Month: June 2011

39th Annual Meeting-ECPN Informational Meeting, May 31, 2011

The ECPN Informational Meeting had a wonderful turnout of more than 50 people.  Chair Rose Cull and AIC Staff Liaison Ryan Winfield indicated that there has been a good response across the AIC membership to what ECPN has accomplished so far, and recognition of its importance, vitality, and growth.

 

Announcements

Chair Rose Cull announced that there would be three upcoming vacancies on the ECPN committee: the Chair, Vice-Chair, and Outreach Coordinator positions.  Position descriptions will be posted online and will appear in the AIC News.  The positions will be filled in September.  The minutes from the previous meeting on 5/19 were also approved.  Minutes are published on the ECPN blog following approval.

 

Communications

Communications Coordinator Amy Brost asked everyone to take a look at the informational sheet about ECPN in the conference bag.  The sheet provides the URL of the group’s blog (emergingconservator.blogspot.com) and Flickr page (flickr.com/groups/conservators), as well as dial-in information for participating in the group’s monthly conference call (866-225-4944, conference ID 9992396916).  The call takes place on the 3rd Thursday of the month at 1 pm ET.  Everyone in the room was encouraged to take part in a future call.  The next call will be on June 16.

 

Amy advised that emerging conservators are being invited to help with the development of the Specialty Group Wikis.  There are also opportunities for emerging conservators to write book reviews for JAIC and other online publications as long as they have sufficient expertise on the topic.  This will be the topic of a future blog post on the ECPN blog.  Amy indicated that the group will work in the coming year to connect pre-program  and emerging conservators with regional conservation centers to enhance ECPN involvement in regional Angels Projects.  She encouraged everyone to see the ECPN poster in the Exhibit Hall and make a note of the contact information provided for the Chair and the committee Coordinators in order to follow up later with any questions, or to volunteer.

 

Outreach

Outreach Coordinator Heather Brown encouraged attendees to visit the Facebook page, which has roughly 325 members, 100 of whom have joined since August.  She also encouraged everyone to post their photos to the group’s Flickr page.  They could be photos from the AIC meeting, but they could also be photos from other AIC or conservation-related events or workshops.  The group would like to have a lively dialogue on the Facebook page and expand the assets on Flickr, so everyone was invited to contribute.  Heather urged everyone to consider blogging about their conservation experiences.  Rose indicated that anyone interested in creating content for the blog could reach out to her or Ryan to be set up as an author.

 

Heather is actively soliciting input from everyone about possible topics for webinars and podcasts.  Some initial ideas could include how to create a conservation portfolio, or how to set up a private practice.  She encouraged everyone to consider what they are hoping to learn through ECPN.

 

Education & Training Co-Coordinators Amber Kerr-Allison and Caroline Roberts shared an overview of the proposal to develop an online student research repository.  This repository is on the agenda for discussion with the graduate program leadership during this week’s annual meeting.  Some of the issues that will be discussed include: types of documents to be included (although the goal is to provide abstracts as well as full text), the submission and vetting process, hosting, and copyright issues.

 

Another exciting program that was established a few years ago but is now hitting its stride is the Mentoring Program.  Ryan Winfield indicated that the mentor-mentee matches made so far have generally been successful, but that there is a shortage of mentors.  Roughly 20 more mentors are needed to match to the current mentee applicants.  The AIC meeting presents a good opportunity to ask someone you admire to consider serving as a mentor.  Mentors need to have Professional Associate or Fellow status in AIC.  Ryan encouraged anyone who had applied to be a mentee but had not heard back to please be patient until more mentors could be identified.  They can also get in touch with Ryan or Rose to discuss further.

 

In the coming year, the group is hoping to identify one or more Graduate Student Liaisons to each of the American training programs.  This will give AIC and ECPN a “point person” for reaching current students about opportunities.  As ECPN becomes more visible and productive, more of the AIC membership thinks of reaching out to the group, and having designated liaisons will help streamline communication.  This designated liaison model may be effective for connecting ECPN to the regional conservation centers as well.

