Mount Rushmore

Erin Quinn <erin.quinn [at] greeleygov__com> writes

>Regarding the "face lift" on Mount Rushmore, it seems that the
>method was chosen for economic reasons.  I heard the story on
>National Public Radio (done through South Dakota Public
>Broadcasting--you can hear the audio file at <URL:http://sdpb.org/>.
>A German firm (thus the German excitement) volunteered to clean the
>monument and teach park rangers how to do it themselves.

This is incredible!  We have been hearing these subtle and not so
subtle threats from the pro-certification people that the NPS and
other government agencies were no longer going to use people as
conservators who were not certified or graduates of programs.  Now
they hire just anyone to "clean" two major national monuments as
long as it is for free.  If this is not an insult to our field I
cannot imagine an greater one.

I suppose it goes along with the fact that all the scientists have
been fired at the old Smithsonian Conservation Analytical
Laboratory.  Apparently the new Smithsonian leadership has decreed
that the laboratory will no longer be involved in conservation
research and only act as an adjunct to the art historical brief of
the staff.  This is amazing since the Republicans' staff I spoke to
in the House the last time they were trying to close the lab
emphasized the role the lab had as a center for research in
conservation for the nation's small businesses that were involved in
conservation and restoration.  Could it be that the new Director is
doing this just to anger them, or is he not aware of the debate
about the lab the last time?  I urge every conservator who is the
owner of a small business to start phoning their congressional
representatives and set this guy straight.

Niccolo Caldararo, Ph.D.
Director and Chief Conservator
Conservation Art Service
(A private small business)


                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 19:10
                Distributed: Wednesday, August 17, 2005
                       Message Id: cdl-19-10-010
                                  ***