Re: [pestlist] Using Raw Wool in Exhibit Space
Hi Megan, Tom is probably right, though there might not be anything quite as charming as a whole fleece. As others have pointed out freezing should help, and since you are probably dealing with raw materials from a cooler climate make sure it is a very cold freeze for long enough. There are ways to clean a fleece too, but that would defeat some of the purpose I am sure. (You could ask around if there are local spinneries, which I imagine there are up by you. If not Green Mountain Spinnery in Vermont has a great reputation for being a welcoming and helpful place, as well as producing great fibers.) Good luck! Wish I lived closer Genevieve Monika Harter wrote: This is a message from the Pest Management Database List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. --- Hi Megan, I agree with Alex - either have your display in a really tight case or freeze the raw wool on a regular basis. Raw wool is more prone to insect attack than cleaned wool, due to the mix of additional substances it holds such as dead skin, sweat residue, vegetable matter and lanolin. Best, Monika Harter -Original Message- From: pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net [mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of Alex Roach Sent: 29 November 2009 23:54 To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: Re: [pestlist] Using Raw Wool in Exhibit Space This is a message from the Pest Management Database List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. --- Hi Megan The curator is right - the wool is very attractive to a range of insects including clothes moths and carpet beetles. The best approach is to ensure that all the wool to be used is frozen before it is installed. I would also re-freeze the wool every month or so as an added precaution (if it is going to be on display for an extended period). Best wishes Alex Roach Megan Mcintosh wrote: We are developing an exhibit about the woollen manufacturing industry at a small regional museum. We would like to include wool at various stages of development, starting with raw wool, to show to visitors how the machines process it. The curator is reluctant to use raw wool within the exhibit as someone told him a few years ago that it would attract pests, (though completed textile pieces are regularly displayed in the museum). Does anyone have advice on what could be done to treat raw wool so that it would not pose a threat to other artefacts in the space? If not, does anyone have ideas on how to realistically recreate wool? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Megan McIntosh (Student) Algonquin College, Applied Museum Studies - To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestl...@museumpests.com To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@museumpests.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.comsilver Award Winner for Visitor Attraction of the Year 2007 (Visit London Awards) See the animal kingdom come alive with robotic gadgets and models -- www.horniman.ac.uk/robotzoo Find out about the Horniman's Darwin 200 programme - www.horniman.ac.uk/darwin For further information visit our website 'www.horniman.ac..uk'. The Horniman Public Museum & Public Park Trust. 100 London Road, London SE23 3PQ. Registered as a charity in England and Wales. Charity registration number: 802725 Company registration number: 2456393 Disclaimer This e-mail (and any attachments) is confidential and is intended for the use of the addressee only. It may contain personal views which are not the views of the Horniman Museum, unless specifically stated. If you have received it in error, please delete it from your system, do not use, copy or disclose the information in any way nor act in reliance on it and notify the sender immediately. Please note that the Horniman may monitor e-mails sent or received. It is the recipient_s responsibility to ensure that appropriate measures are in place to check for software viruses. - To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestl...@museumpests.com To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@museumpests.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.com -- = Genevieve Lewis-Gentry, Curatorial Assistant Farlow Herbarium, Harvard University Herbaria 22 Divinity Ave. Cambridge, MA 02138 U.S.A. Fax: 617-495-9484 glewi...@oeb.harvard.edu
Re: [pestlist] Pests and a Contemporary Installation
This is a message from the Pest Management Database List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. --- Hi Megan, I'm sure people in the art world will have better suggestions for you, however since I work with botanical material I thought I would toss in a couple things. It may be very important to know where the branches are coming from. If the artists are planning on bringing them from Brazil there may be a whole slew of permitting issues that you want to make sure get cleared. Perhaps because it is for art and not science it would not be as much of a problem, but Brazil has very strict regulations about biological material leaving their country. Also, depending on the species (this is very unlikely, but could be good to ask) if it is protected in any way there could be additional permitting issues. It seems like if it were possible to get the branches frozen, or if there is an place nearby that could do an anoxia treatment