 

Lastly, everyone was especially encouraged to participate in the Portfolio Session on Thursday, June 2 during the morning and afternoon breaks.  This is a rare chance to see portfolios from all stages – pre-program, graduate, and emerging professional.  This event is new for 2011.

 

Q&A

There were many questions about the online student research repository, but because the idea is still in the proposal phase, many details of how it will work are not yet known.  The outcome of the discussion with the graduate program leadership may be discussed in ECPN’s June 16 call, in which everyone was invited to participate.  Others were curious about the group’s connections to emerging professionals in related fields, and indeed, strengthening those connections is a goal for the coming year.  Some inquired about the international reach of ECPN.  The group has a liaison to the ECC-CAC, Stephanie Porto, but aside from Canada, ECPN does not have a liaison to any other country.  Some asked about qualifications for involvement in ECPN.  The committee coordinators range from pre-program to graduate students to emerging professionals, so anyone is welcome.

 

Closing

Amber and Amy encouraged everyone in the room to find some way to be involved, whether by taking on a position on the committee, or by helping with one specific project.  The group welcomes new ideas and is made better by ongoing input from everyone in the room.  The more people who get involved, the better ECPN can be.   Rose collected everyone’s email address and will send a follow-up survey to see how everyone felt about the ECPN sessions and events at this year’s meeting.  Everyone was invited to ECPN’s Happy Hour on Friday from 6-10 at McGillin’s Olde Ale House.

39th Annual Meeting-Wooden Artifacts Group, June 2, 2011. Beautiful Brass: A Fresh Look at Historic Furniture Hardware, Joan Parcher

Backplates, ca. 1750-1780, image courtesy Joan Parcher

I was pretty excited when I saw this presentation listed in the program. Not only were we going to learn about an area of furniture that doesn’t have a whole lot of coverage in the literature, but the person presenting the material was a craftsperson and collector who potentially could offer a slightly different viewpoint on the subject. Joan Parcher is a jeweler and metalsmith whose work is in the collections of a number of museums including the Victoria and Albert and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Additionally, she’s made replacement hardware and repaired furniture brasses for 25 years.

Joan didn’t begin collecting furniture hardware until 2004 when, at a local junk store, she overheard two people, looking at a period Chippendale brass, considering turning it into a Christmas ornament. Since then she’s amassed a study collection of about 10,000 pieces of furniture hardware, ranging from iron nuts to gilt cast brass.

Drawing on Don Fennimore’s scholarship, information gleaned from patents, 18th and 19th century brass founders trade catalogs, and her own observations of tool and makers marks on  knobs, back plates, bails, casters, posts and nuts from her own collection, Joan treated us first to a conventional presentation focused on the connoisseurship of old and reproduction brass hardware. She shared her observations about ways to distinguish Federal-era plates from reproductions (reproductions probably won’t have wrinkles from rolling on the backs and thick square iron nuts are found with earlier brass hardware) and where one might find makers marks on various kinds of hardware. She highlighted some marked pieces in her collection, made  by late eighteenth-early nineteenth-century Birmingham, England makers Thomas Hands and William Jenkins. She also offered suggestions about the kind of tools to use to make new plates look old, bringing examples from her own collection.

Knobs, late Federal period, image courtesy Joan Parcher

 

Following her slide talk, Joan allowed us to look at her tools and examples of old and reproduction hardware from her own collection that she had brought with her and laid out on a table. After a day and a half of looking at slides, what a pleasure it was to actually look at stuff. She’s keen to continue this conversation and invited the audience to email (joanparcher[at]cox[dot]net) her images of interesting brasses. Ultimately she’d like to present this collection of hardware photos on a website. What an amazing resource that’ll be.

 

39th Annual Meeting- Objects Morning Session, June 2, “A Definite Responsibility to Shoulder: The Preservation of Historical Objects at the Bahá’í World Centre,” by Victor Sobhani and Sonjel Vreeland.

