Program

The doors and windows of many traditional Thai palace and temple buildings, especially the ones that were built during Ayutthaya period (1351-1767), have rich decorations of an enduring lacquering technique -Lai Rod Nam, the technique in which gold leaves are applied on black lacquered background. Even though lacquer is one of the most durable natural binders, these art works on wooden doors and windows of many Thai buildings are facing deterioration and irreversible damages such as loss of lacquer surface and photodegradation due to their exposure to extreme sunlight and other weather conditions. There have been attempts to protect these artworks by installing acrylic sheets over the decorated wooden panels, but at many places this protection system fails to ensure the wellbeing or the survival of the lacquer art.

This research aims to study the acrylic protection system at the doors and windows of Wat Kampang Temple in Bangkok. The applied protection system at the temple is typical for protecting lacquered doors and windows at various palaces and temples in Thailand and fails its purpose. The study focuses on the damage types and failure mechanism, the conservation needs of such lacquered surfaces and tries to find an appropriate solution for the surface protection that can sustain in the long run.

This presentation recounts my training experience in The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s East Asian Painting Conservation Studio. With an interest in the conservation and mounting traditions of Japan, I came to the studio seeking an introduction to this specialized field. I reflect on training in a museum setting and my role as a graduate intern in the remounting of a set of eighteenth-century calligraphy poems by Japanese literati painter Gion Nankai. To return it to its intended display format, the Japanese painting conservation specialists began a multiyear project to conserve the work and remount it onto newly built screens. By the time I joined the project in 2023, the calligraphy sheets had undergone treatment and were awaiting remounting, after a momentary pause during the Covid-19 pandemic. I share details of the historical research and physical evidence that informed the new style of mount, as well as the final stages of the remounting process, consisting of mounting decorative papers onto the folding screens, followed by a cushioning “floating” layer and the calligraphy sheets.

“The Stuff” is a plasticized PVC special effects sculpture of a marshmallow-like, body-snatching alien from the 1985 B-horror film of the same name. Over the course of a 6-month internship at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Pilar Brooks assisted Dr. Rebecca Ploeger, a visiting conservation science researcher from SUNY Buffalo State, in performing material analysis. She also treated the object under the supervision of Senior Objects Conservator Sophie Hunter and Assistant Objects Conservator Rio Lopez. The object presented with a sticky and grimy surface due to leaching plasticizer, severe tearing, and warping. Cleaning solutions were tested on the underside of a detached piece from the object, and the object was surface cleaned by alternating between ethanol and a modular cleaner. Adhesive testing was carried out on mock-ups, and the tears were mended with Rhoplex ML-200. Several different mounting and clamping solutions were trialed to allow the Rhoplex to dry completely in the correct position. In the final treatment a heat-set Hollytex and Rhoplex ML-200 tape mechanism was used on the upper surface of the object, and a Tengucho paper lining was applied with Rhoplex ML-200 underneath. “The Stuff” is currently being temporarily stored in the Academy Museum’s conservation lab, but long-term housing solutions to prevent further loss of plasticizer are being discussed, such as low-temperature and anoxic storage solutions. 

Custom dyeing support materials is a necessary part of treating objects with unique appearances and these materials must hold to certain standards. Studies have shown Hxtal NYL-1 Epoxy Resin to be optimal for glass conservation, however an exhaustive comparative study between potential colorants for Hxtal has not been conducted. Orasol and Mixol are both metal-complex dyes considered to be suitably lightfast for conservation and this study offers a direct comparison between the two in order to determine if one is more suitable for long-term UV-included light exposure than the other. For this study, 43 different colored samples of Mixol and Orasol are being evaluated for lightfastness through Microfading Testing, Colorimetry, and UV chamber aging. Results are being evaluated against ISO Blue Wool Standards. At the conclusion of this study, the more suitable dye will be used to create custom fills for a turn of the century British stained glass panel with several areas of loss. 

