VIBRATIONS: NO EXCITATIONS IN CONSERVATION

CONSERVATION TIPS & TRICKS

BY: NIKITA JOHNSTON

As most who work with collections know, it is the handling and moving of collections and objects that often poses the most danger. When packed away in storage or placed in display cases, most objects fair relatively well, even with light, humidity and dust posing potential risks. However, there is another unseen danger that must be considered by those who care for collections, and that is the danger and damage that vibrational forces can pose to collections.

The vibrations most commonly encountered in museums, historic houses and historic sites are a consequence of visitor circulation. Vibrations caused by foot traffic can be particularly pronounced on poorly supported wooden floors, found in older buildings. Objects displayed in drawers can also suffer from vibrations as the drawers are opened and closed, shifting inside the drawer each time. Vibrations can also be caused by construction work on nearby buildings, heavy road traffic or roadwork, subway systems and trains, and in the case of the St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre, by ship traffic through the Welland Canals locks. Finally, in many parts of the world earthquakes and the destructive damage they can cause through vibrations is a very real threat.

Man made vibrations! Source

Vibration can cause damage through a number of mechanisms. Toppling is a serious concern during earthquakes, but less likely from flooring vibrations. The forces caused by vibration can directly damage weakened or fragile objects, particularly ones with friable pigments, unsecured components, and loose corrosion products. If objects are restrained or supported by mounts, impact with the mount through vibrational forces could damage the piece, or cause abrasion of the surface. Unrestrained objects have been known to move or ‘walk’ on shelves under the influence of vibrations, even subtle vibrations caused by foot traffic. ‘Walking’ objects can impact with other objects or fall of shelves.

While an earthquake can be disastrous, there are some relatively simple steps that can be taken to ensure that objects in storage and on display are not damaged by vibrational forces.

In storage areas, fragile materials and those prone to toppling because of their centre of gravity can be stored in boxes with dividers. The St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre uses this method for storing glass bottles.

Glass bottles are kept in plastic containers and padded with foam to mitigate damage caused by vibrations from the ships moving through the lock at the St. Catherines Museum and Welland Canals Centre. Nikita Johnston, 2016.

Objects in storage can also be supported by sand snakes.

Not those Sand Snakes! Source

No, not the Game of Thrones Sand Snakes, but weighted snakes or bags like those below. Made from simple cotton sleeves filled with either washed sand or metal weights, they can be coiled around the base of the object or place inside to lower the centre of gravity and give them additional stability and support.

Weighted bag filled with metal shot. Source

Within storage areas, bars or straps can be purchased or retrofitted to shelves to keep objects from falling off, and can be padded out with foam to avoid damage through impact. Rolling compact storage when kept closed provides additional protection as objects cannot fall out or between the closed shelving.

Fabric straps have ben installed on some of the shelves holding ceramics at St. Catherines Museum and Welland Canals Centre. Putting foam in between the ceramics would provide additional protection against impact if they 'walk' into each other. Nikita Johnston, 2016.

The Museum of Anthropology UBC has come up with a simple but successful mounting system referred to as black trays that are used for objects both on display and in storage. The mounting system was developed not only for earthquake mitigation, but is useful for objects installed in drawers as a stabilizing measure against drawer bounce and slamming. The trays support the object by utilizing a stable, non-reactive, high-density foam product (Plastizote Foam) that should maintain its shape and provide support for many years. The trays also reduce direct handling of the objects they support. Instructions and a supply list for these trays can be found here.

A simple black tray designed by the Collections and Conservation staff at the Museum of Anthropology, at UBC. © MOA UBC, Vancouver. Source

For objects on display, supports and mounts should be padded out to reduce impact damage and abrasion caused by vibrations. Non-porous objects on shelves can be fixed in place using a small amount of museum wax, or objects  can be placed on a thin sheet of Plastizote, which should keep them from ‘walking’.

This crayfish salt cellar at the Victoria and Albert Museum won't be 'walking' or 'crawling' anywhere, now that it sits on a sheet of Plastizote (V&A C.73-1938) © Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Source

Coming from a number of different sources, both man made and natural, vibrations can pose a risk to collections. But, those caring for collections simply have to...

AFTERNOON TEA, WITH A SIDE OF HERITAGE

GREATEST HITS

BY: HAYLEY MAE JONES

I love hearing stories of people experiencing heritage when they least expect it.  Lunch, With a Side of Heritage, describes author Katherine Hannemann's unexpected encounter with Toronto's hockey heritage at the 60 Carlton Street Loblaws.  Katherine reminisces about her unexpected Bill Barilko history lesson, and how heritage is hidden throughout the building.  It goes to show that history can be found in the most unexpected places. 

