Museums: Definition and Purpose

• A museum is a non-profit, permanent institution that serves society by acquiring, conserving, researching, communicating, and exhibiting material evidence of people and their environment.
• This definition has been accepted by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and was reviewed in 2004.
• The traditional concept of a museum houses collections and acquires, conserves, and researches them.
• Museums must meet certain professional standards, reviewed through accreditation processes like the one by the American Association of Museums in the US.
• A museum building is a physical structure that houses collections of objects, including artworks, archaeological artifacts, natural history specimens, or ethnographic items.
• The definitions of each element are evolving with time, reflecting broadened knowledge with the development of technology.
• The environment directly impacts the longevity of artifacts, making environmental control a key activity for collections' keepers.
• Microenvironments in display cases are monitored and controlled to ensure stable levels and prevent fluctuations.
• An estimated 95% of conservation treatment is necessitated by the effects of the environment.
• Collections serve various purposes, with education being a principal one.
• Artifacts can be in long-term storage or accessible upon request, with decisions based on factors like structural fragility, uniqueness, or monetary value.
• Each function such as exhibition, storage, or research requires different preparation methods for an artifact.
• The focus of preservation differs for exhibits, storage, and research, with exhibit preservation focusing on the materials and design of the case and support
• Storage containers need to be chemically inert and provide structural support.
• Research and study collections require sturdy and resilient enclosures and supports due to frequent handling.
• Wearing white cotton gloves is recommended when handling metal artifacts to prevent acid transfer from bare hands, but there are exceptions like glass objects.
• One of the first activities carried out when an object enters a museum is examination.
• Collections are surveyed to establish conservation needs and prioritize actions.
• The ICOM Statutes define museum functions as "acquire, conserve, and research."
• Basic research is essential, as exhibits would become meaningless and collections mere repositories without it.
• Due to underfunding and understaffing, museum operations face challenges in providing quality collections care.
• Only fortunate museums can employ trained conservators and provide fully outfitted conservation facilities.

Collections and Preservation Objectives

• Collecting has been practiced since antiquity, but formal collecting with the purpose of displaying and making collections available to the public began in the Age of Enlightenment.
• A museum is characterized by its collection, with the type of objects, the purpose for which they were created, and the reasons for collecting shaping preservation efforts.
• Collections can be grouped based on the purpose for which objects were originally created and the reason for collecting them.
• Focus of preservation efforts will be on the preservation of material to continue enjoyment of art objects.
• Efforts will focus on preservation of culture to maintain the ways of living, creating objects and interaction with these objects.
• Efforts will focus on stabilization for display and research to preserve evidence of objects' historic contexts.
• Efforts will focus on maintenance of functionality to preserve elements in working order.
• Efforts will focus on preservation of artist's intent to preserve the artist's desired outcome and format in which it was intended to be presented.
• When applied to collections and artifacts, preservation and conservation will have different approaches and goals.
• However the principle of practice remains the same and stems from the same base: "preserve and do not harm."
• Conservation ethical considerations pose a particular challenge that must be accounted during the process.
• Art object conservation focuses on the material and fabric, with reconstruction considered for regaining aesthetic unity
• Preservation of some ethnographic collections focuses on intangible and cultural values and preservation of the object.
• Preservation and conservation must consider the cultural milieu and context of the object for best results.

Role, Functions, and Responsibilities of a Conservator

• Preservation actions consist of examination, preservation, and restoration.
• Examination is a preliminary procedure to determine the original structure, materials, and extent of deterioration, alteration, and loss
• Preservation is action taken to retard or prevent deterioration by controlling the environment and treating the structure.
• Restoration is action taken to return a deteriorated artifact to its original form with minimal sacrifice of integrity.
• The American Institute of Conservation defines a conservator as a professional who formulates and implements all conservation activities in accordance with an ethical code.
• Conservators' involvement spans many aspects of museum functions, including building suitability, collections care, and object destination.
• Conservators contribute to evaluating building suitability, examining collections, and selecting materials for display, storage, and study.
• Conservators are involved in preventive conservation (building, exhibits, storage) and practical conservation (physical conservation of artifacts).
• Conservators give advice the museum management, registrars, curators, etc.
• Preventive conservation aims to establish a stable environment, use inert materials, and ensure proper artifact handling.

