Preserving the Collection: Disaster Planning, Response & Recovery

  If you have an item in your collection that is showing signs of degradation, or perhaps you've recently been through a situation that has affected your entire collection, a good first step is to consult with a conservator. Conservators can give advice for the best methods of handling and storing a particular object, or provide assessments and conserve the object if needed. AIC has the most complete directory of conservators: culturalheritage.org/about-conservation/find-a-conservator . If you've never worked with a conservator before, the Indiana Historical Society has some great advice. http://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2012.09-What-is-a-Conservator-1.pdf http://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/201702_Working_with_Conservators.pdf

  On this Giving Tuesday, please consider donating to TX-CERA. This year, all donations will help us build regional emergency supply caches for our Texas Heritage Responders.    To donate through PayPal, visit our website: https://www.txcera.org/donate   Or consider changing your Amazon Smile account to TX-CERA for year-round donations: https://smile.amazon.com/    

  This video by the Library of Congress is packed with great information. The list of their most-used items and practical advice for working with wet books and documents are easy to apply, even if you don't have the luxury of a dedicated salvage room.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp4c8B371jg&list=PLH0WXCtI2nohz7Dfq6nmtpaqxD7t_rsp3&index=5

  The Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts is conducting a survey on public art collections management and emergency planning engagement. If you manage a public art collection, we hope you have time to fill it out.    Survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdBiSny752_1wtfujGtssMTAK5Ua0Cnl1QFJCpLKExumvOeOQ/viewform   Project Website: https://www.preserveart.org/product/protecting-public-art/ Original Message: My name is Maddie Cooper, I am a Preventive Conservator [at the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts], and I am looking for folks who work with public art collections. If this is you, please consider participating in this short survey, and if you know someone who this applies to, please pass along!   Protecting Public Art Collections is an NEH-funded research and development project focused on creating a framework for remote risk assessment and emergency planning for public art collections using Geographic I...

  It's November, which for Texas usually means we have a couple months before we have a significant temperature drop. This is a good time to look at what you need to do to winterize your facility, whether it is a historic building or newer construction.   https://ccaha.org/resources/winterizing-historic-buildings   https://www.historicnewengland.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Winterization.pdf

  If there is one constant that holds true for all collections, it's this: all objects deteriorate. Thankfully, for most this occurs very slowly, and this gives us time to determine if deterioration is causes by the environment - and is therefore something we can control - or by "inherent vice" - and is therefore something we can slow, but never stop. These articles by the Indiana Historical Society discuss the difference between environment and inherent vice, and the basic steps we can take to preserve our collections. http://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2019.07-Deterioration.pdf http://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2016.08-Back-to-Basics-1.pdf

  Did you know the Texas Historical Commission has an ever-growing collection of webinars (including slides and handouts) available to view for free through their website? This fantastic resource library includes sections on the basics of collections care and disaster preparedness. https://thc.texas.gov/preserve/projects-and-programs/museum-services/webinars