Email digest for the Global Conservation Forum (ConsDistList) egroup. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. RE: Unknown blue substance on film 2. RE: Magnesium nitrate as sustainable solution for constant RH (53%) and pollutant absorption in display cases 3. RE: Unknown blue substance on film 4. RE: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission 5. EXTENDED DEADLINE 12th November - call for Posters ICON Textile Group Spring Forum 2026 6. Announcing Arts and Cultural Entrepreneurship Certificate Program ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1.From: Gwenola Furic Posted: Wednesday October 29, 2025 6:31 AM Subject: RE: Unknown blue substance on film Message: Hi I am a photograph conservator and I have already seen acetate photographic films exhibiting blue coloration (sorry for the poor quality of images). It seems to be an anti-halation coating that's melting, and it's a stage in the degradation of cellulose acetate. It is described here : https://www.canada.ca/en/library-archives/collection/engage-learn/publications/lingua-franca/visual-glossary/acetate.html Hope this helps ! ------------------------------ Gwenola Furic Photograph Conservator Freelance/Private Practice/Self-employed/Independent Redon France ------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- Original Message: Sent: 10-21-2025 04:48 From: Alexis See Tow Subject: Unknown blue substance on film Hello colleagues, In the process of condition checking some colour 16mm film, and I came across this mysterious residue on the emulsion side of the film. It is extremely stubborn, not very sticky (if at all), and only very slightly lifts when agitated with Isoclene (isopropyl alcohol). When removed, it is blue! On first thought, it could be the result of something mechanical, like the film running through some rollers and one of them was dirty? This residue is across the whole film at regular intervals, imagine it like tyre marks where only a certain section of the tyre is dirty. Has anyone come across something like this? Maybe something with the developing phase? I did some reading and got piqued on something about anti-halation layers? This was projected for viewing maybe less than 5 times, but all other films also ran through the same projector and none had this. I tried to do some reading, something about anti-halation layers but nothing that would suggest residue that looks like track marks over the whole film. Film stock is Fuji 16mm safety film 1976 Jan-Mar Let me know if anyone has any suggestions or leads, thank you for your time! ------------------------------ Alexis See Tow Graduate Student (Class of 2026) UCL Postgraduate Programme in the Conservation of Contemporary Art and Media London United Kingdom ------------------------------ 2.From: Dennis Piechota Posted: Wednesday October 29, 2025 8:27 AM Subject: RE: Magnesium nitrate as sustainable solution for constant RH (53%) and pollutant absorption in display cases Message: Hi Sonia, Here is a direct link to the article mentioned by Gerhard: https://www.waac-us.org/_files/ugd/8f42a1_0db055bf10594c14b4f05f81ec468d17.pdf <https://www.waac-us.org/_files/ugd/8f42a1_0db055bf10594c14b4f05f81ec468d17.pdf> Feel free to write me with any questions at [email protected] D ------------------------------ Dennis Piechota Conservator/Micromorphologist Fiske Center, UMass Boston Boston, MA [email protected] ------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- Original Message: Sent: 10-28-2025 05:35 From: Sonia Santos Gómez Subject: Magnesium nitrate as sustainable solution for constant RH (53%) and pollutant absorption in display cases Thank you very much for sharing this research ------------------------------ Sonia Santos Gómez Professor, Paintings Conservation Universidad Compultense de Madrid, Conservación del Patrimonio Cultural Madrid Spain ------------------------------ Original Message: Sent: 10-27-2025 16:31 From: Gerhard Eggert Subject: Magnesium nitrate as sustainable solution for constant RH (53%) and pollutant absorption in display cases D. and J.D. Piechota reported about their 30 years of experience with magnesium nitrate in a showcase and a cupboard for RH control (WAAC Newsletter 1/2024). The Germanisches Nationalmuseum Nuremberg has exhibited a sensitive wooden inlay portrait over a saturated magnesium nitrate solution for two decades. An international community science project 2003/4 now confirmed that the method works and is easy to use. Much lower maintenance than for silica gel is needed for cases in rooms without HVAC systems. Now another advantage has been published: the solution absorbs readily carbonyl pollutants like formaldehyde or acetic acid, for details see https://rdcu.be/eMstm <https://rdcu.be/eMstm> Gerhard Eggert Institute of Conservation Sciences Stuttgart State Academy of Art and Design. 3.From: Luisa Casella Posted: Wednesday October 29, 2025 12:28 PM Subject: RE: Unknown blue substance on film Message: Dear Alexis, I think the residue you are observing on the film is unrelated to the anti-halation layer (a brief summary on anti-halation can be found here <https://filmcare.org/vd_antihalation.php>). While the blue color on your swab is indeed similar to the hue seen when anti-halation dyes are made visible by the action of acetic acid, in this instance there appears to be a distinct, thick substance sitting on top of the film's surface. The anti-halation layer, by contrast, is embedded within the film's structure. I'm sorry I don't have a more definitive solution, but I hope this distinction helps narrow down the possible nature of the accretion. Best regards, Luisa ------------------------------ Luisa Casella Independent Photograph Conservator ------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- Original Message: Sent: 10-21-2025 04:48 From: Alexis See Tow Subject: Unknown blue substance on film Hello colleagues, In the process of condition checking some colour 16mm film, and I came across this mysterious residue on the emulsion side of the film. It is extremely stubborn, not very sticky (if at all), and only very slightly lifts when agitated with Isoclene (isopropyl alcohol). When removed, it is blue! On first thought, it could be the result of something mechanical, like the film running through some rollers and one of them was dirty? This residue is across the whole film at regular intervals, imagine it like tyre marks where only a certain section of the tyre is dirty. Has anyone come across something like this? Maybe something with the developing phase? I did some reading and got piqued on something about anti-halation layers? This was projected for viewing maybe less than 5 times, but all other films also ran through the same projector and none had this. I tried to do some reading, something about anti-halation layers but nothing that would suggest residue that looks like track marks over the whole film. Film stock is Fuji 16mm safety film 1976 Jan-Mar Let me know if anyone has any suggestions or leads, thank you for your time! ------------------------------ Alexis See Tow Graduate Student (Class of 2026) UCL Postgraduate Programme in the Conservation of Contemporary Art and Media London United Kingdom ------------------------------ 4.From: Rebecca Romanchuk Posted: Wednesday October 29, 2025 2:37 PM Subject: RE: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission Message: Please note that the deadline for applications for this position has been extended through November 30, 2025. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has an opening for this full-time position: Conservator (Curator IV) - $6,250-$7,084 monthly The conservator manages the daily activities of the well-equipped book and paper Summerlee Conservation Lab at TSLAC and performs complex treatments on rare and unique archival and library materials in accordance with the AIC code of ethics. This position develops and monitors work procedures for the unit, establishes priorities, and makes treatment decisions. The conservator is called on to assist with outreach and educational programs, preservation planning and surveys, emergency response, and environmental control. This position may also instruct and monitor interns, students, or volunteers assigned to assist with conservation tasks. Learn about the work undertaken in our conservation lab at our TSLAC Conservation blog, https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/. <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/> To review this job posting go to https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs. <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs.> ------------------------------ Rebecca Romanchuk, MLIS Archives Supervisor Texas State Library & Archives Commission Austin TX ------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- Original Message: Sent: 09-15-2025 16:45 From: Rebecca Romanchuk Subject: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission Please note that this position has been reposted with applications accepted through October 31, 2025. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has an opening for this full-time position: Conservator (Curator IV) - $6,250-$7,084 monthly The conservator manages the daily activities of the well-equipped book and paper Summerlee Conservation Lab at TSLAC and performs complex treatments on rare and unique archival and library materials in accordance with the AIC code of ethics. This position develops and monitors work procedures for the unit, establishes priorities, and makes treatment decisions. The conservator is called on to assist with outreach and educational programs, preservation planning and surveys, emergency response, and environmental control. This position may also instruct and monitor interns, students, or volunteers assigned to assist with conservation tasks. Learn about the work undertaken in our conservation lab at our TSLAC Conservation blog, https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/. <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/.> To review this job posting go to https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs. <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs.> ------------------------------ Rebecca Romanchuk, MLIS Archives Supervisor Texas State Library & Archives Commission Austin TX ------------------------------ Original Message: Sent: 05-01-2025 09:03 From: Rebecca Romanchuk Subject: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission Please note that the closing date for this position has been extended to May 30, 2025. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has an opening for this full-time position: Conservator (Curator IV) - $6,250-$7,084 monthly The conservator manages the daily activities of the well-equipped book and paper Summerlee Conservation Lab at TSLAC and performs complex treatments on rare and unique archival and library materials in accordance with the AIC code of ethics. This position develops and monitors work procedures for the unit, establishes priorities, and makes treatment decisions. The conservator is called on to assist with outreach and educational programs, preservation planning and surveys, emergency response, and environmental control. This position may also instruct and monitor interns, students, or volunteers assigned to assist with conservation tasks. Learn about the work undertaken in our conservation lab at our TSLAC Conservation blog, https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/ <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/>. To review this job posting go to https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs>. ------------------------------ Rebecca Romanchuk, MLIS Archives Supervisor Texas State Library & Archives Commission Austin TX Original Message: Sent: 03-24-2025 10:15 From: Rebecca Romanchuk Subject: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission Please note that the closing date for this position has been extended to April 30, 2025. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has an opening for this full-time position: Conservator (Curator IV) - $6,250-$7,084 monthly The conservator manages the daily activities of the well-equipped book and paper Summerlee Conservation Lab at TSLAC and performs complex treatments on rare and unique archival and library materials in accordance with the AIC code of ethics. This position develops and monitors work procedures for the unit, establishes priorities, and makes treatment decisions. The conservator is called on to assist with outreach and educational programs, preservation planning and surveys, emergency response, and environmental control. This position may also instruct and monitor interns, students, or volunteers assigned to assist with conservation tasks. Learn about the work undertaken in our conservation lab at our TSLAC Conservation blog, https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/ <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/>. To review this job posting go to https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs>. ------------------------------ Rebecca Romanchuk, MLIS Archives Supervisor Texas State Library & Archives Commission Austin TX Original Message: Sent: 03-03-2025 11:47 From: Rebecca Romanchuk Subject: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission Please note that the closing date for this position has been extended to March 21, 2025. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has an opening for this full-time position: Conservator (Curator IV) - $6,250-$7,084 monthly The conservator manages the daily activities of the well-equipped book and paper Summerlee Conservation Lab at TSLAC and performs complex treatments on rare and unique archival and library materials in accordance with the AIC code of ethics. This position develops and monitors work procedures for the unit, establishes priorities, and makes treatment decisions. The conservator is called on to assist with outreach and educational programs, preservation planning and surveys, emergency response, and environmental control. This position may also instruct and monitor interns, students, or volunteers assigned to assist with conservation tasks. Learn about the work undertaken in our conservation lab at our TSLAC Conservation blog, https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/ <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/>. To review this job posting go to https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs>. Rebecca Romanchuk, CA Archives Supervisor | Archives and Information Services Division Texas State Library and Archives Commission 512-475-1734 | www.tsl.texas.gov <http://www.tsl.texas.gov/> ------------------------------ Rebecca Romanchuk, MLIS Archives Supervisor Texas State Library & Archives Commission Austin TX Original Message: Sent: 01-29-2025 11:18 From: Rebecca Romanchuk Subject: Job announcement: Conservator position at Texas State Library and Archives Commission The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has an opening for this full-time position: Conservator (Curator IV) - $6,250-$7,084 monthly The conservator manages the daily activities of the well-equipped book and paper Summerlee Conservation Lab at TSLAC and performs complex treatments on rare and unique archival and library materials in accordance with the AIC code of ethics. This position develops and monitors work procedures for the unit, establishes priorities, and makes treatment decisions. The conservator is called on to assist with outreach and educational programs, preservation planning and surveys, emergency response, and environmental control. This position may also instruct and monitor interns, students, or volunteers assigned to assist with conservation tasks. Learn about the work undertaken in our conservation lab at our TSLAC Conservation blog, https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/ <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/conservation/>. To review this job posting go to https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs <https://www.tsl.texas.gov/jobs>. Closing date is February 28, 2025. Rebecca Romanchuk, CA Archives Supervisor | Archives and Information Services Division Texas State Library and Archives Commission 512-475-1734 | www.tsl.texas.gov <http://www.tsl.texas.gov> 5.From: Joanne Hackett Posted: Wednesday October 29, 2025 2:37 PM Subject: EXTENDED DEADLINE 12th November - call for Posters ICON Textile Group Spring Forum 2026 Message: Regeneration, Retreatability and Reflection: The Lifetimes of Textile Conservation Celebrating 35 Years of the Icon Textile Group The Icon Textile Group Spring Forum, to be held in Manchester, April 17, 2026. The aim of this symposium is to discuss the past, present and future of textile conservation in celebration of thirty-five years of the Icon Textile Group. As the industry in the UK undergoes a generational turnover, how has the care and conservation of textiles changed? How have the past 35 years informed current practice? Where is the industry headed? How can we communicate the value of textiles and textile conservation to both the wider heritage industry