Northern States Conservation Center
Collections Caretaker eNewsletter
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Collection Management: Museum Storage |
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Welcome to the Collections Caretaker e-Newsletter from Northern States Conservation Center. the newsletter is designed to bring you content that is pertinent to situations we all encounter in our museum and archives work. Feel free to let us know what topics you would like to see featured in Collections Caretaker or even contribute and article. |
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In this Issue
Storage Philosophy
Featured Courses
May Courses
June & July Courses
August Courses
Conferences and Meetings
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Storage Philosophy
By Helen Alten
The collection is the heart of the museum and its single greatest asset. Storage is the collection’s safe haven and must be as secure and environmentally stable as possible. Proper storage should provide easy access to the collection while keeping objects safe and secure. The keys are adequate security, proper environmental conditions, appropriate storage fixtures and proper packing and support of artifacts in storage.
Storage areas should be clean, well ventilated and properly illuminated. Temperature and humidity levels and air quality must be maintained and monitored regularly. Appropriate fire protection should be installed. Illumination should allow access to the collection without causing damage. While stored, items should be in the dark at all times.
How objects within storage areas are packed, supported and stored can be either beneficial or harmful. Often, this is where museums fail. Storage isn’t sexy, making upgrades to storage a hard sell to funding sources. Conversely, exhibits are visible, tangible and understandable.
Storage Philosophy
Storage areas provide collection preservation as well as access. Ideally, the area should have a controlled environment, be filtered for dust or have the artifacts covered to protect from dust, and include furniture and storage supports made of inert materials. A clean storage area with open aisles is critical for access. Since carts and large objects need to move through storage areas, using disability guidelines will help plan for smooth artifact movement in countries that don’t legally require that spaces be accessible. Design storage areas to make access easy for staff and researchers. The design also should make inventory control easy and allow the collection to be moved with minimal trouble.
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Excerpt from MS202: Museum Storage Facilities and Furniture. If you are thinking about updating your storage or maybe working on a plan for a new storage facility this course has some great information for you! Join Laura Elliff Cruz for this very informative course on Museum Storage starting May 2, 2022
Helen Alten lives in Haines, Alaska. Prior to coming to Haines she founded Northern States Conservation Center and Museum Classes. She is an objects conservator with a desire to bring about change through museums, improving our communities and the patrimony we leave to our off-spring.
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Featured Course:
Care of Textiles
Caring for textiles demands an understanding of how and why they deteriorate. This course offers a simplified explanation of the origin and structure of textile fibers as well as the finished textile object; be it either a piece of whole cloth or a finished garment. Care of Textiles teaches students to identify fibers, fabric structures and finishes, write condition reports, and understand the agents of deterioration that are harmful to various fabrics both in storage on exhibit. Topics include preparing textiles for storage and exhibit, the use of archival materials with textiles, and three dimensional supports.
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Join Instructor Ann Coppinger for MS212 Care of Textiles starting May 2, 2022 to learn about how to identify and care for the textiles in your collection.
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Featured Course:
Preservation Environments
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The museum's brick exterior wall is crumbling. The powder coated metal storage shelves have active rust under the foam padding. Objects in fur storage are covered in mold. It is raining in the exhibit hall. This is the damage that occurs to museum buildings or collection when staff do not understand preservation environments. Preservation Environments is essential knowledge for any collecting institution. Everyone should understand how humidity and temperature are controlled by a building and its mechanical system. For museum staff considering a new building - and any institution planning to expand or rebuild an existing one - Preservation Environments provide important information for calculating whether the proposed improvements will actually improve the environmental control of your protective enclosure. Participants learn the advantages and disadvantages of numerous methods of temperature and humidity control. Preservation Environments does not try to turn museum professionals into engineers. Rather, it arms them with the knowledge they need to work with engineers and maintenance professionals. And helps explain why damaged occurred and how to keep it from happening again.
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Join instructor Ernest Conrad for MS211 Preservation Environments starting May 2, 2022. Learn about your museum's environment and how to communicate with facilities staff about the needs of the collection. |
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Early Bird Discounts Available for Full Length Courses
An Early Bird Discount is available for anyone who signs up for a full length course from museumclasses.org 30 days prior to the start of that course.
Sign up for a full length course up to 30 days prior to its start and save $100.00!
To take advantage of this discount, you must enter coupon code EARLYBIRD at checkout at collectioncare.org
Earlybird Discount Deadline for July 2022 Courses is June 5, 2022
Earlybird Discount Deadline for August 2022 Courses is July 2, 2022
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May Courses
May 2 to 27, 2022
Instructor: Laura Elliff Cruz
Description:
If you are building a new storage facility or retrofitting an old one, this course provides the blueprint for how to approach architects and engineers as well as redesigning your facility yourself. The course covers the philosophy of storage, the construction requirements, security, fire and water prevention, types of furniture, and how to plan for collections growth.
