Conservation Treatment of Photographs

After producing the first questionnaires and analyzing the project scope, it was decided that the interviews would only include North American Conservators (conservators working in US). After presenting the project at the George Eastman House in December 2008 , the project description had evolved to the following: Current Status of Treatment Practices in Photograph Conservation Statement of Purpose This research will create a basic reference resource (interviews-based) that describes and addresses the current status of treatment within the profession, its philosophies, history; and the criteria and methodologies used for its evaluation. The objective of this resource is to gather and make accessible the knowledge and experience of a group of key individuals in the field, answering fundamental questions that relate to our work. Significance Treatment is one of the activities that characterize and differentiate a photograph conservator from other closely related specialists. The possibil...

In template 4 I incorporated new questions regarding treatment types and types of treated photographs, to complement the first part of the interview. Also, I developed the third treatment topic question -about unmounting/remounting photographs.

Institutions Could you please tell me your name, job title and affiliation? When was this conservation lab established and for how long have you been working here? I. -My next question relates to need for treatment. Considering that in an institutional reality, not all deteriorated photographs or not all photographs that present problems, can be treated or are treated, how do you select and prioritize the photographs that are going to be treated? What factors determine the need for treatment? [Potential answers: Exhibition/loan; established treatment plan/program; specific projects] -If you had more resources would you propose the establishment a regular treatment program for the collection? (based on priorities) -Broadly speaking what types of photographs are treated most frequently? [Paper based photographs (traditional processes: salt prints, albumen prints, silver gelatin, platinum prints, pigment processes, cyanotypes), daguerreotypes, other early cased photographs, modern and con...

Template for interview Today is Day, Date (month, day, year), Time. My name is Alejandra Mendoza and I am with (name of the interviewee) to have a conversation about Treatment Practices in Photograph Conservation. This interview is/forms part of the series of interviews I am conducting to photograph conservators to investigate and describe the current status [state] of treatment practices in our field, the general characteristics and objectives of the interventions performed, and the variables that influence its performance, as well as briefly address the transformation of treatment standards and decision-making through time. I would like to follow a format for the interview in which I will begin asking you questions about the approaches, characteristics and extents of the treatments performed in this institution, followed by questions addressing treatment issues that the field has faced through time.

I continued developing new questions and question structures for the beginning of the interview. With this initial section, I am trying to contextualize what treatments are being performed, where, how often, to what degree. I realized -after feedback with faculty members- that the idea of inquiring about difficult treatment study cases, may sound too rigid or violent for the interviewees. And therefore I decided to structure the questions by treatment topic. Instead of asking, "what would you do if a client brings you an object with this problem?", asking "what is your opinion about this treatment? Do you think it can/should be performed? when, why? This approach gives more space for conversation and can be better understood.

Institutions Could you please tell me your name, job title and affiliation? When was this conservation lab established and for how long have you been working here? I. My next question relates to need for treatment. Considering that in an institutional reality, not all deteriorated photographs or not all photographs that present problems, can be treated or are treated, how do you select and prioritize the photographs that are going to be treated? What factors determine the need for treatment? [Potential answers: Exhibition/loan established treatment plan/program specific projects] If you had more resources would you propose the establishment a regular treatment program for the collection? -In a general sense, what is the aim of the treatments performed, stabilization or restitution of the aesthetical qualities of the object? (Or both?) [Cleaning, consolidation, flattening, structural repair, compensation for loss/inpainting] - Do you consider mounting and rehousing as conserva...

"1. Treatment is the core of our profession. There are other fields; archivists, conservation scientists, collections management, researches, and curators. They each play their important and unique roll in the world of art and history. But it is entrusted to the professional Conservator the privilege to intervene, or not intervene, in the physical well being of the object. 2. In the conservation of artistic and historic works, not every treatment that is wanted is possible, not every treatment that is possible is necessary, and not every treatment that is necessary is advisable. [...] But when it comes to a decision as to what treatment, if any, should be carried out, the the responsibility is strictly in your hands. It is you who must be true to your sense of ethics. Just because and object is brought to a conservator for treatment it is not itself sufficient reason to do treatment." José Orraca, “Developing Treatment Criteria in the Conservation of Photographs”, OJO, Spring...

I realized that the heading "Philosophy and Ethics" was hard to understand, and that the questions could be addressed differently and in a different order. I introduced the idea of presenting specific case studies to talk about complicated treatment procedures. For example, intensification of prints or album dis-assemblage. The shape or content of these questions are not definitive, just a trial.

Today is Day, Date (month, day, year), Time. My name is Alejandra Mendoza and I am with (name of the interviewee), to have a conversation about Treatment Practices in Photograph Conservation as part of my project for the ARP in which I intend to describe the current status of treatment practices: its characteristics and objectives, and the variables that influence its performance; as well as briefly address the transformation of treatment standards and decision-making through time. I would like to follow a pattern for the interview in which I will begin asking questions about the approaches to treatment in this institution, its characteristics and extents, followed by questions about the similarities and differences compared to the treatment practices performed in other types of institutions. After this, I will present to you some [3] hypothetical treatment cases to hear your opinion about them and end up with some questions about education. To start, could you please tell me your name...

