Book Review: Managing Collection Environments: Technical Notes and Guidance

Reviewed by Brinda Gaitonde-Nayak

News in Conservation, April-May 2025, Issue 107, p. 50-52

Managing Collection Environments, as the name suggests, is a comprehensive guide for collections—covering their understanding, contexts, factors affecting their management, systems thinking, and solutions to mitigate the issues faced by conservators. Through a series of technical notes, the publication aims to introduce a new approach to empower collections professionals in developing sustainable solutions for indoor climate management. Some examples of built cultural heritage are also provided, making this document widely applicable. While it is the post-workshop proceedings—and most authors were instructors—for the Getty Conservation Institute’s Managing Collections Environments (MCE) Initiative (Preserving Collections in the Age of Sustainability course held in 2017 and 2019), the publication has been further developed into an exhaustive guide for a wider museum and conservation audience. Through its four sections (each containing four technical notes), it addresses issues, analyzes current mechanisms, provides a synthesis of management tools, and presents a range of sustainable solutions for implementation. As one of the editors, Joel Taylor, states at the outset, “It’s all connected.”

Bridging the many challenges faced by conservators, not only in preserving objects and presenting them in the right context but also in developing conservation strategies, Part One underscores the importance of understanding an object’s previous context and use to comprehend its present state for future preservation methodology. Delving into the value of considering the entirety of an object—its intended purpose, significance, and integrity—Michael C. Henry, in his first technical note, presents scenarios of sites where the original or interpreted use was found to be more economically sustainable. Through poignant examples of redundant mills and lighthouses, and by the continuation of their intended use, it is explained how the longevity of such sites is extended, emphasizing the merit of scenario building. In the second technical note, the value of systems thinking in preventive conservation is accentuated. Addressing interior environments at different levels of expectation, an understanding of psychrometric processes is provided in Technical Note Three by means of several graphical illustrations. Although this is an extremely technical aspect of preventive conservation, it is clearly explained through visual aids. This section concludes with an examination of the interrelationship between external factors (including climate and building performance) with internal museum environments, which can inform preventive conservation guidance. Understanding temporal context is also vital.

Part Two of the publication deals with the complexities of environmental management, analyzing these to prescribe preventative measures. Michal Lukomski explores this further using decorative wood as an example due to its vulnerability to moisture. Using similar processes of analysis as those outlined in Technical Note Five, Lukomski writes that the risk of climate-induced physical damage to collections can be assessed for other materials. In Technical Note Six, Joel Taylor presents an interesting observation regarding the setting of standards and guidance for climate control in preventive conservation, discussing how these could be limiting and should evolve. Some discussion is included on the nuances of each definition. By means of diagnostic monitoring systems for various cultural heritage environments, climate management issues can be tackled; however, as the author of Technical Note Seven Michael C. Henry, states, these systems can also be applied to other concerns such as visitor management. In the next technical note, Vincent Laudato Beltran outlines the analytical collation of environmental data in a museum context, covering sources such as temperature, humidity, light, occupancy, vibration, and pollution as well as the use of clear data visualizations for diverse experts. Although the display methods and analysis are highly technical, by providing a summary of the visualization types, the author has simplified their uses for specific scenarios.

Having understood the issues of climate management and identified monitoring methods, it is now time to develop strategies. Part Three of the document does just that, with the caveat that, while major strides have been made in collections management, the field is by no means all-encompassing or complete. With the help of case studies, Joel Taylor, in Technical Note Nine, explains how risks are assessed, presented, and managed. The example of short-term risk in moving an Oseberg Viking ship from an exposed environment to a more stable, interior museum-controlled space is provided, along with various scenarios. The broader concept of accepting change versus expecting perpetuity is addressed, and using risk analysis as a basis for decision-making is explored. While conservators grapple with diverse materials and changing environments, discouragement can set in. In Technical Note Ten, the importance of investigating different types of information to support environmental control strategies is urged. Technical Note Eleven focuses on providing strategies for interior spaces, including source moisture control, moderated thermal flows, moderated air leakage, and stack effect, as well as moderated moisture vapor flow, and the implementation of non-mechanical strategies. The next note focusses on evaluation of mechanical strategies for climate control.

Part Four of the document centers on the application of systems mentioned in previous readings and discussions on the merits of implemented projects. The summary consolidates all discussions and provides a background on the formulation of the publication, broadening its aim to engage conservation professionals in a dialogue towards better collection management.

Managing Collection Environments: Technical Notes and Guidance / Edited by Joel Taylor and Vincent Laudato Beltran / Getty Conservation Institute (2023) / Accessible online HERE

Author bio

Brinda Gaitonde Nayak is a consultant for World Heritage Sites in India, working with the conservation firm Abha Narain Lambah Associates, Mumbai, while being based in the USA. Brinda is also co-founder of The Bombay Heritage Walks, which conducts architectural walking tours. She teaches an elective course on Historic Preservation for undergraduate students at the Academy of Architecture, Mumbai. She has written several articles, co-authored papers and other publications, and authored a book on historical fiction.

Follow IIC for more News in Conservation content

You can sign up for free (scroll to the bottom) to receive each issue of NiC

Become an IIC member for more great content, membership programmes and benefits