I have also had a similar experience at the Fairmont Royal York hotel here in downtown Toronto. 

My family decided to have Afternoon Tea at the Royal York to celebrate my Aunt's birthday.  I had never been to the hotel, and didn't know what to expect.  Once I arrived, I quickly understood the appeal.  The tea and dessert were divine.  

Photo Credit: Laura Nigro

 What followed was an unexpected treat: a historical guided tour of the hotel.  Neither myself, nor my family knew that the Fairmont offered tours to their diners.  The tours were supposed to be 20-30 minutes long; however, mine ran longer due to the fact that I asked a million questions (I was that person).

On the tour, we saw some of the gorgeous ballrooms, while learning about the history of the building.  Through these stories, and visits, to normally inaccessible areas, I was able to gain insight into how a hotel can contribute to the history of Toronto.   

Photo Credit: Hayley Mae Jones

The 60 Carlton Street Loblaws, and the Fairmont, are not traditionally seen as heritage sites, but rather as businesses.  This raises a two questions: how can businesses promote their heritage, while maintaining their primary function as businesses? Should businesses spend time promoting themselves as sites of heritage?  Unfortunately, I don't think that there is one overarching answer to these questions. 

I believe that each institution should critically reflect on their mandate.  It is important to recognize that promoting your business, and promoting heritage are not always one in the same. More specifically, it may not be suitable for your institution's goals or organization's brand.  Only after this reflection can the institutions understand whether or not they should promote their corporation's history, and how they should share their heritage with the public.  In formulating a strategic plan, businesses can control the platform, and the amount of historical information they share with the public, in a way that suits their organization. 

Regardless, I am happy to have found an unexpected glimpse of history at the Fairmont Royal York.  Let me know in the comments if you have had any similar experiences!

If you want to treat yourself to Afternoon Tea and a tour at the Royal York, the tours are still being offered to patrons on Saturdays and Sundays at 2pm/4pm, and reservations can be made by email (RYH.RestaurantReservations@Fairmont.com).

WHAT THE TOP MUSEUM TRENDS MEAN FOR CANADA

MUSEUM INNOVATIONS

BY: JENNY FORD

It's finally here! Last week, the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) released its 21016 TrendsWatch guide—an outline of the top museum trends to watch for in 2016. But how does the list stack up against Canadian institutions? Are we lagging, challenging, or overcoming these shifts?

1. THE CHANGING WORKFORCE

Quite depressingly, the first trend for 2016 is the changing nature of employment. Many full-time, permanent jobs are transitioning to a “gig” economy, the report states. In other words, more contracts and less job security, no matter what field you're in.

The dream, right? Source.

It’s no secret this is affecting the museum world in Canada. Jobs are highly competitive and contracts are becoming the norm. Especially at this time of year, museum job boards are peppered with Young Canada Works posts and volunteer positions—roles that don't necessarily translate to positions after graduation.

The Ontario Museum’s Association acknowledges in their initial Looking Ahead Initiative that the workforce is changing, however it doesn't yet address what this new work will look like. The question is, should we be shifting our expectations about what is a museum job?

2. ACCESSIBILITY AND ABILITY IN MUSEUMS

Increasing accessibility is the next trend. Accessibility is not an "add on" but a thoughtful part of the total experience. While many museums have a long way to go in becoming totally accessible, some Canadian museums are making pretty amazing strides.

The design team at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, for instance, developed a universal keypad so visitors with visual impairments, physical disabilities, or hearing loss can adjust volume, have images described, or interact with touch tables in all their exhibits. Bluetooth technology also allows museumgoers with visual impairments to have text and artifacts described to them as they move through the museum. This is just the start of what our museums can do. 

You can see the CMHR's keypad in the corner. Source.

3. EXPLORING NEW REALITIES

We’ve seen augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) at museums before. Take the ROM’s Ultimate Dinosaurs exhibition back in 2012-2013, which used AR to bring dinosaurs to life. According to the 2016 TrendsWatch, AR/VR are becoming increasingly prevalent, so how can museums capitalize?

While the report does raise some concerns about VR replacing the need to visit museums, it also notes the huge benefits for accessing new audiences and experiences. The company Mobius Virtual Foundry created a VR experience which puts users on a bus as Rosa Parks, for instance. Other technology may let visitors manipulate and "touch" objects, further enhancing museum experiences and accessibility.

The Rosa Parks Experience. Source.

The trend doesn't seem to have taken off in Canadian museums quite yet (please share examples if you have them). Either way, it’s something to watch for in an increasingly technology-focused museum world.

4. IDENTITY AND COMMUNITY

The world last year was moved by questions of race, culture, and identity. We are redefining ourselves and how others perceive us. As the TrendsWatch guide states, museums “find themselves enmeshed in the struggle over representation, identity and material culture.” This is just as true in the Canadian context, where these questions are at the forefront like never before.

