HI Jeff, Funny you mention that. I definitely cringed at the wording for exactly that reason. I suggested it was somewhat misleading, since the fragility and lightfast issues have to do with the ground on which these 19th century paintings are painted--not on the pastels. That's something I touched on in my gallery talk. My guess is that this wording suggests urgency and rarity which heightens interest in the exhibit. And these paintings do need to be treated carefully because of the fading, delicate grounds some are painted on. In some ways pastel stands the test of time better than any other medium: the pure pigment sitting on the paper in all this exhibit's paintings looks as if it could have been applied this morning. Those of us painting today need to get the word out about the excellent archival quality of contemporary pastels.