Email digest for the Global Conservation Forum (ConsDistList) egroup. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. RE: Corrosion-Induced Cracking in Heritage Structures 2. RE: Corrosion-Induced Cracking in Heritage Structures 3. Harry Singh's Passing 4. paraffin wax and food based art 5. **SUBMISSION DEADLINE EXTENDED** NATCC 2027 - Living in Color: Coloring Agents and Textile Conservation - CALL FOR ABSTRACTS 6. 2027 Annual Meeting Call for Thematic Session Proposals 7. new issue of the Journal of the Institute of Conservation, Volume 49, Issue 2, June 2026 is now available online and in print soon. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1.From: Duha Hasan Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 11:43 AM Subject: RE: Corrosion-Induced Cracking in Heritage Structures Message: Thank you for your reply, that's a very helpful point and I agree that this kind of data is likely incomplete and unevenly documented. The issue of corroding hidden metal elements in historic masonry is exactly why I'm interested in understanding where the gaps are. I appreciate you taking the time to read and reply to my post. Best regards, ------------------------------ Duha Hasan Graduate Student Imperial College London London United Kingdom ------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- Original Message: Sent: 06-23-2026 13:22 From: Olaf Pung Subject: Corrosion-Induced Cracking in Heritage Structures Dear Duha, I wonder where the data for such a project should come from: I suspect that only cases of damage are documented-such as fallen pinnacles or finals-whereas we know nothing about iron clamps located deeper within the masonry that are well-encased in lead, situated in dry areas, or made of higher-quality steel - these can last for centuries, they only become visible in case of demolition of the building. I have been drilling clamps and dowels out of dimension stone for over 40 years; every now and then they were counted for billing purposes, and I estimate there must be several thousand of them. To predict whether or not an iron component is at risk of rusting, lot of factors would need to be taken into account: not only the year of construction but also previous phases of restoration. The type of Portland cement, lead, and iron used, the joint width, structural movements, and exposure to rain-I cannot imagine how one would obtain such data; I, for one, do not have it. Maybe the data exists for reinforced concrete? Olaf Pung, stone mason / stone conservator in Germany 2.From: Duha Hasan Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 11:43 AM Subject: RE: Corrosion-Induced Cracking in Heritage Structures Message: Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate your perspective and the Getty Institute book recommendation. That's a helpful reminder that this is a complex topic and I agree that it may be better to focus on a specific combination of corrosion mechanism. I appreciate you reading and replying to my post. Best regards, ------------------------------ Duha Hasan Graduate Student Imperial College London London United Kingdom ------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- Original Message: Sent: 06-24-2026 09:03 From: William Wei Subject: Corrosion-Induced Cracking in Heritage Structures Dear Duha, The answer to your question depends on what you mean by "corrosion" and "historic". (I assume that you are not talking about the degradation of the masonry itself.) If you are talking about buildings with reinforced concrete, there is a "ton" of industrial (and academic) literature on the problem of the degradation (sometimes referred to as concrete rot or in other languages, concrete disease) of that material due to various mechanisms of corrosion of the steel reinforcements. Degradation can be due to, among others, the results of poor construction (improper drying of the concrete), carbonatation, corrosion due to chloride environments, hydrogen embrittlement and/or stress corrosion cracking. There is also some work in the conservation literature. You might want to have a look at the Getty Institute book "Concrete - Case Studies in Conservation Practice, Catherine Croft and Susan Macdonald, editor, 2018. There are mechanistic and numerical models for these processes, but because corrosion is strongly dependent on the local environment, they only give a rough indication of the kinetics of the process. I question whether developing a numerical model specifically for historic buildings will provide conservators with useful information, given all of the possible mechanisms for degradation. It is certainly a complex issue in the construction industry. I would suggest perhaps looking at the problems for a specific combination of construction materials and environments, and suggesting possible solutions for historic buildings. If you are talking about the corrosion of other metal structures in masonry such as wall anchors in historic buildings, such as those from 15th to 18th