Due to a lack of conservation research of 1930s - 1980s couture western wear created by Los Angeles-based designers, this project will aim to study the colorfastness of synthetic dyes used within the fabrics, embroidery thread, and applied materials of the garments of rodeo tailors Nathan Turk and Nudie Cohn in order to build lighting parameters for garment display within museums. Analytical methods such as fiber identification and microfade testing will be utilized in the garment’s study. Attention will also be paid to the collection of Nudie Cohn original fabric swatches and an attempt will be carried out to match said swatches to objects within the collection at the Autry Museum of the American West. The project will begin with initial photography and condition reporting of the chosen object(s), research on the object(s)’ background, fiber identification of object(s), microfade testing and analysis, and a final presentation of the project’s findings. Potential growth of the project will be pursued in the form of grant funding and potential partnerships with other museums and collectors of these designers’ garments. 

The historical mural tradition (7th- 20th century CE) in Kerala, India, that generated outdoor murals in hundreds of temple shrines across the state, has been studied by art historians to understand cross-cultural links within South Indian arts. Scientific literature about the materials in these murals is scarce as most of the temples are active sites of worship and access to the murals is subject to religious practice and community approval. Moreover, many of these temple shrines are no longer extant due to damage and rebuilding. The use of infrared reflectography, hyperspectral and thermal imaging and fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy proved useful in the circumstances under which the study was required to be conducted. This presentation outlines the materials-based approach used to understand the painting materials and techniques used in these murals and presents the challenges of investigating these understudied murals.

This presentation has been withdrawn, as the author was unable to obtain permission from the Yup’ik village of Eek to present the treatment. The Autry Museum of the West, who serve as stewards of this artifact, requires that research, presentation of work, or exhibition of Native American cultural items is accompanied by engagement and/or permission by the tribe.

As part of the 2023-24 cohort of the Getty Post-Baccalaureate Conservation Internship program, I had the opportunity to work in the Decorative Arts and Sculpture Conservation Department at the Getty Museum. My central project was the conservation of a c.1900 French strut camera, picked from the Getty’s collection of antique cameras, a gift from Gloria and Stanley Fishfader. The camera as an object consisted of multiple components including a wooden body, an ivory label, a lens, a ground glass slide, a viewfinder, and a form-fitting leather case. With the selection of this object, came a project that required an understanding of its materials in order to contextualize its history and plan an appropriate treatment. 

The scope of the treatment entailed a variety of technical analyses of the object’s various materials, a campaign to reinforce a deteriorating flap on the leather case, leather reattachment of a leather component, a method of fabricating imitation leather fills.

This presentation will outline the treatment steps carried out to address the object’s deteriorating leather flap, a demonstration of my method for creating leather fills, and the challenges and responsibilities considered when presenting this information in an accessible way to a general audience through social media outreach.

This presentation will discuss the treatment of Louise Bourgeois’s 2003 sculpture "Lady in Waiting," which was completed during the author’s graduate internship at Glenstone in Potomac, Maryland. "Lady in Waiting" is an example of Bourgeois’s cell sculptures, consisting of a rectangular enclosure made of reclaimed historic windows and wood panels, inside of which a characteristic Bourgeois spider sits on an upholstered chair. Treatment efforts addressed the structural stabilization of the historic window components of the object, which were suffering from significant losses to the window glazing putty and paint.

Bourgeois had described her cell sculptures as existing in a “state of decrepit splendor,” and as such the aesthetic of the aged surface, complete with losses, dust, and grime, was integral to the artist’s intention. This posed significant challenges for the necessary consolidation of the brittle glazing putty and paint, as a chosen consolidant would need to be sympathetic to the matte surface and applied in a controlled manner as to not require cleaning that may remove surface soiling. This presentation will explore the development of a consolidation method that utilized a 20% w/v solution of Butvar B-98 in ethanol, bulked with glass microballoons, fumed silica, and dry pigments, and applied using an acupuncture needle. The adhesive system was extruded onto the length of the acupuncture needle, which was then used to deliver a precise amount of consolidant to otherwise inaccessible thin cracks and gaps between paint and glazing putty. Furthermore, the flexibility of the acupuncture needle allowed the adhesive to be placed behind lifting areas without applying additional pressure that would risk further damage to friable materials. Through this treatment method, it was possible to stabilize the object for loan and exhibition, while retaining intrinsic facets of the work’s concept and aesthetic requirements. 