Victor Sobhani presented a talk about the conservation work undertaken at the Bahá’í World Centre, located in Haifa, Israel. The Centre is a special and important pilgrimage site for members of the Bahá’í Faith as it contains the shrines of its two founders, Bahá’u’lláh and the Báb, as well as other related buildings and monuments. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Mr. Sobhani went into further details about the founders of the Bahá’í Faith and the type of collections at the Centre. Collections are kept on view or stored in the various buildings and includes decorative or fine arts, home furnishings, sacred texts, ceremonial objects, and relics. Mr. Sobhani noted that preservation of the collections was considered vital early on as Bahá’u’lláh wrote about caring for the Bahá’í texts and cultural materials in the nineteenth century.   

As an example of minimal intervention, Mr. Sobhani discussed a treatment performed on a pocket knife owned and used by the Báb. The knife was used to trim quills for writing and exhibited minor corrosion on the metal blades. As an additional note of interest, Mr. Sobhani indicated the knife was made in England by Rogers and Sons and pointed out the indirect contact between Western and Muslim society. In the end, the blades received minor cleaning as the object, while appearing mundane, is considered a sacred relic and the goal was to cause as little change as possible. Another treatment he discussed was an eighth century ceramic vessel from Peru. The vessel had a polychrome, painted bird design and a section of the handle was missing. In this treatment, the missing element of the handle was reconstructed. I have to admit I did not hear quite clearly how this type of object entered the collection at the Centre; perhaps it was brought by a pilgrim visiting the shrines or a gift from a visitor? Mr. Sobhani then talked about a stone (travertine) obelisk that was brought to Haifa from Italy in the 1950’s. The obelisk is thirty feet tall and has a glass mosaic component. The mosaic had become damaged and resulted in some of the glass tesserae missing. For this treatment, Mr. Sobhani and his colleagues decided to paint the voids where the tesserae were missing. He noted that the painting was difficult as the work had to be performed on scaffolding and the light changed throughout the day. The three diverse treatments illustrated the range of materials and diverse problems the conservators encounter at the Centre.

Mr. Sobhani discussed his work at the Centre with great reverence and dignity, which was quite fitting for the sacred nature of the place he works, and concluded the presentation with a remark about the immense gravity surrounding any conservation work performed on objects used or associated with the founders and their families. He likened this to the sandals worn by Jesus or the walking stick used by Moses so that audience members could grasp the great weight, as the title of the talk affirms, placed on the conservators to maintain the collections according to the Bahá’í Faith (in original condition as much as possible).

39th Annual Meeting – Book and Paper Session, June 3rd “Cut and Tape: Marguerite Yourcenar’s Emendation to a Typescript of L’Oeuvre Au Noir”

Theresa Smith of Weissman Preservation Center, Harvard University presented her treatment of the heavily edited typescript manuscript of Marguerite Yourcenar’s L’Oeuvre Au Noir. The manuscript, begun in 1956, had been bound into 2 volumes after its completion in 1968. The author’s editing techniques presented unique challenges as she made changes to her manuscript by taping new strips of paper over old sentences. Nor did she stop at just one layer. Throughout the course of conserving the manuscript, Theresa found pages with no less than 17 layers of changes, all stuck together with pressure sensitive tape. To make matters even more complicated, Yourcenar would often edit over the typewritten emendations with handwritten notes, making the tape on which these notes were written a part of the manuscript. Long term stability concerns aside, the tape with these notes could not be removed from the manuscript.

When all was calculated and done, the manuscript was estimated to have 6,725 inches of pressure sensitive tape (most of it failing) and at least eight different paper stocks. Tape on the coated paper stocks remained strong and in place, and in the past, researchers with more curiosity than sense had pried up and damaged the strips in an attempt to see underneath them.  On the other hand, the tape adhesives had mostly failed on the uncoated papers, leaving the strips of edited text floating free.  The manuscript was in an extremely compromised condition and  access not been granted to researchers for years. Obviously something needed to be done, but the project was a complicated one that spanned two conservators.  Theresa, who collaborated closely with the collection’s curator when making treatment decisions, worked through the manuscript one page at a time to carefully reconstruct the complex and layered structure of the emendations.

Briefly, here are the primary points of the treatment as completed by Theresa.