century Dutch houses, I'm not as familiar with that. But I'm not aware of a problem there (which doesn't mean there isn't one), and replacing anchors is much easier than restoring historic reinforced concrete. Yours, Bill ------------------------------ Dr. W. (Bill) Wei Senior conservation scientist (retired) Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands now: vibmech.nl / Wilbar Holding B.V. Mr. P.N. Arntzeniusweg 108-1 NL-1098GT Amsterdam The Netherlands +31 6 2246 3135 [email protected] <[email protected]> ------------------------------ 3.From: Melissa Lewis Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 11:43 AM Subject: Harry Singh's Passing Message: Harry Singh of HDS Ultrasonics, has unexpectedly passed away on the 9 June 2026. He has provided ultrasonic equipment for museum, libraries and conservators all over the world. He made the HDS Keeper (An ultrasonic document encapsulating machine), the portable ultrasonic spot welder and more recently he has been developing an ultrasonic cleaner that is incredibly effective for the removal of stains from paper, textiles and organic materials. He was an incredibly kind and generous man, who was willing to listen to the needs of conservators and develop the best equipment for our applications. He will be sorely missed by me and many others, where his knowledge will leave a huge hole in our ongoing research. We would like to continue, if we can in his name. He is survived by his son and three daughters. There is a thanksgiving service, that will be live streamed on 7th July 2026, if you would like to know more, please contact me.(Melissa Lewis) [email protected] <[email protected]> Melissa Lewis ACR FRSA Modern British Conservation Specialist in Modern and Contemporary Art Website: www.modernbritishconservation.com Email: [email protected] Tel: 07970-748842 Instagram: modernbritishconservation Supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals 4.From: Caetana Britto Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 10:23 PM Subject: paraffin wax and food based art Message: Dear global group, I am writing from Brazil. I am a conservation technician working with public and private institutions as well as NGOs. I am a co-founder of a preservation collective called FOLIO. I am just starting a project to conserve a collection of a contemporary artist who passed away in 2024. The collection comprises over 3,000 pieces, mostly drawings and paintings. However, there is also a collection of objects covered in a thick layer of paraffin wax-including plastic, fibers, metals, and also food such as salami. Would you be so kind as to provide information on how to house and store such complex works? Thank you in advance. Sincerely,Caetana Preservao de acervos Caetana Britto : C 11 9 9860.1193 5.From: Heather Hodge Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 10:23 PM Subject: **SUBMISSION DEADLINE EXTENDED** NATCC 2027 - Living in Color: Coloring Agents and Textile Conservation - CALL FOR ABSTRACTS Message: Deadline for submission extended to Wednesday July 15, 2026 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NORTH AMERICAN TEXTILE CONSERVATION CONFERENCE - Call for submissions Living in Color: Coloring Agents and Textile Conservation Join us for the 16th biennial North American Textile Conservation Conference (NATCC), "Living in Color: Coloring Agents and Textile Conservation," November 2–5, 2027. The meeting will be held once again in the city of Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca, Mexico, with the Fundación Alfredo Harp Helú Oaxaca and the Museo Textil de Oaxaca as main hosting venues. We invite presentations that explore color in its broadest sense. Subjects may include but are not limited to: Understanding Color Drawing on science, art history, and current practices to identify coloring agents and methodologies. Color Across Time Damage to color (fading, bleeding, "mutation" of color), provoked by color (dyes, pigments, inks, dyeing/printing methods), or appreciable through color (yellowing, stains). Color Compensation Dyes and techniques applied on overlays and support fabrics, and methods of compensation on patterned textiles (multicolored, printed, resist-dyed) or those with both color and texture (velvet, lace, fur, feathers, beadwork). Absence of Color Cleaning and/or bleaching of white textiles, including related considerations, ethics, and treatments. Color on Display Assessment of materials and lighting strategies for display, whether to preserve or highlight desired colors, or mitigate undesirable ones (yellowing, staining). Conservators, curators, conservation scientists, art historians, archaeologists, anthropologists, collection managers, artists, preparators, and others engaged with these topics are invited to submit proposals for presentations. Collaborations among professions and institutions are encouraged. Projects already presented or published will not be considered and proposed projects must be completed