I created a chart illustrating the transformation of treatment practices It is a draft, I will refine it gradually.

After the last weeks I came up with some "statements" that I would like to prove (wrong or right) through my project Current Status, - Treatment is performed in different “places” responding to different needs: * Private Practice (for museums, private owners, galleries, auction houses) * Art Museums * Archives * Regional Centers * Historical Societies Therefore, - Treatments performed are different - Treatment(s) goals/specific objectives are different - Allowable/suitable/appropriate treatment and treatment extents are different Statements: - Treatment is not performed on all photographs - A greater recognition/understanding of the values of a photograph and its subtleties, has lead to less intervention - Treatment is driven by other activities and social phenomena such as: *Exhibition *Market *Fashion/Perception of how a photograph should look - Treatment decision-making is performed by a group of people From the meeting (with Grant), we concluded I should define hypot...

Today I spoke with Pau Mayés about my project. I think I still can not explain it in simple ordered ideas. Somehow, the fact that I want to focus in understanding and describing the current treatment practice got lost in the conversation and I couldn't bring it back. When he read my proposal he centered his attention in the evolution of treatment criteria. He suggested me to narrow the topic into one concrete theme, like that one. He shortly referred to his project (Oral History of Photograph Conservation) and his experience. He said that now he knows he would have done things differently, but didn't say how. When he read the topics for the question he said "philosophy" is an abstract big word, that nobody understands. When he read my questions (posted Oct.26) he said they were too theoretical and felt like an exam. He suggested me to use concrete examples as ground for discussion. He gave me some suggestions of bibliography to look for (some of which I have already c...

Today is Day, Date (month, day, year), Time. My name is Alejandra Mendoza and I am with (name of the interviewee), to have a conversation about the Current Status of Treatment Practices in Photograph Conservation. I would like to follow a pattern for the interview that includes questions about the philosophy and ethics of conservation treatment, following a discussion about the current status of treatment practice, treatment evaluation and education, continuing with aspects about the progress and transformation... [order to be defined] To start, could you please tell me your name, your current job position, the institution or company that you work for, and for how long have you being working here? I would like to begin with..

These are the topics of the questions that I want to ask, and a first draft of questions: Philosophy and ethics 1. How do you define conservation treatment of photographs? 2. In a general sense, what is the goal of treatment? 3. What are the general principles that guide treatment practice? 4. Do you consider that these general principles are applicable to all types of treatment? Current Status 5. What determines the need for treatment? (in a museum, a private lab, an archive) 6. Are there other factors that influence in the selection of treatments that are proposed/requested and then performed? 7. How does the value of a photograph affect treatment? 8. How does market affect treatment? --How do you assess the treatment risk against its potential benefit? Progress and Transformation (History) 9. What is your observation of the field in terms of treatment? How has it progressed or transformed? --What is your opinion about "chemical treatments" of photographs? Can they be perfo...

Project proposal - September 2008 Statement of Purpose This research will create a basic reference resource (interviews-based) that describes and addresses the current status of treatment within the profession, its philosophies, history; and the criteria and methodologies used for its evaluation. The objective of this resource is to gather and make accessible the knowledge and experience of a group of key individuals in the field, answering fundamental questions that relate to our work. Significance Treatment is one of the activities that characterize and differentiate a photograph conservator from other closely related specialists. The possibilities for treating photographic materials depend on a series of complex case-based variables (not only considering the materiality of the object but its present and future context and use) and international accepted standards of practice. Therefore it is important to understand, document and communicate the way in which treatment is approached, ...

Books ASHLEY-SMITH, Jonathan. Risk Assessment for Object Conservation. Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford-Boston, 1999, 358 pp. APPELBAUM, Barbara. Conservation Treatment Methodology. Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, Great Britain, 2007, 437 pp. AVRAMI, Erica, Randall Mason, and Marta de la Torre. Values and Heritage Conservation. Research Report, The Getty Conservation Institute, Los Angeles, 2000, 96 pp. http://www.getty.edu/conservation/publications/pdf_publications/valuesrpt.pdf BARGER, M. Susan, and William B. White. The Daguerreotype: nineteenth-century technology and modern science. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, 1991, 252 pp. BRÜCKLE, Irene, and F. Christopher Tahk, editors. North American Graduate Programs in the Conservation of Cultural Property. Association of North American Graduate Programs in the Conservation of Cultural Property, Buffalo, 2000, 170 pp. CAPLE, Chris. Conservation skills: judgment, method, and decision making. Routledge, New York, 2000...