Course on museum cleaning course

MS217: Museum Cleaning Basics
Dates: Jan 11 - Feb 19, 2010
Price: $475
Instructor: Gretchen Anderson

Description: Museums must present a good image to their public.
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. Annual cleaning, monthly cleaning and cleaning of
incoming collections are part of the work of museums.  Until now,
there was no comprehensive training available for museum staff in
how to clean collections areas and collections without causing harm
to the collection.  Techniques used in one's home cannot usually be
used safely around museum objects.

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. Tools will be discussed in detail.
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.

Course Outline:

    Introduction
    Agents of Deterioration
    Health and safety for the object and for you
    Equipment and supplies
    Cleaning techniques
    Documentation
    Spring Cleaning: Housekeeping Manual
    Conclusion

Logistics: Participants in Museum Cleaning Basics work through
sections at their own pace. Instructor Gretchen Anderson is
available for scheduled email support. Materials and resources
include online literature, slide lectures and dialog between
students and online chats led by the instructor. The course is
limited to 20 participants.

Museum Cleaning Basics runs four weeks. To reserve a spot in the
course, please pay at
<URL:http://www.collectioncare.org/tas/tas.html>\ If you have
trouble please contact Helen Alten <helen<-at->collectioncare<.>org>

The Instructor:

    Objects conservator Gretchen Anderson learned her craft at the
    American Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian's
    Conservation Analytical Lab, the Canadian Conservation
    Institute, Getty Conservation Lab, the Los Angeles County Museum
    of Art, and the Minnesota Historical Society. She established
    the conservation department at the Science Museum of Minnesota
    in 1989. In 2009 she became the Conservator for the Carnegie
    Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh. Ms. Anderson is a
    member of the American Institute for Conservation and the
    Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections. She
    lectures and presents workshops on preventive conservation, IPM,
    cleaning in museums, and practical methods and materials for
    storage of collections.


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 23:24
                 Distributed: Monday, January 11, 2010
                       Message Id: cdl-23-24-005
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