Song of the Day: My Body by Young the Giant
Although I am not really qualified to perform this procedure on any of the works in the collection I still like how informative this video is. Resources like this allow one to learn more about the terminology and the tools that are involved within this field. (For instance this is a great visual example of what foxing is, little brown spots and how it is mold that is physically growing on the a work.)
I know this blog is in need of another post, so here is a brief one. Currently, this semester has been rough for me, but I will try to keep my posting as regular as I can.
I promise you I've been harder at work than the Owl in this Hiroshige print
A number of weeks ago, a professor of mine has lead me to an interesting video resource:http://www.artbabble.org/video/getty-museum/conserving-old-master-drawings-balancing-act.
Although I am not really qualified to perform this procedure on any of the works in the collection I still like how informative this video is. Resources like this allow one to learn more about the terminology and the tools that are involved within this field. (For instance this is a great visual example of what foxing is, little brown spots and how it is mold that is physically growing on the a work.)
One of my tasks involves researching and organizing gathered information about various individual works in the collection. For some works, this appears for me as a daunting task. However, I feel already that I have accomplished a lot and that I now have a clear direction ahead of me. (You could say that I finally figured out how to swim so that I am not floundering so much. This is better late than never.)
As Caple suggests, from one of my primary texts mentioned in my first post, “there is need always to investigate objects closely to ensure that an accurate picture of the past (history) is derived rather than a modern day fiction” (21). To give the work justice, one needs to read and learn as much about the work as they can and present it in a way that justly represents the piece. For most works this may involve making the work look as the day that it was recently created. This may involve more drastic procedures such as what is performed in this video. Where "[t]he goal of conservation isn't to make the drawing look new again rather it is to safely remove the damage that distracts from the design and bring the sheet closer to the artist's original intent.” During the time of this internship, I hope to research and compile together the necessary information needed to determine what the work needs done to it. This in order to create something that someone could work with and take to the next level.
This coming Wednesday, at five, I will be making a brief in-progress presentation about the work I have been working on this semester. So if you’re interested in watching me squirm from my speech making nerves just give me the heads up for further details. You can also give me any possible suggestions for improvement that I am open for.
Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for some future blog posts including a research post about the Hiroshige prints and a Kentucky Primitive. In addition, Conservation Week is the Week of April 24th. (Also known as my birthday week.) Be sure to keep your eyes open for more information in the near future.