  • Emendations that obscured text were removed mechanically and hinged in at the spine.   Theresa found wheat starch paste to be an effective adhesive when applied quickly and firmly, even on the erasable bond papers.
  • Loose emendations were hinged into place.  If these emendations were on tape carriers, the carriers themselves were hinged into place.
  • Staining was not treated, as it often helped reconstruct placement of the loose strips, and could be of use to future researchers.
  • Tape that still held strongly to the page was not removed even though there was concern that the adhesive of this tape might creep out in future years, causing more problems.  Time constraints meant that the tape would stay put, at least for now.
  • Adhesive residue left behind by any necessary tape removal (only on obscured text) was mechanically removed and coated with cellulose powder to reduce tackiness.
  • Handling notes were included in the volume, in the enclosure, and in the card file for library staff.

Theresa’s presentation was yet another reminder that there is no “one size fits all” solution in the conservation profession; flexibility and a good sense of humor are key!

 

39th Annual Meeting – Book and Paper Session, June 3rd “A Comprehensive In-Situ Approach for the Analysis of Illuminated Manuscripts and Drawings: Exploring the Synergy Between Imaging Spectroscopy, FORS, XRF, and High-Resolution Multispectral Infrared Reflectography”

Paula Ricciardi, John K. Delaney, Lisha D. Glinsman, Mathieu Thoury, and Michelle Facini of the National Gallery of Art used several analytical methods to study the media used in the Praying Prophet, a manuscript cutting illuminated by Lorenzo Monaco c. 1410/1413.

Up front, let me say that analytical techniques such as image spectroscopy, XRF and FORS analysis are way outside my balliwack, so please feel free to comment on my post to correct any missing or mis-stated information. My feelings will certainly not be hurt!

So, the crew at NGA used a Si-CCD camera with color-corrected lenses and their specialized set up allowed them to reduce the light levels needed to capture their imagery, thus making the analysis safer and easing their conservator’s mind. They captured several images in the 400-950nm (visible through near-infrared range). They compiled the images into an image cube for analysis, calibrating it to black and white standards that allowed them to gather both reflectance and luminescence information. This allowed them to differentiate between a wider range of visually similar pigments.

Image spectroscopy alone cannot identify a pigment, however, so they also did XRF (which identifies elements such as copper, arsenic and lead in paints) and FORS analysis (which identifies different light absorption bands). One particular example she gave of the the need for both XRF and FORS analysis was the presence of copper in a green area of the miniature. Since copper was a common material used to make green pigment, the XRF identification of copper in that area was not surprising – but FORS analysis showed absorption bands that indicated the presence of azurite. So contrary to expectation, the green was not copper based, but azurite + a yellow pigment!

Even more intriguingly, when analyzing the vermilion robes of the prophet, they found absorption bands that did not match any of the pigments in their database. Curious, they collaborated with a conservator to mock up samples of vermilion pigment in a variety of different binders (egg glair, gum arabic, egg yolk). They found that the mystery absorption bands matched egg yolk. (This is exciting, as they are the first to map any sort of binder using FORS analysis).

Egg yolk was a slightly surprising find, as egg yolk is not well known to be a binder used in illuminated manuscripts. The team was able to find a passage from an early 15th century instruction manual on illuminating manuscripts that indicated egg yolk should only be used as a binder only when painting bodies (and specifically not in writing or when painting flowers). But the team knew that Lorenzo Monaco was also a panel painter (a media better known for egg tempura), so they wanted to dig deeper. Was he using egg yolk because of his panel painting experience? Was he the only one to use egg yolk in illuminated manuscripts? Their analysis found egg yolk was consistently used in the robes of figures throughout the miniature and in other illuminations by Monaco. Most of these robes were vermilion, but even the green robes showed the egg yolk absorption bands. Areas outside figures (such as decorated initials, foliage, etc) did not show evidence of egg yolk, although the robes of figures hidden away in decorative foliage did – suggesting that the difference in use was not just a matter of master painter vs. workshop painter.

