Author: Anisha Gupta

Call for papers for North American Textile Conservation Conference

CALL FOR PAPERS and POSTERS

Conserving Modernity: the Articulation of Innovation

9th North American Textile Conservation Conference
San Francisco, California
November 12th – 15th, 2013

The ninth biennial North American Textile Conservation Conference (NATCC) will focus on topics that concern
modern materials. Topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Technical descriptions, analyses, and conservation treatments involving modern materials, including new textile technologies applied to fiber-based objects such as contemporary dress, wearable art, fiber art and contemporary fabrics, either in total or in part;
  • The ethics of using unstable modern materials in works of art and heritage artifacts and/or respect for the artist’s intention;
  • Research into the impact of the environment on these materials and/or the artifacts created from them;
  • The synergy between natural/synthetic materials when they coexist in an artifact;
  • The use of modern materials, such as adhesives, consolidants and supports in conservation treatments;
  • New approaches to “old” treatments and/or dilemmas in conservation.

Conservators, curators, conservation scientists, collection managers, archaeologists, anthropologists and others engaged with these topics are invited to submit proposals for presentations. Collaborations among any of the above professions or with others are encouraged.

Abstracts for papers and posters (300 words maximum), accompanied by a short biography (100 words maximum) of the author(s) may be submitted in English, French, or Spanish. Abstracts may not have image attachments. Projects already presented and/or published will not be considered. Contact information should include: name, postal and email addresses, telephone and facsimile numbers. NATCC will support one
complimentary registration per accepted paper. A discounted rate will be offered for all accepted posters.

Please submit your abstract by September 1, 2012 to natcc2013@gmail.com.

Presentations will be 20 minutes long; there will be time for questions. All speakers will be required to submit the full publication-ready version of their paper in the language in which it will be presented (English, French or Spanish), by April 1, 2013. The papers will be published in CD format and distributed at the conference along with printed abstracts in English, French and Spanish. An advance copy of each presentation submission
will be required by October 14, 2013 for purposes of simultaneous translation. Please email any questions to natcc2013@gmail.com and visit our website for continual updates at: http://natcconference.com.

Abstracts will be peer reviewed by the NATCC board. Authors of selected papers and posters will be notified by December 3, 2012. Authors are responsible for rights and permissions to publish photographs and/or graphics.

 

Helpful Tips to Consider Before Attending AIC’s 40th Annual Meeting

With the 40th Annual AIC Meeting rapidly approaching, ECPN would like to share some helpful tips on making the most of this event!

Familiarize yourself with the program
Read through the program list and highlight the events you are interested in attending. Some events may be scheduled at the same time as others. Take some time to create a schedule for yourself and decide which events you would like to attend and which presenters you would like to listen to or meet.

Update your resume or C.V.
Make sure your resume or C.V. are updated with all of your current activities. Have a few copies with you in case you meet a potential employer and want to pass it out.

Update your social media accounts
In addition to your resume and C.V., make sure your social media accounts are also updated with your current information. This includes a LinkedIn profile and a Twitter or Facebook account. If you are passing out business cards, people may go on to check out your LinkedIn profile while you’re at the conference and you want it to be up to date!

Your Twitter and Facebook accounts will also be helpful in keeping up with conference information. AIC will be using the Twitter hashtag #aicmtg2012 at the annual meeting. If you have a Twitter or Facebook account, tweet or post if you’re meeting up with a group from the conference for lunch or coffee. Maybe others can join you and you can meet expand your network that way.

Bring business cards
If you have business cards, be sure to bring them with you and distribute them as much as you can. You will also be receiving a lot of business cards. Make sure you keep them all in a safe place that you will remember once you are home.

Don’t have business cards printed out? Make a digital business card! Simply fill out the information that you want on your business card and download the QR code to your phone (or print it out on a slip of paper). When you meet someone else with a smartphone, they can scan your QR code and automatically save your information to their phone. This ensures that they won’t lose your contact information and saves you the time and money of printing business cards.

*In order to scan QR codes you will need to download an app. For Android phones I recommend Barcode Scanner, and for iPhones I recommend QR Reader for iPhone.

Network with people
Though this may go without saying, the AIC meeting is a great place to meet new people. Instead of staying with the same group of people you know, network and make new contacts. Take the opportunity to ask others what they think about the conference, what they are hoping to learn there, and why they decided to attend this year.

When you meet someone and receive their business card, jot down some keywords about the person on the back of their card. Once you get home and are looking through the stack of business cards you have collected, you will remember exactly who they are and how you met them.