There are countless discussions we could have here, but I'm gong to focus on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) report released last year. Part of the report outlines how museums and archives play a role in reconciliation through education and deconstructing imperialist narratives.

The PAMA exhibition. Source.

Recently, on a visit to the Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives, I was inspired to see how they addressed the TRC's the questions in their permanent exhibition We Are Here, even using the word "genocide". We all know this is a loaded term. Just look at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights' experiences. But perhaps we need pay closer attention to how museums are (and are not) coming out of the shadows on these issues.

5. THE HAPPY MUSEUM

The final trend for 2016 is happiness. Yes, happiness. Really, this speaks to a trend where countries are moving away from measuring economic success to measuring citizen well being.

Stefan Sagmeister: The Happy Show. Source.

Museums can equally work off this idea. The Museum of Vancouver even brought in The Happy Show in 2015. Not only can we help foster this happiness and well-being through positive and enlightening interactions, we can also start measuring our own success based on it. It’s long been argued that numbers and dollars are not true assessments of a museum’s success—we can take a page from the happiness philosophy, as well.

WHAT IS YOUR TAKE ON CANADIAN MUSEUMS TRENDS?

HANDLING HISTORY GENTLY

RESEARCH COLUMN

BY: ANYA BAKER

Last year, I wrote a research paper on the Third Balkan War: "Two Bridges in Bosnia: Narratives Informing Memorialized Spaces Post-Conflict". The war started the year I was born, 1992, and ended the year my family moved to Austria, 1995. Around the same time, tens of thousands of Bosnians fled as refugees into Austria. Reading eyewitness accounts as a graduate student, I understand the war to be a mess of competing ethno-religious narratives leading to horrific atrocities. As a little kid watching reports of the rebuilding efforts on the news, I simply understood that the levelling of entire cities from shells and bombs and bullets had fundamentally altered the lives of my classmates. It was as if everything that marked the landscapes as theirs had been erased. Almost a quarter-of-a-century later, the restored landscapes are still a sea of competing narratives about the events of the war jostling against each other for prominence. A single feature of the landscape -- a bridge or a building or a rebuilt neighbourhood -- legitimizes trauma and becomes embedded with it. The presence of survivors representing different narratives creates a complex series of locally curated associations of peoples with a single public space.

The Marketplace of Warsaw during WWII and after it's restoration. Source.

History -- even 25-year-old history, even 150-year-old history, even 1000-year-old history -- is not dead. Its active interpretation makes it live and powerful. Accepted historical record is distended and narratives bleed into interpretation. As a young museum professional in a global society saturated in fresh trauma and looking to find meaning and justification in age-old narratives of similar violence, it is not lost on me that I am an outsider to many of these interpretations and narratives. I can research and interpret difficult or painful histories, but they will never be my stories. Narratives of incredible violence can pain me and testimonies move me, but that does not give me leave to root about disturbing freshly-settled dirt. There are gatekeepers to certain histories for a reason: to protect the community from further harm, to uphold an understanding of events that is likely under attack, and to ensure the survival of community-specific cultural memories in the face of a sometimes unstable future.

Research is an important step towards interpreting difficult history. Source.

As Menachem Wecker writes about discussing #BlackLivesMatter at the "History, Rebellion, and Reconciliation" symposium at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, people need museums to be a place where they can feel safe to engage with their own history, both in isolation and as it intersects with the histories of others. As a museum professional, it will always be my job to help people respectfully interact with the meaning and integrity of another person or communities' experience without appropriating or diminishing important narratives. Similarly, it is imperative to reject the upholding of damaging assumptions that obscure uncomfortable realities.

Thinking on my research, I keep coming back to Disha Jani's article in The Toast, "Traces of Destruction: The Emotional Work of Studying Painful History". She and other young academics of colour discuss how, when working with their own histories, they deal with the "sensation of being-distracted -- always distracted -- by how your work is making you feel." Museums engaging with difficult topics almost demand that the people whose histories are on display engage intimately with their feelings just to be part of the conversation. Difficult histories and subjects will always be discussed -- whether with a bridge or an exhibit display as an interpretive locus -- but treating those histories gently and respectfully will be what allows people to feel comfortable using the museum as an extension of their community's historical and cultural memory.

Many museums are making increasing efforts to be more inclusive. Source.

Editor's note: Anya Baker came into Museum Studies after a degree in English Literature, and so is interested in narrative, storytelling, and public interactions with heritage and memory -- whether it is in her "Sew What?" column on fashion history, or her other areas of research. She will be doing a lightning talk about her research on the two bridges at the upcoming iSchool Conference.