When the team turned their attentions to other illuminated manuscripts of the era, they were unable to find egg yolk present, even when the artists’ responsible were also known panel painters. Obviously, more research needs to be done to further explore this area, but one of the most telling points of the talk (for me, anyway) came during the question/answer section. One conservator noted that while the talk did not make her rethink her treatment decisions based on concerns about the items themselves, it did make her think about how her consolidant decisions might muddy the waters for future investigators. This is a very good point, and one I will certainly be mulling over as I consider my own treatment decisions. Although, to be honest, the thought of inspiring some as-of-yet unborn scientist to curse my name is just a bit tempting.

39th Annual Meeting, ASG Morning Session, June 2nd, Student Papers, “Rediscovering an American Master: The analysis and proposed treatment of the decorative plaster ceiling of Robert Winthrop Chanler’s Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney Studio, New York” Lauren Vollono Drapala, University of Pennsylvania

Lauren’s presentation introduced me to a true treasure hiding out in my downtown New York City neighborhood at 8 West 8th Street on Washington Square. In what was once the original location of the Whitney Museum lays the intimate studio retreat of patroness to the arts, Gertrude Vanderbilt.  Lauren’s focus on this room was to conduct historic research, assessment, analysis and documentation of the decorative ceiling created by artist Robert Winthrop Chanler.  What first appears as textured white plaster ceiling is actually a highly detailed bas relief plaster composition that still has some indications of paint. [PHOTO].   Like Angela’s Curmi’s talk before, Lauren knew there was an original decorative finish below the surface based on similar works by the artist, documentation, and cross-sectional analysis, but was having problems with accessibility to the paint after the ceiling had been overpainted white, most likely due to unaddressed failings of the plaster and paint over time.  Lauren’s goal was to eventually discover a means to safely remove the overpaint  and conserve the original paint below. I was rooting for her!

 

After creating high res photodocumentation of the ceiling, including an overall raking light image to accent the relief, Lauren mapped the condition and motif of the ceiling to aid with her investigation.  Lauren also visited other sites with similar work by the artist at Peebles Island and Vizcaya Museum to note pigments and decorative effects he employed at a similar time.  Lauren’s paint analysis [PHOTO]revealed that the newer layers of paint were bound more strongly to the original paint than the original paint was bound to its plaster substrate; the removal of the overpaint was not looking favorable.  Lauren was even given a detached portion of the ceiling to test  overpaint removal gels on, unfortunately with little success.

 

Following what looked to be a disappointing end to all of her hard work, Lauren took it a step further.  She made mock up panels of the ceiling based on her research and analysis to get a better idea of the surface then combined that information from her analysis to propose what it “May have once looked like”.  Here is the initial result of her efforts [PHOTO].  I’m still rooting for this project.  In the meantime if you are interested in learning more, read Lauren’s thesis: http://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/151/

39th Annual Meeting, ASG Morning Session, June 2nd, Student Papers, “Non-Destructive Investigation of Concealed Gilding in Architecture” by Angela Curmi, Columbia University

As an objects conservator, I tend to overlook the decorative walls of a historic house, focusing instead on the surrounding 3D aspects.  Angela’s talk really made me stop and think about the walls, as not only a significant work in themselves, but also as a record for changes in style and taste.  However the problem becomes, how do you look at certain aspects of previous wall decoration without removing the layers of historic paint?  Furthermore, how do you look at the overall motif of an entire room, without removing paint from the entire room?  Angela’s thesis from her studies at Columbia University focused on non-destructive methods of detecting gilding under layers of paint.

 

For her research, Angela created mock-ups of gilding motifs using gold, silver, and aluminum leaf under 3-5 layers of various paints (enough to provide visual coverage) and relied on infrared reflectography, infrared thermography, and eddy currents to see if gilding could be detected non-destructively.  The pigments of the paints can interfere with the ability to image so Angela chose historic lead white paint,  calcimite paint, and modern ‘Latex Paint’ along with burnt sienna, chromium oxide, yellow ochre, and Prussian blue [PHOTO ] on prepared wood panels [PHOTO].  For equipment Angela used a modified Kinamax nightvision webcam, modified Nikon Coolpix IR Camera, and Indigo Systems INGaAs NIR camera to test the Infrared Reflectography, as well asFLIR ThermaCAM P640 and FLIR Inframetrics InfraCAM to test the Infrared Themography [PHOTO].

