Repatriation of Objects from Scottish Collections

Experiences of collection care professionals with repatriation from Scottish museums and galleries

Thursday 16 May 2024

2.30pm – 4.45pm BST

£10 for Icon Members, £8 for Student Members, £15 for Non Members

Icon Scotland Group brings you this online seminar discussing the repatriation of objects from Scottish Collections. The talks will look at the complexity of repatriation, while exploring the roles of conservators and other collection care professionals, as well as the significance of these heritage items and potential conservation measures.

Mark Hall will give an outline of the repatriation agreement between Perth Museum and Te Papa Tongarewa for Perth’s return of two Toi Moko or tattooed heads. He will run through what happened and reflect on its future implications.

Patricia Allan will summarise Glasgow Museums’ thirty-four year experiences of international cultural repatriations to Australia, New Zealand, USA, India and Nigeria from a curatorial perspective. She will look at the changes in approach, ethics and practice since the first request in 1990 to more recent and ongoing cases.

Charles Stable will describe from a conservation perspective the Re-matriation of House of Ni’isjoohl Memorial Pole from National Museums Scotland to the Nisga’a Nation, looking at the practical logistics of physically lowering , removing the pole from its permanent display, transportation and meeting the requirements and understanding sensitivities for both physical preservation but to address and respecting Nisga’a cultural sensitivities pertaining to handling and moving the pole.

Neil Curtis will outline and discuss the University of Aberdeen’s procedure for restitution and repatriation, looking at how it has developed over the past 20 years in response to the different experiences, including returning a sacred bundle to the Kainai First Nation, Maori ancestors to Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand and the return of a Benin Bronze in 2021.

To book, please click here

Me in 3 – Bryn

In this series we ask a conservation professional 3 questions. The fifth participant in this series is Bryn Kelley. Bryn is the 2023/2024 Student Representative of the Icon Scotland Group, working to represent students studying conservation in Scotland, and is currently studying Textile Conservation at the University of Glasgow. As with many in conservation, he comes from an interdisciplinary background and appreciates the unique multi-faceted foundation of conservation.

Creating a padded board to support ancient beadwork

My favourite thing about my studies:

While the number of treatments I have carried out is few, they have encompassed many important aspects of textile conservation and have challenged me in a graduated way that I am very grateful for. These treatments and the reference collection held by the programme means I have had the opportunity to examine objects with construction techniques I had not previously physically encountered.

Additionally, I am especially passionate about exploring the composition and history of the object through blending historical research and analytical techniques. As a result, I have been able to not only understand the object but reflect on and adapt my treatments in action. I am incredibly lucky that the course is simultaneously focused on textiles yet incorporates broader context and brings in visiting lecturers to cover many topics.

A skill you might not know I have:

I am an avid rock climber, regularly climbing both indoors and outdoors. My favourite trip I’ve taken so far was a trip to El Choro, Spain.

Related to conservation, I studied Organic Chemistry during my undergraduate studies so laboratory and instrumental analysis techniques are familiar, and I enjoy problem solving in these areas.

Something that can make me spring out of bed in the morning:

I’m not sure anything makes me *spring* out of bed, as mornings and I are not the best of friends. That being said, I find new experiences, be it conservation or elsewise, very motivating, and put a great amount of pep in my step. One of my favourite sort of adventures is experiencing new museums and heritage sites.

Preparing a mannequin for the mounting of a 19th century bodice

Glass Bonding & Filling Workshop

Expand your skills during this 3-day practical workshop with experienced practitioners

EDIT – Event postponed until 2025

The Ceramics & Glass Group in conjunction with the Stained Glass Group and Scotland Group are hosting a 3-day glass conservation workshop led by Tiago Oliveira, ACR with teaching support from Ros Hodges, ACR.

This 3-day Workshop is aimed at conservators with previous knowledge but little experience of glass conservation, being objects or stained glass. The course will cover theory about glass degradation, conservation issues, conservation materials and techniques, and hands-on sessions on handling, bonding, mould making and filling flat glass and vessel glass surrogates. At the end of the workshop, participants will have a clear idea of common glass conservation issues, and options and strategies for their conservation.

