Conservation "recipes" and appropriate outreach

I would like to send out a few thoughts on the discussion of what
types of information are appropriate for conservators and others to
dispense on matters of collections care and treatments, per Paul
Storch's comments et al.

Having worked with a number of small institutions, as well as
undergraduate students, I have pondered this issue a fair amount. I
also remember being on the other side of the question when first
developing an interest in this field. Information seemed to fall
into two categories: so cautiously general as to be virtually
useless, and so technical as to be beyond comprehension.

As there are far more "untrained" people out there taking care of
collections than there are conservators, it does seem that we need
to find a way to more effectively bridge this gap. One way might be
to consistently refer people to the medium range literature that is
out there, such as the National Park Service's "Museum Handbook" and
their "Conserve O Gram" series, and the Canadian Conservation
Institute's series of "Notes" and "Technical Bulletins".

Another way might be to lead people through the series of questions
that run through a conservator's head (much as Paul has done in
several instances) when presented with a question like "how do I get
a stain off of such-and-such". The person asking the question
doubtless has no idea that this is a little like asking a physician
(over the phone): "how do I get this lump off my arm?" The
conservator is thinking: what type of material is this? how do you
know for certain? what is the composition of the stain? how did you
identify it? how long has it been there? why do you want to remove
the stain? is it really necessary? what is the end use of the
object?...

Sometimes when I have tried this approach, people realize the issue
is far more complicated than they thought. And in the process, they
have learned quite a bit--not about a specific treatment, but about
how to start to evaluate an object, the situation, and their
options. They may decide not to do anything (sometimes the safest
course) or they may decide to seek out professional assistance.

The non-conservators out there also have a responsibility to
understand that, as in all other aspects of life in the material
world, there are no simple magic pills to cure all ills. In all
cases there are many variables that affect the situation and
possible outcomes, and there are skills involved in identifying and
weighing those variables.

One thing I have learned in this business is that we all have the
responsibility of continually educating ourselves, in order to do
the best by the things we are taking care of.

Jane Ketcham
Conservator
Beloit College Museums

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 11:31
                Distributed: Wednesday, October 1, 1997
                       Message Id: cdl-11-31-004
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