 

Several years ago I had to attend a conference on IR imaging in an attempt to find the most practical model for my lab, so I empathized with the literature and technical data that Angela must have had to sieve through in order to find an appropriate model for her imaging.  Her results were much like I experienced, there is no ‘best’ suited for a conservator’s needs.  As Angela stated there were drawbacks to all systems, either in their range of wavelengths, ease of software use, or the quality of the image produced.   She did not find success with Thermography, mostly because of the inefficiency of heating a large space evenly to get the image.  Reflectography was more promising with the best results achieved with the Indigo INGaAs NIR camera, though its use is not necessarily practical based on cost.  The most practical model appeared to be the Kinamax model, an affordable, easily used modified web camera, the result of collaborative research from Elizabeth Nunan and Greg Smith at Buffalo State College.  For more information and purchasing of your own model go to Elizabeth’s website:  http://www.aandnartconservation.com/infraredsensitivewebcam.html

.

39th Annual Meeting, ASG Morning Session, June 2nd, Student Papers “A Technical Study and Conservation Proposal for the Glass Mosaic Decoration of Villa Caparra in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico” by Yaritza Hernandez Nieves, University of Pennsylvania

I had never heard of the Villa Caparra before Yaritza’s talk.  Yet, after her presentation I was left with the urge to take a summer vacation to Puerto Rico to see this beautiful example of cement embedded glass mosaics; both for their personal design elements, and their intriguing conservation issues.  Yaritza presented her thesis from the University of Pennsylvania in which she ambitiously investigated the materials, fabrication, installation, and conservation issues associated with this 20th century architect’s designed home and studio.  What was once a showcase home, had become the victim of urban encroachment and overall neglect.  With a new interest by Puerto Rico in making this location a historic museum, Yaritza’s research and documentation will certainly ensure conservation intervention will be a success.

 

All of the mosaics were comprised of glass tesserae laid in a reinforced concrete substrate, which at the 1927 construction was a considered a modern material and new technique.   Yaritza surveyed the mosaics, classifying 3 types of flat glass used, their mosaic techniques, the location within the building’s structure, and the conditions of the glass in these areas.  As an objects conservator the amount of information from this survey seemed overwhelming at first, but Yaritza quantified her data with mapping software then combined XRF/SEM analysis to determine what the conservation problems [PHOTO] were, and her recommended for treatment.

 

The main damage was from the Portland cement substrate, whose caustic components were solubilizing the silica components of the glass.  This problem was only exacerbated by compression cracking and losses of the tesserae, which provided addition inlets and outlet s for water infiltration and evaporation. The movement of water resulted in the movement of the caustic cement components and ultimately the deterioration of the vitreous  glass.  Yaritza concluded by giving a few initial recommendations of conservation treatment [PHOTO] as well as avenues for additional research. This was a really a well researched paper that presented a wealth of research in a very limited talk time.  Well done Yaritza!  See you all in Puerto Rico soon!

39th Annual Meeting – OSG Morning Session, June 3, “Variable Media, Variable Roles: The Shifting Skills Required in Contemporary Art Conservation,” by Gwynne Ryan

Gwynne Ryan, sculpture conservator at the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden presented the paper “Variable Materials, Variable Roles: The Shifting Skills Required in Contemporary Art Conservation.” She said anecdotally that the title of her paper had changed even the same morning as her attempt to address current practices was constantly changing in line with the constantly changing practices of the Hirshhorn. Her paper is meant to inform on the way in which institutions can contend with the challenges that contemporary art presents to conservation. New skills and tools are required for the installation, acquisition, and treatment of contemporary art. In order to achieve this, the Hirshhorn has examined several publications on the topic (listed in presentation) in hopes that these will help provide guidance for the Hirshhorn. The museum’s small staff, approximately fifty people, four of whom are conservators, makes collaboration necessary especially given the paradigm shift of changing practices.