Prior to the event, participants will receive an email providing further details including the workshop programme, what to bring, location information and other practical information.

If you are interested in hearing about future editions of the workshop, please email Ros Hodges rahconservation@gmail.com

Emma Jhita visits Scotland, and Icon Scotland gets a new chair

A few weeks ago our new Icon chair, Emma Jhita, visited Edinburgh and was welcomed by both private practice and museum conservators. A busy schedule allowed for visits to both the new galleries at the National Galleries of Scotland, and the National Museum of Scotland’s conservation studios at Granton.

Scottish conservators join Emma Jhita (right hand side of the group) for a tour at the National Galleries of Scotland. Charlotte Park (NGS) leads the tour.

In other news, we will be saying a fond farewell to our own fabulous Icon Scotland Group chair Gwen, who is leaving us to take up the position of Senior Preventive Conservator at the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff. Gwen has chaired the Icon Scotland Group since December 2020, and has successfully guided us all through a transitional period moving to more online and hybrid events. We are really sorry Gwen is leaving, she’s been an amazing chair.

Gwen and her dog/ Clara on a site visit to Skara Brae

At the same time we are also wishing a warm welcome to our new chair, Clara Molina Sanchez. Clara is Head of Applied Conservation at Historic Environment Scotland, and has been involved with the Icon Scotland Group for some time supporting events. Congratulations to Clara and hwyl fawr to Gwen!

Glass bonding and filling workshop

The Ceramics & Glass Group in conjunction with the Stained Glass Group and Scotland Group are underway organising a 3-day glass conservation workshop led by Tiago Oliveira, ACR with teaching support from Ros Hodges, ACR.

Workshop Summary

This 3-day Workshop is aimed at conservators with previous knowledge but little experience of glass conservation, being objects or stained glass. The course will cover theory about glass degradation, conservation issues, conservation materials and techniques, and hands-on sessions on handling, bonding, mould making and filling flat glass and vessel glass surrogates. At the end of the workshop, participants will have a clear idea of common glass conservation issues, and options and strategies for their conservation.

It is our aim to host this workshop twice in two different locations around the UK:

• Early April 2024 (between 2^nd-7^th) – London
• May 2024 (Either 4-6^th or 11-13^th) – Prestwick, Scotland

Approximate cost: £400.00

If you would be interested in attending, please register your interest by sending us an email at iconcgg@gmail.com by 26^th February 2024. Be sure to specify which location you’d like to attend, and in the case of Prestwick, the preferred date.

Note: This expression of interest is non-binding and simply for us to gauge the level of interest to support our planning.

Speaker bios

Tiago Oliveira, ACR: Tiago has set up his conservation business in London in 2015. His clients are museums, art galleries, collectors, the Trade and colleagues from other specialisms. Recent projects include freelance work for The Courtauld Institute and The Wallace Collection in London, the National Monuments Institute in Portugal and the Federal Monuments of Austria in Salzburg. He holds an MA, specialising in ceramics and related materials, from West Dean College since 2012 and a BA in Conservation and Restoration from Portugal’s universidade católica since 2006. His main interests are the conservation of architectural ceramics and historical glass objects. In 2022 Tiago gained his ICON Accreditation in Ceramics Conservation and in 2023 he was awarded the Nigel Williams Prize along with his colleague Inês Feliciano.

Ros Hodges, ACR: Ros is a Ceramics Conservator with 30 years of experience in the independent sector who gained her Icon Accreditation in June 2021. She is currently the Chair of the Ceramics & Glass Group Committee.

Her conservation practice is based in East Sussex, where she works on Ceramics, Glass, and Related Materials for a wide range of clients including private individuals, collectors, dealers, local Museums, and Heritage Bodies such as The National Trust and the Dean and Chapter, Westminster Abbey. Her special interests include assessing objects and preparing them for travel prior to exhibitions and training house staff in the care of ceramics and damage prevention. Before embarking on a career in conservation she was responsible for organising medical conferences at The Wellcome Foundation.