by the end of 2026. New this year: Tips session abstracts will be considered in addition to those for papers and posters. These short presentations, limited to five minutes or less, focus on sharing practical knowledge. Tips sessions can provide an opportunity to showcase emerging professionals or crowdsource solutions. Although welcome, tips session submissions are not required to adhere to the theme. Please note that tips will not be published in the NATCC Preprints. Abstracts for papers, posters, and tips must be submitted in English or Spanish as a Word document (no PDFs). Please indicate your preferred presentation format. Abstracts are limited to 300 words and must have a title. In the same document, please include a short biography (up to 100 words) and contact information (name, postal and email addresses, telephone number) for each author. Abstracts should not include images or other attachments. Please include your surname in your abstract file name (e.g., SmithNATCC27.docx). Abstracts must be submitted by Wednesday, July 15, 2026, to [email protected] <[email protected]>. Please send a message to [email protected] <[email protected]> if you do not receive prompt confirmation of abstract submittal. Abstracts will be peer reviewed by the NATCC board. Authors of selected papers and posters will be notified by September 30, 2026. Paper presenters are required to submit the full publication-ready version of their paper in English or Spanish by February 7, 2027. Poster presenters are required to submit their final poster as a PDF by August 30, 2027. All authors are responsible for obtaining rights and permissions to publish photographs and graphics. Presentation formats will be 20 minutes for papers and 5 minutes for tips. Papers and posters are published in their original language and distributed at the conference along with printed abstracts in English and Spanish. Please email any questions to [email protected] <[email protected]> and visit our website for updates at http://natcconference.com <http://natcconference.com/> ------------------------------ Heather Hodge Associate Conservator of Textiles Cleveland Museum of Art ------------------------------ 6.From: Abed Haddad Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 10:24 PM Subject: 2027 Annual Meeting Call for Thematic Session Proposals Message: We are pleased to return to Albuquerque for our 54th Annual Meeting from May 3 to May 7, 2027, under the theme: "Community of Trust" For this meeting, we will reflect on how trust is established, maintained, challenged, and renewed. Our gathering together at the Annual Meeting should be built on trust, and that current is what carries us towards new ways of examining our own practice and how our work shapes the way histories are interpreted and shared. It's trust in one another's expertise, the evidence that informs our decisions, the institutions we work within, the lived experiences of our colleagues, and the relationships we cultivate. It is also important to consider how conservators earn and maintain trust across disciplines and communities through collaboration, transparency, and accountability. Trust also motivates us to seek out what we may lack and acknowledge that care for our heritage is often carried out beyond our traditional professional boundaries. We will explore how trust influences conservation, strengthens our connections, and reinforces our collective dedication to uplifting one another. While sessions of general interest are welcome, we strongly encourage proposals that demonstrate clarity and specificity in focus, scope, and case material in relation to the annual meeting theme. Please note that this is a call for non-specialty session proposals; the call for paper and poster abstracts will be in August and include the calls for the chosen sessions. If your session is chosen, you will be expected to serve as the session's chair and to serve on the 2027 program committee, which includes reviewing talks submitted for your session and possibly other sessions. If you are interested in proposing a thematic session, please submit a short session proposal (200 words) for this form. Sessions are encouraged to address, but are certainly not limited to, the following themes: Climate, Sustainability, and Equity Building trust by examining and redefining the barriers and successes in balancing environmental responsibility and awareness, and in caring for and providing access to collections, buildings, and site-specific tangible and intangible heritage. This includes object treatment, stewardship of historic structures and material fabric, indoor air quality, HVAC operations, exhibition strategies, energy and waste reduction, adaptive reuse, and the decolonization of museum and preservation standards. Examples that highlight creative and local solutions from institutions or geographies of limited resources are highly encouraged. Intangible and Community-Based Heritage Building trust by taking direction