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Curious about the definition of a conservator? || Ask A Conservator Day - YouTube
Channel: The Conservation Starter
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Hi I'm Lucilla Ronai and welcome to The聽
Conservation Starter. So on the 18th of November聽聽
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it's ask a conservator day where conservators
around the world will answer questions about聽聽
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what they do. So what is a conservator? Who are聽
the people that make objects last? Who are the people聽聽
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behind the scenes, behind the gloves, that get to聽
touch and see objects in ways that not many people聽聽
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get to do? Who tries to stop the changes wrought聽
by time? Who fixes those objects that have been聽聽
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destroyed by botched amateur art restoration attempts?
We are conservators. Not conservationists. Not聽聽
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conservatives. Not conservatories, but conservators.聽
We're sometimes known as object doctors, magicians,聽聽
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and glorified cleaners. But even more often we're聽
not known about at all. So if you google search聽聽
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what is a conservator you'll get some pretty聽
interesting results, especially if you're in the U.S.
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So that's why I often put a word in front of聽
conservator - like art conservator or museum聽聽
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conservator - so you have a better idea of what we聽
do. But not all conservators work with art, and
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not all conservators work in a museum. So let me聽
tell you about what a conservator is. A conservator聽聽
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is a trained professional whose job is to care for,聽
protect, and safeguard cultural material. Basically聽聽
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we make things last and sometimes the things聽
we work with have a really high monetary value.
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For example those paintings by the masters that聽
are sold at auction for millions of dollars.聽聽
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Sometimes the things we work with don't have very聽
high monetary value. For example maybe personal聽聽
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treasures of yours that you want conserved by聽
a conservator, or other things that might not聽聽
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have monetary value but they have other kinds of聽
significance. For example cultural or aesthetic or聽聽
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historical. So what changes do conservators manage?
These can be physical - like a ceramic pot breaking聽聽
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or a paper object being torn. But they also can聽
be chemical - like an old photograph that changes聽聽
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colour over time or an old newspaper clipping that聽
goes really yellow or brittle. There are so many聽聽
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factors that can change objects, and some of them聽
can include: objects not being made from materials聽聽
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that are meant to last; natural disasters such as聽
fire and floods; someone dropping an object; objects聽聽
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being stored in things that are not archival聽
or not meant for the long term; light damage;聽聽
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pollution; insects literally eating the object;聽
and also losing all information you have about聽聽
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an object so you don't know where it's come from聽
or what it is. All these kinds of changes are known聽聽
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as the agents of deterioration. If you want to know聽
more there's some incredible resources online. I'll聽聽
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put them down in the description box below but聽
also there's another conservation youtube channel聽聽
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called 'Dig it with Raven'. Raven talks about聽
all things conservation and archaeology and聽聽
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has an incredible series called the '10 Agents of聽
Deterioration'. I definitely recommend checking it聽聽
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out. Now I want to talk to you about how you become聽
a conservator. There are lots of different ways but聽聽
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usually someone who wants to be a conservator goes聽
to study at a formalised course at a university. It聽聽
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can take many years and it's usually at a masters聽
or a postgraduate degree level but like I said, it聽聽
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can vary from country to country. I will have a video聽
that goes into way more detail about this soon.
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So what do conservators look after? These can be聽
immovable things things like buildings, monuments聽聽
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and cave paintings. But it also is often more聽
movable things things that can be collected by聽聽
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galleries, libraries, archives and museums. Things聽
that can still be quite big - like ships and also聽聽
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lighthouses - but also really small things like聽
miniature books and coins. We also work with聽聽
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all types of materials. Every material聽
that you can think of that's been聽聽
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used by humans or created by humans - that needs to聽
be conserved. I can guarantee it's being collected聽聽
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somewhere. These are things like books, paintings,聽
paper, ceramics, glass, metals, plastics even and聽聽
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time-based media things that are made digitally.聽
They're now being collected and will need to聽聽
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be conserved. So what type of conservators are聽
there? Basically those objects that I just listed,聽聽
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they're made in really different ways, they'll age聽
really differently, and they'll need to be cared聽聽
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for in such different ways. So it makes sense that聽
we have conservators that specialise in different聽聽
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material types. They'll usually be experts in聽
a very specific material - for example we have聽聽
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paintings conservators or metals conservators.
