Conservation Planning Friday 9 March 2007

1. Conservation Planning Friday 9 March 2007

2. Introductions Find out about the person next to you: • their name • reasons for attending the workshop • place of work • responsibilities at work • one thing they hope to get out of today’s workshop

3. Program • Why develop a conservation plan? • Choosing and working with a conservator • Morning tea • Key areas in a conservation plan • Lunch • Priorotising conversation needs • Building support networks • Afternoon tea • Summery and questions

4. By the end of the day: because: • Understand what a conservation plan is and its importance • Understand main areas covered in a conservation plan and why they are important • Be able to work with a conservator to identify conservation priorities

5. We will not cover: • Conservation treatments • Condition reporting • You will not be able to undertake a conservation plan yourself without assistance from a professional conservator

6. Why develop a conservation plan?

7. What to you understand by the terms: • Conservation • Preventative conservation • Conservation treatment

8. Conservation All actions aimed at safeguarding cultural material for the future. Its purpose is to study, record, retain and restore the cultural significant qualities of an object with the least possible intervention ReCollections: Glossary P.10

9. Preventative Conservation All actions undertaken to prevent the deterioration of cultural materials and collections. ReCollections: Glossary p.26

12. Conservation treatment Interventive actions undertaken to repair existing damage or slow down the future deterioration of cultural materials and collections

14. What do you think a conservation plan is?

15. Conservation plan A strategy for the long-term care of collections. • Identifying the conservation needs of collections • Prioritising them and allocating resources to deal with them

16. Benefits • Increased knowledge in collection care • Ensuring that limited resources are used in the most efficient way • Assistance in securing grants and support • A well cared for collection

17. Funding • Heritage Victoria • National Library • Local Government

18. Process • Identify a conservator and obtain a quote • Discuss what you want to use the plan for and what it will cover with the conservator • Grant assistance?

19. Choosing and working with a conservator

20. Who has used a conservator before?

21. A conservator is someone who has been trained and is qualified to carry out conservation

22. Types of conservators • Preventative conservators • Specialist conservators

23. Locating conservators • Conservators and information about conservation can be found through the AICMM website: www.aiccm.org.au Please note that this is not an accredited list

24. Working with a conservator • Define exactly what you need in the plan • Assess the scope of the work • Determine your respective roles and responsibilities • Set up appropriate lines of communication

25. Working with a conservator • Work together make sure it meets your needs and is for the long-term benefit of the collection

26. Key areas in a conservation plan

27. Need to consider: • What does the museum / gallery have? • What risks is the collection exposed to? • What collection care practices are in place? • What are the priorities for this museum / gallery?

28. What does the museum / gallery have? • Collection types • Collection condition • Resources

29. Collection Types • Different collections held • Organic, inorganic or mixed materials • Size of each collection • Significance of each collection

33. Collection Condition General condition of different collections types Highlighting the collections that are: • significant • largest in number

34. Resources • Buildings or space available • Paid staff and their positions • Volunteers and their responsibilities and areas of expertise • Existing budget and sources of income or grants

35. What risks is the collection exposed to? • Building(s) • Environmental conditions • Exhibitions • Stores • Handling

36. Building(s) • Must provide an effective buffer against external conditions • Condition of the building(s) • Responsibility for building maintenance • Regularity of building maintenance

38. Environmental conditions • Temperature • Relative humidity • Light • Pollution

39. Environmental Conditions • Conditions being aimed for • Requirements for these condition types • Existing conditions • Existing environmental control measures • Monitoring programs • Action if monitoring finds unacceptable conditions

40. Exhibitions • Permanent exhibitions • Rotation of collection items between exhibition and storage • Traveling exhibitions • Open or covered display • Materials used to create display cases and mounts

44. Stores • Dedicated collection storage • Dual use collection stores • Storage systems • Materials used to wrap items, for enclosures and for storage systems • Isolation areas for items entering the collection

47. Handling • Movement of collection items inside the building(s) • Transportation of items • Existing equipment • Skills of existing staff and volunteers

50. Condition reporting and treatment • Existing condition reports • Details of previous conservation treatments • Method used to determine priorities • Expertise used