Preventive Conservation

• Conservators should be involved in specifying and maintaining environmental conditions, building stability, and emergency preparedness.
• Conservators should be involved with actions concerning pest management, housekeeping procedures, and object handling.
• An Emergency Preparedness Manual is a critical document to prevent total destruction of collections.

Practical Conservation

• The practical conservation process is always time consuming and often labor intensive.
• Any conservation treatment requires a thoughtful analysis of all components must be undertaken prior to designing a conservation procedure.
• Documentation is carried out at many levels and at each stage, capturing the object's condition prior to treatment, results of the analysis and examination, etc.
• In the United States, the American Institute of Conservation issues the Code of Ethics guiding conservators.
• Curators use museum objects in their research and exhibit material, while conservators focus on object preservation, leading to conflicts that technology is solving.
• Conservators' knowledge of materials and structure supports curators in choosing objects for exhibit/research, with collaboration essential for balancing curatorial and conservation objectives.
• Conservators have the greatest responsibility to ensure an object's safety, including accountability to the object, owner, and originators.
• Conservators' approach has shifted from individual objects to including preventive conservation of collections, with a combination being the most beneficial approach.
• One of the conservator's main responsibilities is to consider many factors while reaching a balanced decision on the best approach to collections care.

Indigenous Cultures and Western Concepts of Preservation

• Cultural heritage is international, created by various cultures, with meanings depending on the discipline.
• Ownership of cultural property is ambiguous, belonging to individuals, institutions, social groups, and ethnic groups.
• Preserving cultural heritage provides a tangible link to our past and involves intricate non-material aspects.
• Dealing with removed cultural heritage requires thoughtfulness and understanding of its natural context.
• Each one poses challenges and dilemmas when preservation protocol has to be designed.
• Civilizations with different cultural roots endow objects with spirits, treating them as living beings.
• The meaning of preservation is also interpreted in different ways.
• Since the 1990s there has been a heightened awareness of the challenges to preserve indigenous heritage.
• Fundamental differences in interpreting the meaning of and the actions referred to as "preservation" separate the practices of Western-trained museum professionals from the native custodians of intangible heritage.
• The Western philosophy of museum preservation focuses on preserving a tangible, material artifact.
• They embody changes that occurred over time, and they serve as a source of study for museum professionals in all disciplines.
• According to the Code of Ethics of the American Institute of Conservation, museum preservation aims to "protect cultural property through activities that minimize chemical and physical deterioration and damage".
• These views of "deterioration" and "preservation" run counter to Western concepts.

Native American artifacts

• Native American culture, all objects have an association with time, place, function and value.
• Their direct connection with the land is exemplified by the types of materials, indigenous to each region, which assist in attributing an object's provenance.
• Conservation practices must clearly expand beyond the appropriate treatment of a material's reversibility to include also the preservation of "spiritual reversibility.".
• NAGPRA requires American institutions that receive federal funding to inventory their collections, consult with federally recognized Native American tribes, and repatriate human remains, and associated funerary and sacred objects.
• The Burra Charter recommends that where possible all the established cultural values of the place should be conserved.
• The national movement of the 1970s led to Kanak's separation from France in the 1988.
• Kanak, like most Oceanic cultures, is a peasant society, with a close relationship to nature.
• The Tjibaou Cultural Center (Noumea, New Caledonia) acts as a medium for local renewed society of its national culture.
• Another alternative is the commissioning and fabrication of artifacts according to the traditional cultural customs and rituals.
• The cultural program of the Center exemplifies yet another successful model of safeguarding the living heritage interwoven with the dynamic of cultural communities.