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Art UK Creating and Online Sculpture Database

Submitted by Sharra Grow on

Conservator Charlotte Hanmore cleans sculptures at the Beecroft Gallery © the artist’s estate. Photo, Art UK alt

Photography is getting underway in the largest ever sculpture project undertaken in the UK.

Over the next two years, Art UK is aiming to digitise around 170,000 sculptures, which are located inside galleries, museums and public buildings and outdoors in parks, streets and squares, the length and breadth of the UK. These will then be displayed on the free-to-access artuk.org website for enjoyment, learning and research – the first database of its kind in the world.

Large-scale updates at Tyntesfield

Submitted by Sharra Grow on

Visitors at Tyntesfield playing with the buzzwire game as part of "Fire and Wire". Photo by Alana Wright

Not far from Bristol, England sits Tyntesfield, a Victorian Gothic Revival house and gardens. Built in the 1860s, the estate was home to four generations of the Gibbs family, and is now open to the public under the care of the National Trust.

Forbidden City in China getting a new underground storage facility

Submitted by Sharra Grow on

Meridian Gate in the Forbidden City, Beijing China. Photograph by Emily MacDonald-Korth

Construction of a new storage facility below the Forbidden City is now underway. Now the Palace Museum in China, the Forbidden City was the imperial palace from 1420-1911, and is home to 1.86 million cultural objects. The new facility is slated to be completed by 2020, just in time for the 600th anniversary celebration of the Forbidden City.

This underground storage unit will be the third such facility built beneath the Palace Museum complex in recent decades; two others were constructed in 1987 and 1993.

Studies in Conservation Out Now!

Submitted by Kate Stonor on

When Glass and Metal Corrode Together V: Sodium Copper Formate from Studies in Conservation, Volume 63, Issue 6

New articles now available in Studies in Conservation! Volume 63, Issue 6 is now available for free for all IIC members and includes the following (https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/ysic20/63/6):

Combination of a Liquid-Dispensing and Micro-Aspiration Device for the Cleaning of Sensitive Painted Surfaces

Microscopic Analysis of Wall Painting Techniques: Laboratory Replicas and Romanesque Case Studies in Southern Switzerland

When Glass and Metal Corrode Together V: Sodium Copper Formate

20 Jul 2018

The Plowden Medal 2018

Submitted by Sharra Grow on

Alan Derbyshire, Head of Paper, Books and Paintings Conservation at the V&A and winner of The Plowden Medal 2018 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

The Royal Warrant Holders Association announces the winner of the Plowden Medal 2018 – Alan Derbyshire – for his outstanding work as a paper conservator and particularly his contribution to the conservation of portrait miniatures

The Royal Warrant Holders Association will present the Plowden Medal to Alan Derbyshire in honour of his work as a paper conservator and particularly his pioneering contribution to the conservation of portrait miniatures. The Plowden Medal is awarded annually to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to conservation.

National Museum Day Around the World

Submitted by Sharra Grow on

Elizabeth, Anne, and Baroni being interviewed for "Voices from the War." image by Keimelo Gima (Papua New Guinea National Museum and Art Gallery)

On May 18th thousands of museums around the world celebrated ICOM International Museum Day (IMD). News in Conservation (NiC) collected a fantastic cross section of images and stories summarizing IMD celebrations from Barbados to Spain and beyond.

BARBADOS MUSEUM AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY - BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS

Protecting cultural property during conflict: the 21st Century Monuments Men

Submitted by Sharra Grow on

American GIs, including Sgt. Henry Hartung to the left of the painting, admire a masterpiece by Edourard Manet, stored in Merkers salt mine during WWII. This painting from Kaiser-Friderich Museum in Berlin, had been brought to the mine for safekeeping. (Photo credit: National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD / Public Domain)

By Peter Stone

The IIC is rightly proud of the fact that many of its founders served as members of the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Commission (MFAA), or ‘Monument’s Men,’ during the Second World War. This small unit, which we would now refer to as cultural heritage specialists, comprised some of the foremost experts in art history, historic architecture, and archaeology.

Conference: RECENT ADVANCES IN GLASS AND CERAMICS CONSERVATION

Submitted by Kate Stonor on

The Glass and Ceramics Working Group of ICOM-CC, Icon UK’s Ceramics and Glass Group and the British Museum, are pleased to announce the call for papers for the first-ever joint meeting between these parties.

This conference marks the 5th Interim Meeting of ICOM-CC Glass and Ceramics, and the 34th year of dedicated events from Icon’s Ceramics and Glass Group. Held at the British Museum, the joint conference promises to gather an impressive group of professionals specializing in the field of ceramics and glass conservation at a prestigious location in the heart of London.

5 Sep 2019 to 7 Sep 2019
Deadline: 
10 Sep 2018

Plastics Heritage: History, Limits and Possibilities Congress - Call for Papers

Submitted by Kate Stonor on

Museu da Famácia (Pharmacy Museum)

For more information and abstract submission instructions please visit the congress details: http://plasticsheritage2019.ciuhct.org/

Deadline for session proposals: 30th August 2018;
Deadline for paper proposals: 15th November 2018.
Please consult the guidelines, below.

Call for Papers
We are living in a time of increasing dependence on and encounters with synthetic materials, such as plastics, in our day-to-day life.

29 May 2019 to 31 May 2019
Deadline: 
30 Aug 2018

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