Visit the Exhibit Hall
The exhibitors are truly an integral part of any conference.  They bring their products and their staff for one reason – to meet us!  If you are still a student, spending time at the exhibits is a great learning opportunity you won’t want to miss.  For emerging and established conservators alike, this is a chance to see and try a wide range of products and learn about new ones.  The exhibitors’ financial commitment plays a major role in the success of the Annual Meeting, so remember to visit with them.

Take notes
Be sure to take notes during the sessions. You’ll be surprised at how quickly the conference will fly by and you don’t want to forget everything you’ve learned.

Ask questions
The conference is a great opportunity to talk to other conservators and learn more about the aspects of the field that interest you. Asking questions during or after a talk is a great way to learn about a topic and network with the presenter.

Have fun!
Don’t get too wrapped up with networking and going from one talk to another that you forget to enjoy the conference.

Here are some helpful links to other aspects of conference.

Attire
The conference attire is business casual, including the evening events. Our friends at the Emerging Museum Professionals had a great post about how to dress for conferences – check it out!

For those of you volunteering for the San Miguel Chapel’s Angels Project, don’t forget to pack work clothes, a hat, sunscreen, and a water bottle!

Albuquerque in May seems to have a range of temperatures – from 80’s during the day to 50’s at night. Dress in layers and always have a sweater handy for overly air-conditioned rooms.

First-time attending a conference?
If you’re nervous about meeting new people at such a large event, check out Lisa Petrelli’s Introvert’s Guide to Attending a Conference.

Do you have more questions about attending a conference or recommendations to share with others? Leave a comment below!

Emergency Committee-Sponsored Disaster Response Workshop at the Annual Meeting

The Emergency Committee is sponsoring an AIC disaster response workshop at the annual meeting. This is one of the few times conservators are able to directly speak with someone from FEMA. Consider attending!

Getting the Money: Disaster Funding to Get Institutions Back on Their Feet
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon, $79 (free for AIC-CERT members)

Organized by the AIC Emergency Committee. Funded in part by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Cultural institutions need funding to begin recovering their cultural assets in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. Learn from national experts how you can help cultural institutions – including your own – find critical financial aid in a program filled with practical advice.

Hitoshi Kimura, AIC-CERT member, will set the stage with photos of what he encountered when deployed to the North Lee County Historical Society (NLCHS) in Fort Madison, Iowa, following the 2008 Mississippi River flooding.

L.D. “Andy” Andrews, President of the North Lee County Historical Society, will share the challenges they faced trying to secure recovery funding for NLCHS.

Deborah Peak, Senior Vice President at Huntington T. Block Insurance Company, will discuss fine arts insurance issues as they relate to post-disaster funding, including how to document and file a claim and how to establish value for cultural materials.

Georgia Taylor, founder and fine art claims adjuster of Shooting Star Claims, will share her perspective on the administration of fine art losses for museums, galleries, artists, and art collectors.

Kristy B. Barbier, FEMA’s Public Assistance Outreach Officer for Region VI, will explain the federal funding that can aid cultural institutions in disaster response and recovery and, most important, will provide advice on how cultural institutions can successfully navigate the Public Assistance process.

These four know the scoop. Do you? Develop your effectiveness in times of need by attending this unique program. Register today at http://www.conservation-us.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.viewPage&pageID=711&nodeID=1.

ECPN seeks regional liaisons

Looking for a chance to get more involved with ECPN? Consider becoming a regional liaison!

ECPN is appointing individuals who are interested in organizing and promoting events to encourage and involve emerging conservators in their regions. These regional liaisons will keep ECPN up-to-date on events through email, our Facebook page and on the AIC blog. In return, they will benefit from access to the dedicated network of emerging and established conservation professionals that ECPN has developed. Some activities the regional liaison may consider hosting or reporting on are:

  • Regional conservation events/meetings
  • Local conservation lab tours
  • Lectures delivered by local conservators
  • Visiting a private conservator’s studio
  • Meet and Mingles (Happy Hour, dinner, etc)
  • Portfolio workshops
  • Local conservation projects

We expect this to be a flexible position that is not a major time commitment. While hosting events is most welcome, we are also interested in liaisons announcing and reporting on regional events, and updating ECPN regularly.

We have already identified several liaisons, but we are looking for more, particularly in these areas:

  • Gulf Coast (Texas area)
  • Midwest
  • South

If you’re interested in being a regional liaison, please send Anisha Gupta (gupta16@illinois.edu) or Megan Salazar-Walsh (salazar.walsh@gmail.com) an email!  Also, expect to start seeing updates and announcements from our new liaisons on the ECPN Facebook page.