for you, that it would certainly be worth it. Depending on how "fresh" the branches are and what species they are it could be difficult with freezing before drying if they are particularly sappy or moist wood. Mold can also be a problem if they are not dry. A couple little stow aways could do a lot of damage if they got loose in the collection, and treating the bedroom set and any textiles. It does sound like a fun installation and I wished I lived closer to Ohio. Good luck Genevieve Megan Emery wrote: This is a message from the Pest Management Database List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. --- Hello everyone, I am cross-posting this query to both OSG and the Pest-list as I hope to find an answer to this dilemma soon. Our Curator of Dec Arts & Design approached me yesterday with a proposal from the designers the Campana Brothers. At the request of our institution, they have proposed the design for an installation in our temporary exhibition space for Contemporary Art. They would like to fill the room with bare tree branches- on the walls, floor, hanging from the ceiling, etc and then place permanent collection objects throughout, including a carved bedroom set, fashion arts, ceramics, paintings, and so on. My initial reaction to the curator was that this could work, but that the branches would have to be bagged and frozen prior to arrival at the museum. We do not have a freezer for collections, therefore it would have to take place off-site and for an unknown expense. My suggestions have not been received well by some. Since the designers are located in Brazil, we also don't know where the branches will be coming from. Is it possible to purchase treated bare branches? I assumed freezing would be the low-cost option, but am I overlooking another treatment? Or am I overreacting to the potential pest hazard of bringing a large number of tree branches into the museum? The curator is drafting a contract as I type this, and I would like to include some requirements if possible. If anyone has had experience working with artists using large quantities of "fresh" organics in a museum setting, or if you have a solution to de-bugging the branches, I would be grateful for any tips, advice, or suggestions! Thank you so much! Megan Megan J. Emery Assistant Conservator of Objects cincinnati art museum 953 Eden Park Drive Cincinnati, OH 45202 t: (513) 639-2869 f: (513) 639 2996 megan.em...@cincyart.org - To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestl...@museumpests.com To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@zaks.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.com -- = Genevieve Lewis-Gentry, Curatorial Assistant Farlow Herbarium, Harvard University Herbaria 22 Divinity Ave. Cambridge, MA 02138 U.S.A. Fax: 617-495-9484 glewi...@oeb.harvard.edu - To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestl...@museumpests.com To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@zaks.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.com
Re: [pestlist] Moving Clean
This is a message from the Pest Management Database List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. --- Hi Linda, Another idea is to freeze any material you are worried about. I know for herbarium collections for big moves & shifts a refrigerated truck or trailer has been rented by other institutions and parked outside so everything could be frozen en mass after leaving the old space and before swinging into the new space. I'm not sure how expensive this would be, but it would allow you to isolate your collections in large groups and outside of the facility where yo have had problems in the past. Good luck with the move. Cheers, Genevieve Linda Moore wrote: This is a message from the Pest Management Database List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. --- I am the Collections Curator at the Fort Collins Museum & Discovery Science Center, where we are in the planning stage of a big move to a newly built building. Our collections, which include a large clothing and textile collection, appear pretty clean right now as far as pests go, but a history of carpet beetle infestations makes me wary of moving old problems to this new facility. I am trying to plan the most effective yet feasible method for insuring that we don't move pests with our collections. What's best? Spot checking and only addressing problems as they appear? Freezing everything? Having our pest management company bomb our current collections storage? If you have moved recently and dealt with this issue I'd love to get your advice! “Three things in human life are important: the first is to be kind; the second is to be kind; and the third is to be kind." Henry James Linda Moore Collections Curator Fort Collins Museum (970) 416-2784 lmo...@fcgov.com - To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestl...@museumpests.com To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@zaks.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.com -- = Genevieve Lewis-Gentry, Curatorial Assistant Farlow Herbarium, Harvard University Herbaria 22 Divinity Ave. Cambridge, MA 02138 U.S.A. Fax: 617-495-9484 glewi...@oeb.harvard.edu - To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestl...@museumpests.com To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@zaks.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.com
