During June 2016, aspiring conservators from around the country attended a 2 week intensive workshop at Staatsburgh. "Housekeeping for Conservators", sponsored by The Foundation for the American Institute for Conservation, along with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, taught in-depth methods of caring for many different types of collections. Participants gained insight into artifact conservation and the conditions that cause deterioration. After the workshop, several of the participants wrote blog entries about their experience and a specific aspect of the workshop.
NYS Bureau of Historic Sites Furniture Conservator, David Bayne, organized this workshop to occur at Staatsburgh collaborating on its organization with Independent Conservator Cathy MacKenzie and textile conservator Kirsten Schoonmaker from the Shelburne Museum. Several conservation experts also participated in the workshop's instruction including John Childs from the Peabody Essex Museum, Genevieve Bieniosek from Biltmore, and Catherine Coueignoux London of Oak Street Conservation.
The author of our second post, Allison Kelley, is a 2016 graduate of the College of William & Mary with a BS in Chemistry and a minor in Art and Art History. While working as a student research assistant, she discovered the field of conservation and was attracted to the connection between science and art. She has volunteered in the objects lab at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and plans to apply to graduate conservation programs in the near future.
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| Allison Kelly, workshop participant and blog author, vacuums a chair at Staatsburgh. |