Katherine v's Senior Project Blog
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Project Title: The First Law of Art-odynamics! Art Created but Not Destroyed: Studying Art Conservation at a Museum BASIS Advisor: Kevin Daughtrey Internship Location: Phoenix Art Museum Onsite Mentor: Aspen Reynolds, Archivist, Gene & Cathie Lemon Art Research Library |
Project Abstract
Humans have been making art for thousands of years, and each piece represents the values and ideas of the time. By displaying artwork from the past as well as showing the contemporary art made in this age, museums play a big role in preserving the culture. Yet, what exactly happens behind-the-scenes at these centers of cultural legacy? How does the museum prevent the deterioration of the art? In my Senior Project, I will work with the Phoenix Art Museum to see the techniques used to conserve the artwork. I will be aiding Archivist Aspen Reynolds with her work and discover the mystery behind art conservation in museums.
Farewell, Neverland… Hello, Senior Project Presentation (Come see it May 17th)!
Hello, Readers! The last week of on-site work for my Senior Project was relatively uneventful, but it sure was emotional for me. I had a ton of fun, and I cannot believe it is over so soon. If I have time over the summer, I definitely want to try and volunteer there more. I worked... Read More
Book Repair Rematches!
Hello, Readers! The Continuing Arts Education program had another docents meeting on Monday, so I joined them again. This time, there was an interview instead of a presentation. Jim Ballinger, the retired director of the Phoenix Art Museum, came and talked about the process of expanding the museum’s collections back in the early days when... Read More
The Silver Lining of My Hard Work
Hello, Readers! To start off the week, I made more progress on the digital catalog. This time, I worked with more T-shirts and awards. Here is a picture of my favorite award: “Best Place to Make Your Move”, awarded to the Yayoi Kusama Firefly Room. I definitely think the award was deserved; if someone made... Read More
Act Like an Angel, Catalog Like Crazy
Hello, Readers! This week at PAM, I continued my progress on the catalog. I did the usual tasks like taking photos and filling in all the necessary data fields, but a few challenges popped up. The first problem I encountered was when I needed to catalog some awards and plaques. The metal awards were very... Read More
Excel-lent Cataloging!
Hello, Readers! This week at PAM, I learned how to digitally catalog items from the archives. The archives keeps track and preserves a variety of different items, including things like documents and newspapers that I worked with for the gallery as well as artifacts such as pins and t-shirts that I got to work with... Read More
Using Time and Throwing It Away
Hello, Readers! To start off the week, I finally finished the condition report. I now have records keeping track of the initial conditions for 69 items in the gallery, and I took multiple photographs of each item so I can visualize any damage or deterioration. However, I faced an issue: I only had my phone... Read More
Blinded by Shining Lights
Hello, Readers! This week at the Phoenix Art Museum, my mentor and I worked on the finishing touches to the gallery. The first thing we dealt with was adjusting the lighting in the showroom. There are many newspaper clippings in the gallery, and they would deteriorate faster if there is lighting pointing directly at it.... Read More
Hanging In There!
Hello, Readers! This week at the Phoenix Art Museum, my mentor and I finished up with setting up the gallery. We completed the rest of the framing that we needed to do for each document. Once again, I cut out more mats, laid out more buffer paper, and pried apart more table mounts. My favorite... Read More
Fighting Frames, Tooth and Nail
Hello, Readers! This week with the Phoenix Art Museum, my mentor and I worked on framing the documents for the gallery. We first visited Mr. Henry, one of the people who handles the framing at the museum, and we asked him for advice. He whipped out his neon measuring tape and instantly became our hero.... Read More
Preserve My Feelings Next…
Hello, Readers! In my first week with the Phoenix Art Museum, my mentor took me to work with her in the library. Since I decided to focus on preservation, I learned what considerations are taken to prevent the books from deteriorating. For example, many of the older books were kept in boxes or wrapped in... Read More
Putting My Senior Project into Frame
Hello, Readers! Welcome to the first blog post for my Senior Project. Today, I am putting my Senior Project into frame just like the documents I will be framing for the gallery showing my mentor has arranged. My interest in art started with an assignment for my art class in middle school: find a piece... Read More