The course will start with a refresher on the agents of deterioration and environmental issues to assure that the students have a common base to begin.
After this introduction, topics include determining storage and defining space, architectural design considerations and issues such as lighting, security and planning. We will discuss general information about storage furniture types and storage materials, how to modify existing cabinets and information on homemade storage systems. The last section includes specific information from a variety of vendors, specifics on writing a Request for Proposal (RFP), and what to consider when making a decision on a furniture type and vendor.
The instructor will add readings and other information depending upon the students and their individual institutional problems and concerns.
May 2 to June 10, 2022
Instructor: Ernest Conrad
Description:
The museum's brick exterior wall is crumbling. The powder coated metal storage shelves have active rust under the foam padding. Objects in fur storage are covered in mold. It is raining in the exhibit hall. This is the damage that occurs to museum buildings or collection when staff do not understand preservation environments. Preservation Environments is essential knowledge for any collecting institution. Everyone should understand how humidity and temperature are controlled by a building and its mechanical system. For museum staff considering a new building - and any institution planning to expand or rebuild an existing one - Preservation Environments provide important information for calculating whether the proposed improvements will actually improve the environmental control of your protective enclosure. Participants learn the advantages and disadvantages of numerous methods of temperature and humidity control. Preservation Environments does not try to turn museum professionals into engineers. Rather, it arms them with the knowledge they need to work with engineers and maintenance professionals. And helps explain why damaged occurred and how to keep it from happening again.
May 2 to 27, 2022
Instructor: Ann Coppinger
Description:
Caring for textiles demands an understanding of how and why they deteriorate. This course offers a simplified explanation of the origin and structure of textile fibers as well as the finished textile object; be it either a piece of whole cloth or a finished garment. Care of Textiles teaches students to identify fibers, fabric structures and finishes, write condition reports, and understand the agents of deterioration that are harmful to various fabrics both in storage on exhibit. Topics include preparing textiles for storage and exhibit, the use of archival materials with textiles, and three dimensional supports.
May 2 to 27, 2022
Instructor: Diana Komejan
Description:
Caring for furniture and wood artifacts demands an understanding of how and why wood deteriorates. This course offers a simplified explanation of the chemistry and structure of wood as well as the finished wooden object; be it either a totem pole, plow or a French polished table. Care of Furniture and Wood Artifacts teaches students to identify woods, finishes and furniture styles, write condition reports, and understand the agents of deterioration that are harmful to wood both in storage and on exhibit. Topics include preparing wood artifacts for storage and exhibit, the use of archival materials with wood artifacts, housekeeping techniques for furniture and large objects on open display, basic repairs and three dimensional supports for storage or exhibit.
May 2 to 27, 2022
Instructor: John Veverka
Description:
The Planning, design and text copy development for interpretive panels is a practical “how to do it” course to develop updated or new interpretive panels for heritage sites, historic homes, natural areas, zoos, and other related sites. Panels are the most widely use interpretive media, world-wide, to quickly present a message or story to site visitors in a memorable fashion. We will look at the interpretive planning process, interpretive design concerns, interpretive text writing for panels, panel fabrication materials, panel pre-testing evaluation, and even how to write a RFP (request for proposal) to have your panels fabricated. This is an important course for any interpretive staff member, planner, designer or manager.
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June Courses
June 6 to 13, 2022
Instructor: Karin Hostetter
Description:
Self-guided brochures, exhibit labels, docent led tours, guest speakers, and audio tours are only a few of the methods available to guide visitors through an exhibit. Explore the strengths and challenges of many different methods and garner resources for further information. Learn how to determine which method works best with which exhibits and how to provide variety to enhance the visitor experience.
July Courses
July 5 to August 1, 2022
Instructor: Peggy Schaller
Description:
Cataloging may not be the most exciting museum task, but it is among the most important. Without a clear knowledge of your holdings, you can't protect, care for, research or exhibit them. Without knowledge of an item's history, you can't properly appreciate its value to your museum. Cataloging Your Collection covers all details needed to catalog a collection. Procedures for handling, measuring and describing all types of objects and materials are discussed in detail. Participants receive sample forms and learn the best practices for numbering artifacts, performing inventory and assessing the condition of objects. Participants practice describing everyday objects and cataloging items from their own collections or households.
July 5 to August 15, 2022
Instructor: Stefani Pendergast
Description:
The only thing worse than mice or cockroaches in your kitchen, is finding them in your museum collection. Participants in Integrated Pest Management for Museums, Libraries and Archives learn low-toxicity methods of controlling infestations. IPM is the standard method for treating incoming items and monitoring holdings. Integrated Pest Management for Museums, Libraries and Archives discusses how infestations occur, helps identify risks, provides feasible mitigation strategies, discusses the different techniques of treating infested materials, and helps you complete an IPM plan and monitoring schedule for your institution. The course covers pest identification, insects, rodent, birds, bats, other mammals and mold infestations, as well as other problems raised by participants.