and to the public to ensure that the textile conservation sector continues to grow and 'textile conservator' remains a viable career option? We hope to discuss the changing landscape of textile conservation from its infancy, through present day, with a view to the future. Discussions will focus on case studies, developments in conservation treatments and materials, and changing approaches to the practice, with a focus on generational change as well as changes in the way we work. Should all items be retreated? Should old conservation treatments be removed, or should they themselves be conserved as further evidence of an object's history? We hope to look at the changing landscape of textile conservation over the last 35 years in as broad a way as possible and welcome papers that address issues such as: Novel approaches to traditional treatments. Reversibility and retreatment, changing methodologies and approaches National and international variations in textile conservation treatment National and international standards for textile conservation Experimentation and research within textile conservation The role of the textile conservator (institutions and private practice) Local, national and global attitudes towards the textile industry and the role of textile conservation within this. Changing cultural sensitivities and their effect on textile conservation. (Including working with owners, makers, scholars, artists or users of artefacts.) Community engagement within textile conservation. We welcome submissions for 5-minute "live poster" sessions. Further details of this will be shared with chosen authors. Abstracts should be no more than 250 words. Please also list the names and short bios of all authors and the contact details for at least one person (email and phone number). Abstracts should be sent to [email protected] <[email protected]> using the subject line "Spring Symposium Abstract Submission". The deadline for abstract submission is 12th November 2025. Successful authors will be notified at the start of December 2025. All authors will be asked to submit a preprint of 3000 words by 17th February 2026. We welcome submissions from around the world and will be hosting this Symposium as a hybrid event. Those unable to present in person will be asked to record their presentation and submit to the committee by the end of March. If you have an idea that you wish to run past the team prior to submitting an abstract, please email [email protected] <[email protected]> –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ------------------------------ Joanne Hackett Lecturer in Textile Conservation University of Glasgow Kelvin Centre for Conservation and Cultural Heritage Research Pinner United Kingdom ------------------------------ 6.From: Marc Williams Posted: Wednesday October 29, 2025 2:38 PM Subject: Announcing Arts and Cultural Entrepreneurship Certificate Program Message: One of the issues that arose in a discussion on the AIC listserv about private conservation practice was the lack of business skills of most conservation graduates. As long as the conservation programs (I am referring not only to the major ones, but the ones that train only a few a year or train specialist conservators) keep training many more conservators than there are institutional conservation jobs, a significant number of graduates will be going into private practice, either their own or that of another private practice conservator, or they will leave the profession. This happened to me directly out of the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation many years ago and I spent the first 6 years of my career suddenly self-employed with essentially zero business skills. Things have not improved in the profession since then. I have been working with the University of Delaware for the last 4 years to design a program of entrepreneurship skills for arts and humanities professionals, especially conservators. The Arts and Cultural Entrepreneurship Certificate Program has launched recently. It is offered entirely on-line and is open to everyone, so conservators worldwide can participate. It was developed within the Professional and Continuing Studies division and utilizes pre-existing resources within the University and beyond, thus came together rather quickly for this type of program. My hope is the conservation community can develop one or more courses specifically tailored to conservators to add to the Program. Professional and Continuing Studies does not have the expertise to do this. If you are interested in helping develop such course(s), please contact me. The Program link is: https://www.pcs.udel.edu/ace-certificate/ If you have questions about the Program, they are best directed to the Program itself. I can provide background on how it came about and perhaps future directions, although it is now a UD entity and I am not sure how much influence I will have going forward. University of Delaware students and alumni are eligible for a $1,000 scholarship towards the tuition for the Program. This is a 60% discount and the multiple scholarships are first-come, first-served. I funded them as a gift to my alma mater, particularly to the Art Conservation Department. Since it is entirely distance learning, current conservation graduate students can participate while still in school. ------------------------------ Marc Williams, AIC Fellow American Conservation Consortium Broad Brook, CT [email protected] ------------------------------ You are subscribed to "Global Conservation Forum (ConsDistList)" as [email protected]. To change your subscriptions, go to http://community.culturalheritage.org/preferences?section=Subscriptions. 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