So I'm a paper conservator so I usually work with聽聽
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paper, but I also work with books and photographs.聽
I've also been known to go inside a lighthouse聽聽
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light and clean it. I've also crawled all over聽
naval helicopter to prepare it for display.聽聽
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I've handled a 1500 year old manuscript to help聽
it be digitised and currently I'm working on a聽聽
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globe that dates from 1602. I'm also treating聽
some contemporary indigenous linoprints to聽聽
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prepare them for a display. Literally every day is聽
different and I love my job. So our jobs get pretty聽聽
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diverse even though we specialise in one thing.聽
Conservators are even working with Dorothy's聽聽
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red shoes from the Wizard of Oz, they're working聽
to conserve Barbie dolls and even a suit from聽聽
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NASA that went to the moon. So we work with all聽
kinds of things and sometimes conservators don't聽聽
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necessarily specialise in material but more like聽
with a function. For example we have exhibition聽聽
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conservators or conservation scientists so聽
they specialise in analysing cultural heritage.聽聽
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So what do we do from what you've heard you can聽
probably tell day by day it changes dramatically.聽聽
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Sometimes I can be on the bench working for聽
hundreds of hours to conserve material. Sometimes聽聽
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I'm creating supports that are both aesthetic聽
so they look good when objects are on display,聽聽
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but also really support objects. Sometimes I frame聽
items and sometimes I prepare them to be packed聽聽
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and transported all around Australia or overseas聽
to go on loan. I also do a lot of hands-off things聽聽
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like helping control the storage and display聽
temperature so it's at human comfort levels but聽聽
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also the best for the object. I help control light聽
levels so the objects don't fade. I also monitor聽聽
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and maintain objects while they're on display聽
such as cleaning them and this can sometimes be聽聽
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the less glamorous part of the job. But sometimes聽
cleaning does involve me going up 10 metres high聽聽
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in a scissor lift that I'm operating to clean some聽
incredible ghost net sculptures hung in the museum聽聽
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foyer. That is fun! We do examination, investigation聽
and analysis, of course while documenting it all聽聽
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and to do this we use magnification and lights and聽
scientific equipment and it helps us see objects聽聽
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in really different ways and really close聽
and in ways that you might not often expect,聽聽
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So conservators get really used to seeing things聽
very differently. For example when I look at a 300聽聽
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year old book I'll see staining on the edges聽
of the paper from where someone handled it.聽聽
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I might see some creases on the corners from where聽
someone turned the page. I might see a desiccated聽聽
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insect that had been left there from hundreds of聽
years ago that's left impressions on the pages,聽聽
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and I might see the layer of dirt and dust聽
that accumulated on the top edge from where it聽聽
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had been stored in shelves for hundreds of years.聽
Conservators see a lot of things and in really聽聽
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interesting ways. And like any job there is a lot聽
of administration - meetings, emails, writing policies聽聽
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and procedures. Just stuff that's pretty universal聽
no matter what job you're in. What conservators do聽聽
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can be quite big. What we can serve and how聽
we conserve things can actually change the聽聽
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cultural record. So there are some rules that we聽
follow. This includes making sure our treatments聽聽
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are reversible as much as possible so whatever聽
we do we can undo. And this can be quite hard聽聽
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when you're cleaning an object because you can't聽
exactly put dirt back on once you've taken it off.聽聽
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But if I'm putting hinges on to a paper item so聽
it can go in a window mount to be framed and put聽聽
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on display, those hinges can be removed later. This聽
includes making sure our treatments are detectable.聽聽
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We want to make sure that if we're adding things聽
onto an original item that they're not mistaken聽聽
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for the original. So that means when you see them聽
up close you can tell they're in addition. So this聽聽
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includes when a paper has a really big loss I'll聽
often infill it and repair it so that it's stable聽聽
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and you won't have any further damage, but also聽
if it's on display your eye won't be drawn to聽聽
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the big gaping hole, instead you get to look at聽
the object as a whole and I also make sure that聽聽
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infill is reversible. We always try and use聽
a minimal approach. The motto is less is more.聽聽
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Far often good storage and good handling is far聽
better than any treatment that I could do. When we聽聽
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are treating things we use sympathetic materials聽
that will not change over time and will not then聽聽
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impact the object, and we also approach our聽
treatments on an object-by-object basis. We聽聽
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sort of have standard treatments we can do but聽
we look at each object individually, we make聽聽
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decisions and consult with the stakeholders for聽
each object. So those are some of the rules that聽聽
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we have. So where do conservators work? We can work聽
in institutions so in galleries, libraries, archives聽聽
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and museums. Sometimes huge national ones like the聽
British Museum, the National Library of Australia,聽聽
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the Smithsonian in the U.S. But also we work in聽
smaller institutions - state-based ones or even聽聽
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small regional institutions. You can also find us聽
in private practice where we work directly with聽聽
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the general public to make sure their treasures聽
are looked after and also private conservators
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work with institutions to help them conserve their聽
collections. For example we don't have a paintings聽聽
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conservator in our team so whenever we have a聽
painting in the collection that needs conservation聽聽
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we go to a private paintings conservator.聽
Conservators work in conservation laboratories.聽聽
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In Australia we shorten that to con lab. I don't聽
know if anywhere else abbreviates it like that but聽聽
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Australians like to shorten things. Conservation聽
labs are very similar to scientific laboratories聽聽
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so we have a lot of chemicals and chemical storage聽
we have fume hoods to extract those fumes. We also聽聽
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have beakers and lots of other weird and wonderful聽
equipment and tools we borrow from every other聽聽
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industry. So if you want to know more about what's聽
in a conservators toolkit definitely check out my聽聽
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other video. I'm hoping my channel and this video聽
can bring conservators out from behind the scenes聽聽
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and change the stereotype of conservators being聽
introverts stuck in a back room somewhere covered聽聽
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in dust, far preferring to interact with objects聽
and humans. I'm trying to make our work more聽聽
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visible and also invite you in to see what we get聽
to see, and experience things that not many other聽聽
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people get to experience but conservators get to聽
as part of our day-to-day work treating objects.聽聽
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Maybe you can start being a conservator
of your own treasures and heirlooms.聽聽
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So conservators take their jobs very seriously聽
but we also have a lot of fun. So I invite you to聽聽
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have a conversation about conservation. Participate聽
in Ask a Conservator Day on the 18th of November.聽聽
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Ask a question any day actually just put it down聽
in the comments below. If you enjoyed this video or聽聽
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want to know more about conservation, make sure you聽
subscribe to my channel so you never miss a video聽聽
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and there's going to be so many more like聽
this coming. My name is Lucilla Ronai聽聽
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and thank you for joining me on The Conservation聽
Starter!
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