July 5 to August 1, 2022
Instructor: Karin Hostetter
Description:
So much to say and so little space in which to say it. That is the dilemma when scripting an exhibition. How do you say what needs to be said in the space available? How do you even figure out how to limit the information in the first place? Discover the value of themes, tangibles, intangibles, and universals in writing exhibit text that visitors really want to read -- and remember. Additional resources provided on font size and colors as well as label layout.
July 5 to August 1, 2022
Instructor: Peggy Schaller
Description:
This course will examine the role of ethics in museums and related institutions. Topics addressed will include the differences in ethics, laws, and morals; what ethics are and where they come from; the ethical codes that museum professionals follow; how ethics affect professional practices; why ethics are important; and how ethical standards can help museums and related institutions better serve society. Participants in the course will gain an understanding of the importance of ethics in professional museum practice, how codes of ethics are written and why they are important, and will develop an understanding of the most significant codes of ethics subscribed to by museum professionals.
July 5 to August 1, 2022
Instructor: John Veverka
Description:
It’s often difficult to teach interpretive techniques and principles to others when you may have not had any formal training in interpretation yourself. The course provides ways to develop and deliver interpretive training courses and workshops for cultural sites and staff charged with developing interpretive training for their docents, volunteers, seasonal interpretive staff, or full time interpretive staff.
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August 1 to 26, 2022
Instructor: Laura Elliff Cruz
Description:
Is your collection stacked, packed and stressed? Museum Storage Techniques has the solution. The course builds on its sister course, Museum Facilities and Furniture, which looks at the bigger storage environment.. The Museum Storage Techniques course emphasizes the needs of individual objects and collection groupings. Guidelines for specific materials are provided. Participants learn about storage materials and mounts and the most effective use of trays, drawers, shelves and cabinets.
August 1 to 26, 2022
Instructor: Elizabeth Burton
Description:
Cobwebs in the gallery, dust on the dinosaur skeleton, mice in storage - a dirty museum results in poor visitor experience and poor collections preservation. In a museum, cleanliness really is next to godliness. Museum Cleaning Basics explores everything you need to know about cleaning your collections. Participants learn when to clean - and when not to clean. They also learn how to make those decisions. Topics range from basic housekeeping to specific techniques for specific objects. You will learn why cleaning is important and how to prevent damage when cleaning. We will look at specific techniques that minimize damage while getting the work done. And we will discuss when to call in a specialist, such as a conservator. Students will create a housekeeping manual for their institution.
August 1 to 26, 2022 NEW DATES
Instructor: Sarah Kapellusch
Description:
In this course we will examine the most significant laws and regulations that affect collections management, including the legal organization of museums, responsibilities of governing boards, collections care, loans and gifts, international regulations, intellectual property, cultural appropriation, and freedom of expression.
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Many organizations have put together information on resources for Museums and Covid-19. Here are a few links to those Resources. Check back with these organizations for updates.
Use the drop-down menu in the upper right to find Webinars, Virtual tours and more
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Conferences and Meetings
Double check each organization's website for more information. Some may still be going virtual this year due to continued safety concerns over Covid 19.
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2022
California Association of Museums
CAM Across California: Shifting Terrains will take place over the course of five mini-conferences in San Diego, Los Angeles, the Central Valley, the Bay Area, and Northern California in Spring 2022
American Alliance of Museums, Boston MA
May 19-22, 2022
American Alliance of Museums, Boston, MA
May 19-22, 2022
Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
June 4-10, 2022
Association of Academic Museums and Galleries, Logan, UT
June 14-17, 2022
Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums, Tacoma, WA
June 23-28, 2022
Association of Midwest Museums, TBA
International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection, Denver, CO
August 13-17, 2022
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Society of American Archivists, Boston, MA
August 20-27, 2022
Oklahoma Museums Association, Enid, OK
September 14-16, 2022
Mountain-Plains Museums Association, Tulsa, OK
October 4 - 7, 2022
National Association for Interpretation, Cleveland, OH
November 29-Decemver 3, 2022
American Association of State and Local History, Buffalo, NY
September 14-17, 2022 Virtual and Live
Southeastern Museums Conference, Northwest Arkansas
October 24 - 26, 2022
New England Museum Association, Springfield, MA
November 2-4, 2022
2023
American Alliance of Museums, Denver, CO
May 19-22, 2023
Society of American Archivists, Washington, DC
July 22-29, 2023
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Submissions and Comments
How to submit an article or upcoming workshops for inclusion in the Newsletter:
If you would like to submit an article, notice of an organizational meeting or upcoming workshop for an upcoming Collections Caretaker Newsletter, send your submission to [email protected].
We are always looking for contributions to this newsletter. Submission deadline is the 10th of each month.
Have a comment or suggestion?
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Sincerely,
Helen Alten, Director
Peggy Schaller, Publications Manager
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