from community priorities, listening actively, embedding diverse forms of knowledge and stewardship in conservation, and emphasizing support for local groups that care for local heritage and archives. Examples that include working with archives, contemporary objects, artist archives, historic societies, land trusts, and regional and site-specific museums are especially encouraged Professional Life Cycle Building trust by cultivating a field that values knowledge transfer, career resilience, mutual support, cultivating confidence as a practitioner, and training and educating future leaders and administrators. We invite discussions on professional development, leadership and managerial skills, institutional relationships, succession planning, progressive learning models, and intergenerational learning. Ethics of Working Together Building trust amid the negotiation of competing priorities, navigating uncertainty, elevating shared decision-making, building support networks across disciplines, and forming and managing multidisciplinary teams for large projects. Examples that highlight the balancing of client goals, professional responsibility, and conservation, as well as collaboration with artists, their descendants, and estates on treatment, preservation, and documentation, are encouraged. Centering Work in Progress and New Technologies Building trust through the sharing of active treatments, ongoing investigations, emerging tools and techniques, and critically assessing the quality and limitations of evidence-based work. This includes the importance of framing meaningful questions that guide the selection of an appropriate treatment method or scientific analysis. We welcome presentations that explore how new approaches complement, refine, or challenge established practices and connoisseurship, as well as discussions on the ethics of research and data collection. Please use this form <https://forms.gle/KapKAQXibKT4wHr7A> to submit your proposal. Submissions are due by Saturday, July 25th, 2027. We look forward to your submissions! ------------------------------ Abed Haddad AIC Vice President (2025-2027) Assistant Conservation Scientist The Museum of Modern Art New York, NY ------------------------------ 7.From: Jonathan Kemp Posted: Wednesday July 1, 2026 10:25 PM Subject: new issue of the Journal of the Institute of Conservation, Volume 49, Issue 2, June 2026 is now available online and in print soon. Message: The Journal of the Institute of Conservation, Volume 49, Issue 2, June 2026 is now available online and in print soon. This new issue contains the following Research Articles: Metal corrosion in musical instruments induced by material combinations: a survey in museum collections Open Access article Vera M. de Bruyn-Ouboter, Jan Frode Jger & Andreas Erbe Metal parts corrode when mounted in direct contact or proximity to organic materials in musical instruments. In an ongoing long-term survey, around 1260 musical instruments from 12 museum collections ... A comparative study of silk dyed with traditional fermented safflower cake or dried safflower petals Yi-Ling Pan & Mie Ishii This study investigates the dyeing properties of safflower red (Carthamus tinctorius) in two traditional forms-fermented dried safflower cake and dried petals-on silk textiles. Drawing on historical Chinese ... Revealing Thomas Chippendale's craftsmanship: conservation treatment of gilded Chippendale works c.1771 Zoe Allen, Yukiko Barrow & Leela Meinertas In 2019 the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London acquired a pair of c.1771 carved and gilded tables with marquetry tops and pier mirrors by Thomas Chippendale (17181779) as part of an arrangement ... Review and case study: conservation of a leather battle shield from Delhi Town Hall, New Delhi, India Anjali Sharma, Satyendra Kumar, Anjali Yadav, Arpita Sarkar & Akash Singh This article presents a brief review of the historical context of leather shields in India, followed by a detailed case study on the conservation of an eighteenthnineteenth-century leather battle shield ... Book Review Colin Zhongping Mao reviews Cai Guo-Qiang: The Artist's Materials, Rachel Rivenc, Los Angeles, Getty Publications, 2025, 160 pp. (paperback), 146 colour 10 B/W illustrations. ISBN 978-1-60606-949-3 ---------------------------------------- Enjoy! Dr Jonathan Kemp FIIC Editor, Journal of the Institute of Conservation https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rcon20/current <https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rcon20/current> You are subscribed to "Global Conservation Forum (ConsDistList)" as [email protected]. To change your subscriptions, go to http://community.culturalheritage.org/preferences?section=Subscriptions. To unsubscribe from this community discussion, go to https://community.culturalheritage.org/HigherLogic/eGroups/Unsubscribe.aspx?UserKey=d16eaa87-0f69-494b-9f2f-303dbc1222e1&sKey=fab9aa4f27a04c5d876e&GroupKey=757a8f16-505f-4323-8e74-e376757aa9f7.