The study looks into the conservation of nine oil paintings by Alan Lynch (1926-1994) at LA Art Labs. These artworks were provided by the LA based gallery Chateau Shatto stewarding the artist’s estate. The paintings underwent a variety of treatments ranging from minimal to comprehensive structural interventions. Each artwork's condition, materials, and historical context were meticulously analyzed to tailor conservation strategies accordingly. Through the comparative analysis of the paintings, the research sheds light into the artist’s technique and repeated patterns of degradation within his body of work. The findings offer valuable insights into the complexities of art conservation and the balance between field related ethics and aesthetic considerations. 

This is an ongoing collaboration with the gallery and artist estate that will consider many more artworks, predominantly paintings on canvas but also paperworks.

While general degradation of optical media, CDs and DVDs for example, may take more time compared to magnetic media, they are still prey to becoming unplayable over time. Through mishandling resulting in scratches, unsafe rehousing or exposure to the elements, optical discs don’t last as long as we think. As technology progresses and the world moves towards born-digital items with no physical item attached, CDs and DVDs have become a part of the preservation process and saving the data and information that lives on them. There are a myriad of barriers that prevent AV conservators from retrieving information from these items that range from overall deterioration, copy protection, and even lack of research and knowledge about specific formats. Through a single digitization request, I encountered all of these problems and navigated ways to overcome them and provide as much data as I could to the patron. There was a lot of troubleshooting and testing out different command lines, graphical user interfaces (GUIs) and softwares. Unfortunately, there were a couple of cases where there was simply nothing we could do, but try and scrape as much data off of the item, which depending, may be no information at all. Just because optical media is newer and may seem like it lasts longer than magnetic media, doesn’t mean we can assume that all information is safe on these formats and that we can wait longer to digitize them. 

During my time in the Conservation and Preservation Department of the Getty Research Institute, a large part of my responsibilities revolved around the archive of Claes Oldenburg (1929–2022). Under the supervision of Tamia Anaya, Assistant Conservator overseeing the collection, and Elyse Driscoll, Associate Conservator overseeing exhibition works, I was able to treat works from across the archive. In this presentation, I'll discuss the broader goals of treatments of different areas of the collection and how the treatments completed addressed these goals. First, I'll discuss the notebook pages and clippings, which were treated to stabilize for digitization and dissemination. As there were more than two dozen boxes, each containing up to 100 pages, treatment focused on minimizing the risk of damage while handling. Thus, edge tears were mended and areas of loss were filled to prevent damage to abraded fibers. Second, I'll discuss the treatment of one work from the juvenilia collection: a crayon drawing of a car for display in an upcoming exhibition. The childhood drawing was being juxtaposed with a cast polyurethane relief of a car over a lithograph that Oldenburg created while at Gemini G.E.L. To prepare for exhibition, aesthetics were a greater priority, necessitating cleaning of the drawing as well as inpainting of mends and fills to reintegrate areas of loss. However, its status as a childhood drawing was also considered and some condition defects were left intact as a testament to this history, such as a series of punctures that speak to its binding in a notebook. And finally, I'll discuss the rehousing of a set of Oldenburg's ray guns made from found organic materials, such as branches and lichens. The physical and chemical stability of the works and presentation to the viewer were prioritized, so cutouts in polyethylene foam were lined with an inert synthetic fabric with indications for points of safe handling. Overall, the treatment of the archive provided me with much-needed perspectives about conservation's role in not just safeguarding institutional collections, but also in stewarding these collections to a public of viewers and researchers.

Margalit Schindler recently packed up their car and drove from Wilmington, Delaware to Los Angeles, California. Needing to quickly decide what came on the trip proved a dramatic exercise in prioritizing - resources, space, and energy. Join for a lightening round talk to see what conservation tools and materials made the cut, and how creative problem solving made the best use of limited space.