Professional Associate
Member of AIC
Fine Arts Conservator
Alexandra vonHawk
352-669-7776
alexandra@vonhawklabs.com
  • Cultural Institute Clients
  • Daytona Museum of Arts and Science
  • Austin Carriage Museum
  • The Appleton Museum of Art
  • Morse Museum of American Art
  • Samuel Harn Museum of Art
  • Maitland Museum of Fine Art
  • The Lightner Museum
  • Albany Institute of Art
  • Stetson University
  • Cummer Museum
  • The Flagler Museum
  • Ponce DeLeon Light House Museum
  • Museum of Seminole County History
  • Orlando Museum of Art
  • Cornell Fine Arts Museum
  • Rollins College Library
  • Milwaukee Museum of Fine Art
Professional Associate Member of AIC

About the Conservator

Currently the owner of Von Hawk Labs located in Central Florida, I am a traditionally-trained art conservator who specializes in repairing and restoring works on paper and canvas.  My services also include damage assessment, emergency intervention, conservation of glass and wood objects, lectures and consultations.  My working philosophy is that the art always dictates my treatment sequences and the executing artist is the only true voice I follow.  In my work, I honor the artist’s hand as I coax the weft and the warp of the canvas’ fibers to reappear during the treatment process  as the pigments breathe again and the artist’s true intention comes to light. Von Hawk Labs has been restoring and repairing fine art since 1988.

I was truly born to do this work.  I was fascinated with art as a youngster and worked for a local art restorer in high school, while I studied to be a fine artist.  I was encouraged in my efforts by my then neighbor, Norman Rockwell, who would gently critique my work.  After a stint in college as a pre-med student, I realized I wanted to work in the art field so I received both a B.S. in Microbiology and a B.A. in Art History from the State University of New York, Albany. Those chemistry and biology classes came in handy when I began a conservation apprenticeship with Paul Lengyel, a master Old World Craftsman, as I could not find a scholarship that would pay for a formal education in Art Conservation.

I was fortunate to apprentice with Mr. Lengyel, a trained, Russian conservator whose family had worked at the Hermitage in St. Petersburg for generations. He taught me humility, ethics and the need to give back to the community along with a great hands-on education in art conservation.  His favorite saying was, “We serve the artist!”  Through Mr. Lengyel, I was introduced to A.I.C. (American Institute of Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works) where, as a member, I soon realized we shared the same values.  Over the years I attended numerous continuing education workshops, lectures and programs through A.I.C. to build my professional knowledge.  In 1988, I opened my own conservation laboratory in a small town near Orlando, FL where I continue to serve institutional and individual clients from around the world.  Supporting my clients through every step of the artwork’s restoration is my hallmark.

Please enjoy viewing the restoration process of the three examples included in this website.  You can also watch a 20-minute video of the restoration of an old map of Seminole County, FL under the link More Projects.  Call me for a phone consultation to discuss any works of art that you would like to see saved and preserved at 352-669-7776 or email me at Alexandra@vonhawklabs.com.  You, the art lovers of the world, are the caretakers of the majority of the world’s art!

Professional Training at a Glance

1969-74
1976
1976
1978-86
1985-86
1988
1992-94
Brigham Young University
State University of New York Albany
State University of New York Albany
Old World Craftsmen
New York State Conservation Center
Opening of Von Hawk Labs 
Campbell Center for Historic Conservation  
Pre-Med program
B.S. Microbiology
B. A. Art History
Ran Art Conservation Lab under Paul Lengyel
Asst. Conservator under LudmelaTislan
Conserving works on canvas and paper
Took 4 workshops:
Works on Paper
Inpainting and Surface Consolidation
Tape Removal Methods
Advanced Matting and Housing
1992+
1992
1993
1998-9
2002
2003
2007 
Received Keck Award 
National Museum of Canada
John Sansbury 
AIC
Yale University Art Gallery
West Lake Conservation Lab
Research Assistant to Eric Postma
For continuing education classes taken
Workshop-Mechanical behavior of paintings
Repair of Framing and traditional guilding
Japanese Paper Conservation Treatments
Treatments of pigments on canvas, board, etc.
Italian methods of consolidents/structural reinforcement
Paper “Digital Identification of Artists’ Brush-
strokes Leading to Authenticity,”  focus on J.S. Sargent and Van Dyck
1999-present Independent Art Conservation Research Development of Biopolymer Bridging Adhesive
Atomic Oxygen Study
Anoxia Treatments as Insect Eradication
Affiliations: AIC
The Society of Guilders