CONSERVATION STARS OF INSTAGRAM

CONSERVATION TIPS & TRICKS

BY: MADELINE SMOLARZ

Social media has blown open the doors of museums by exposing all of the amazing things that go on inside, especially behind the scenes. The work of conservators is often overlooked by the public because nearly all of their projects take place out of sight, and thoughts like, "Oh, what a great job someone has done sewing those two pieces of papyrus together!" may not easily spring to visitors' minds. Thanks to highly visual social media platforms such as Instagram, the spotlight is finally being focused on the efforts of the world's tireless conservators.

For your perusing pleasure, I've gathered 6 fantastic Instagram accounts from around the globe that feature conservation work prominently or entirely. You will no doubt pick up plenty of tips & tricks while browsing these!

@jltm.conservation

Currently based in Toronto, Jessica is enrolled in Fleming College's Cultural Heritage Conservation and Management program. She documents her conservation adventures in the lab with various snapshots the many diverse projects she has on the go. I'm excited to see what she posts when she begins private contract work next year! Check out her lovely website, too.

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@corningmuseum

The Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York uses the hashtags #Whitefriars and  #WhitefriarsWednesdays (in reference to a stained glass cartoon collection) when documenting the exploits of their conservation interns. Two of them are taking over CMoG's Instagram account this week and I can't wait to see their point of view.

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@conservatoratwork

Studio Västsvensk Konservering posts all kinds of conservation gems. Though based in Sweden, this collective luckily writes captions in English. From tiny fragments and coins to large fountains and outdoor sculptures, you won't be bored scrolling through the images they've snapped on the job.

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@restorationdivision

Sometimes, conservators are not employed by museums, but by private organizations who deal with a wide variety of clients. Restoration Division is one such studio, and they have started an Instagram account to share their multi-media work. Stay tuned for the "after" photo of a current project: restoring a portrait in rough shape!

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@magnificatdirestauro

Jacqueline Peña's website describes her as a "prestigious Chilean conservator-restorer", and her Instagram posts allow you to peek into her fascinating world. Her before-and-after photographs are breathtaking and I really like the action shots of her at work. She often has multiple photos from various angles of single projects, so you feel like you are working alongside her.

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@theartconservation

I'm feeling very thankful for Google Translate to help me appreciate the Instagram account of The Grabar Art Conservation Centre in Russia, which features beautiful historic photos of conservators and extremely interesting conservation techniques. I'll leave the translation of the caption below to you! (helpful hint: Google Chrome has built-in translation capabilities)

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And just a little shameless self-promotion... don't forget that Musings has Instagram. Please check us out for updates about the Toronto museum scene and various other adventures of our contributors. With conservator Nikita on our team now, no doubt we'll have some conservation content soon!