LA CONNER — The Museum of Northwest Art in La Conner says it is working to restore a large mural painted by the late Northwest artist William Cumming. The mural was discovered at a Washington state fair last summer after collecting dust in barns for decades.
The museum plans to lay out the 6-by-32 foot mural for inspection in July.
The painting depicts Skagit County farm culture from the 1930s. It is valued at $500,000.
The restoration is expected to cost $80,000 to $120,000.
A Skagit County family initially thought it was an old tarp but discovered a mural and donated it to the 2014 Skagit County Fair. There, a former art dealer friend of Cumming’s recognized it.
The mural was painted in 1941 for Burlington High School’s Farm Shop.
Cumming was a member of the Northwest School art movement of the 1930s and ’40s.
