Submitted by Sharra Grow on
By Jonathan Ashley-Smith
I converted from chemistry to conservation on 1st January 1973. The day I started work at the V&A in London was the day that the UK finally joined the European Economic Community. It was also the last New Year’s Day that was not a public holiday in England. My boss was Norman Brommelle, who at that time was in his second stint as Secretary General of IIC; a term in office that lasted from 1966-1988.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
By Joyce Hill Stoner
I was appointed managing editor of IIC’s Art and Archaeology Technical Abstracts in September 1969. A year later I attended my first IIC Congress which focused on stone and wooden objects and was held in New York City, mostly in the Metropolitan Museum of Art auditorium.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
We live in a time when looking back at the history of IIC and of the conservation profession can also include looking back at a long and rich history of quality publications which have withstood the test of time. It is wonderful to see so many of these books authored and complied by IIC founders, leaders, and members.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
By Mariana Escamilla and Charlotte Hoffmann, with Jo Kirby Atkinson and Mikkel Scharff
The IIC- Student and Emerging Conservator Conference (S&ECC) offers an open platform for young professionals to network with peers and experienced professionals while discussing relevant topics of the profession. Unlike most conservation conferences, the IIC-S&ECCs do not aim to present recent research; rather, their goal is to help develop emerging conservators and to promote the enthusiasm of students.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
By Sarah Bull
John was born on 17th January 1931 in Bristol, England. After Bristol Grammar School, he studied Fine Art and Cabinet Making at Royal West of England College of Art, where he met his future wife of 64 years, Anne. On 12th November 1956, he began working as a junior restorer at Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery starting the Monday after his marriage to Anne.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
The first meeting of what was to become the Council of IIC took place at the National Gallery in London on 6th June 1950. The business conducted included the election of the first Fellows and the establishment of arrangements for the transfer of funds to and from the United States. In attendance were IIC’s solicitors, Sir Hilary Scott and A.M. Bell, from Slaughter and May, then as now a pre-eminent London firm, founded in 1889.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
Delivered by Andrew Oddy
This version of the lecture reproduces excerpts of the printed text from IIC Bulletin No. 5, October 1996, pp 1-5 with minor corrections and the addition of illustrations.
Submitted by Kate Smith on
“Being part of the change is far more interesting than just being carried along by it…”
- Velson Horie FIIC
Unlikely to go down in history as anyone's favourite year, 2020 nevertheless saw conservators reaching out to their communities to offer what help they could - and reacting actively, not passively to the enormous changes that we faced.
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
Review by Joyce Townsend
On Canvas: Preserving the Structure of Paintings
By Stephen Hackney
The Getty Conservation Institute, 2020
256 pages / $50 Getty Store / £40 Amazon / Paperback
ISBN: 978-1-60606-626-3
Submitted by Sharra Grow on
The Harvard Art Museums launched “A History of Color: An Audio Tour of the Forbes Pigment Collection,” a digital resource that showcases the stories and science behind some of history’s most fascinating colors, all contained within one of the world’s largest collections of historical pigments. The tool takes viewers on a guided tour of 27 pigments, dyes, and raw materials—from ochres and charcoal, the oldest pigments known to have been used by humans, to YInMn blue, which was discovered by accident at Oregon State University in 2009.
