the new location will be downtown and they are exploring new ways to show the exhibits on campus if possible.
Classrooms within the building were reportedly unaffected by the HVAC failure. The museum's Education Department is continuing operations including environmental education field trips for Wicomico County Public Schools.
“Change is always hard and the circumstances that necessitated this change are especially unfortunate,” said Ward Foundation Board of Directors Chair, Arthur Leonard. “As Lem and Steve themselves would surely have agreed, we cannot change the past but we can surely make the future better. The staff, the board, and our University partners are optimistic about our future, and we will all be working together to make the most of this change as we continue to pursue our mission as a leader at the crossroads of the arts, heritage conservation, environmental education, and community service.”
The Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art has been at the location on Schumaker Pond since 1992.