Throughout the presentation, Gwynne Ryan provided many specific examples of work at the Hirshhorn that have presented individual difficulties. Anish Kapoor’s At the Hub of Things

and Ann Hamilton’s Palimpsest http://hirshhorn.si.edu/visit/collection_object.asp?key=32&subkey=14949  were her first two examples. The use of unconventional material and the importance of the pieces’ abilities to develop lives of their own in exhibition challenge conservation efforts. To the best of their ability, the museum consults the artists and involves them in the associated decision making process. Ernesto Neto and Isac Julien (http://artpulsemagazine.com/the-cinema-effect/) were two more examples upon which Gwynne Ryan briefly extrapolated. She compared the museum’s efforts to those occurring in ethnographic collections (on which there were several presentations in the OSG) and the fact that there is more than just the material to preserve – there is something greater to the art. The concept of the original surface as well as the role that the art plays is essential. In hopes of preserving this, documentation emerges as one of the most important elements of contemporary art conservation.

This theme recurred throughout the paper, as Gwynne Ryan called for a new position to be taught, trained, and fulfilled – that of the documentation and new-media conservator. Treatment reports for contemporary art must include a commentary on interaction with the piece and the environment it is meant to create. For this to occur, treatment reports must become more narrative in style and incorporate various media and sources. Reports must communicate the way in which installation should occur, but this is information which originally comes from outside of the museum itself. The conservator must be on site documenting the installation, or deinstallation, or the pieces, many of which consist of many parts or organic materials. Installation of contemporary art, especially reinstallation, requires standards and the existence of an almost choreographed approach. The primary example given for the difficulties of reinstallation and maintenance was Wolfgang Laib’s Pollen from Hazelnut (video shown at conference).

The process must be fully documentated in order to maintain the integrity of the piece, which must be cleaned and reinstalled every month while it is on exhibit, a process that the artist can not logistically be involved in leaving the task to the conservators.

Gwynne Ryan went on to discuss an installation project occurring in Spain in which the use of videography has produced surprising but interest results, as well as the case of Doug Aitken (http://hirshhorn.si.edu/exhibitions/view.asp?key=21&subkey=518), a future project requiring the organization of videography. One of the more extensive examples provided was that of Janine Antoni’s Lick & Lather, which occurs in a variety of ways but is a series of two busts, one soap and one chocolate, at the Smithsonian (http://hirshhorn.si.edu/visit/collection_object.asp?key=32&subkey=14823). Through this series, Gwynne Ryan discussed the boundaries of an artist’s voice as it relates to the role of conservators in light of the semi-rapid deterioration of the soap bust, requiring the recasting and preparation of a new piece. While this system is effective enough for the time being, Gwynne Ryan raised the question of what should be done in the future after the artist has passed. Preservation in the absence of the artist, the only one qualified to do the ritualistic bathing of the busts that is essential to the piece and its meaning, is a difficult task that has yet to have a solution. As Gwynne Ryan meets with the artist and discusses these questions, it has become more and more obvious that boundaries for the role of the conservator in contemporary art need to be established because they are quite blurry as it stands. The “double consciousness” and the role of conservator as “ethnographer” create a situation in which it must be asked if conservation is influencing the artistic process. Certain biases prevail simply through daily actions, memories, the way questions are posed, and our outside influences, which can have an impact on the supposedly impartial work of a conservator. Quoting another speaker, Salvador Muñoz-Viñas, Gwynne Ryan ended her presentation by saying “conservation is not a neutral activity.”

Swabbing away the varnish in the basement

When one is reading a work of fiction not specifically concerned with art conservation or conservators, one sometimes comes across a casual description that seems to set back the public image of the field by decades. The most recent one I encountered came early in Michael Cunningham’s 2010 novel, By Nightfall. Peter, an art dealer, mulling over his career, says to himself : “He’s an art history guy, maybe he should have become …what? … a conservator, say, one of those museum-basement people who spend their lives swabbing away the varnish and overpaint, reminding themselves (and eventually the world) that the past was garish and bright…”    With all of the thoughtful coverage that conservation projects have received in the popular press,  hadn’t we thought that the field had once and for all come above ground in the public’s mind .