Healy Hall - Philodemic Room

The Philodemic Room in Healy Hall is a historic space on Georgetown University’s main campus in Washington, D.C. It is home to the weekly debates of the Philodemic Society, one of the oldest student debating societies in the United States and the oldest secular student organization at Georgetown.

The overall project goal is to create a welcoming and functional space that can adequately support meetings, events, and other functions by the Philodemic Society and the university community, and is reflective of the values of these communities. Our conservators performed several tasks: survey the plaster, millwork, and stone; evaluate the decorative historic finishes; conserve/restore the original finishes; and design, fabricate, and install new decorative elements in select areas in the space.

We performed surveys on three occasions. During the first survey, conservators performed a limited visual investigation of the plaster finishes, as well as decorative finishes investigation. General cracking, finish damage, and improper repairs were recorded. Exposure windows were created to uncover historic design schemes, and microscopy was performed to identify and match colors.

The second survey was a comprehensive, close-range visual and tactile investigation of the in-situ plaster elements, decorative finishes, and millwork throughout the space. The purpose of the survey was to further assess the conditions and provide recommendations for the treatment in support of the restoration of the Philodemic Room. Deteriorated conditions and previous treatments on the plaster ceiling, walls, and millwork were identified, documented, and mapped on elevation drawings and a reflected ceiling plan.

A third survey was performed after a pipe burst in the ceiling, causing extensive damage to the interior features. The purpose of the close-range visual and tactile survey was to assess the condition of all features post-damage and provide new recommendations for temporary mitigation, as well as future treatment in support of restoration. Particular attention was paid to relative humidity and moisture within the surfaces, as well as how the water infiltration affected the decorative finishes and substrates.

Restoration work began in January 2024. All features were treated gently and sensitively using conservation grade methods, including:

• Dry cleaning wood elements
• Aqueous cleaning plaster and decorative painted elements.
• Repairing or replacing damaged plaster features.
• Applying protective barrier layer to decorative paint to preserve and delineate original finishes.
• Inpainting original decorative painted finishes were missing or damaged.
• Applying unifying protective varnish to original decorative painted finishes.
• Stripping post-historic paint and cleaning of stone elements.

EverGreene collaborated with SmithGroup to make alterations to the painted decorative finishes and create new artwork. Our Design Studio was contracted to remove eight of the names in the ceiling designs, design a replacement unifying decorative border, and paint by hand in the space. Our designers were also tasked with creating new artwork within the space. This included two new custom plaster crests (the Philodemic Society Seal and the Georgetown University Seal) to adorn the West Wall; designing and fabrication of ornamental painted panels in the style of Brother Schroen to adorn the West wall behind the new plaster crests; and a new large painting to adorn the East wall.