Me in 3 – Hana

In this series we ask a conservation professional 3 questions. The fourth participant in this series is Hana Bristow. Hana is a self-employed objects conservator and collections care consultant based in Orkney, and Icon Scotland Group’s Secretary.

Hana conserving a World War I naval gun at the Scapa Flow Museum

My favourite thing about my job:

Variety, lifelong learning and community. As a freelance Objects Conservator, I am very fortunate to work with all sorts of collections, learning about their particular histories, and meeting many different people and tackling new challenges along the way. Some objects I have worked on this year alone include several pieces of Neolithic stone jewellery, a WWI naval gun, and a dragonfly! I enjoy the responsibilities of running a business, which add another dimension to my work life, and being self-employed has also opened the door to collaborating on larger conservation projects overseas, satisfying my curiosity for exploring other ways of working. Despite the largely autonomous nature of my work now, I love that the wider conservation community never feels very far away, so keeping up with current research and developments in the field, as well as seeking support if necessary, is relatively easy. 

A skill you might not know I have:

I am a cellist and my absolute passion in life is orchestral playing. I have had the privilege of performing with orchestras on numerous tours abroad, and my cello has accompanied me during stays in Quebec, France and Spain, where I had some exceptional teachers. I also developed a keen interest in conducting, and one of the most thrilling things I have done was to conduct and rehearse an orchestra all in French!

Something that can make me spring out of bed in the morning:

Besides the incessant miaowing from my cat demanding her breakfast?  It has to be breakfast itself, the best meal of the day – don’t you think?!  

Examining wireless and radar equipment at the Orkney Wireless

Installing objects for a temporary exhibition at Stromness

Hydrogels in cleaning Textiles, Paper and Paintings

By Emma Pattinson

In the Summer of 2023 I was awarded a support from Icon Scotland’s June Baker Trust to contribute to the cost of attending International Academic Project’s (IAP) “Hydrogels in the Cleaning of Textiles and Paper” course. This was held over three days in July at the University of Glasgow’s Kelvin Centre for Conservation and Cultural Heritage.

Participants travelled from all over the country and the world and had a range of specialist backgrounds. It was a great environment to learn from one another. Each day we covered a different topic with lectures in the morning and time in the afternoon devoted to experimentation and testing
our new knowledge.

I particularly enjoyed learning that it is possible to ‘gellify’ curdlan within a syringe, which can then be used as an eraser pen (see image below and instructions).

Eraser pen method
NB. Use testing to find a recipe (concentration, cooking time, temperature etc) for the gel that has the desired qualities for your treatment.

1. Mix gel powder into a water solution to the desired concentration.
2. By decompressing the plunger, suck the solution into the barrel of a plastic syringe.
3. Make sure there are no air bubbles by holding the syringe with the point facing upwards and gently depress the plunger – any air bubbles should rise up and out of the solution.
4. Place the whole syringe in a Ziploc bag and seal.
5. Place into hot water as per your chosen recipe and wait for the solution to gellify.
6. Once the solution has turned into a gel cut off the end of the syringe with a craft knife.
7. Depressing the plunger will force out a small length of gel. Use this as you wish (experiment with rocking, rubbing and pressing) and cut away the dirty part when it needs refreshing.

Feedback
Highlights from other participants included:

• Getting to collaborate with others … I’ve nearly always worked on my own…and it was great to troubleshoot and experiment together.
• I’m thrilled how often I’ve been able to use hydrogels as adaptable and sophisticated tools for my work on modern and contemporary paintings.
• Seeing other people’s experiments and hearing their feedback – a dozen simultaneous different experiments allows for so much more knowledge sharing than if everyone is doing the same thing.
• The course opened my eyes more to different, more sustainable, cleaning options being a relative newbie to hydrogels.
• The opportunity for exchange with people from different disciplines and backgrounds.
• Being able to test and trial new methods of cleaning … with the help and guidance of an industry expert.
• Having more possibilities to test with difficult to clean paintings.
• Enjoying the format/balance of the lectures and practical exercises.
• Hearing about other participants’ experiences with gels was really interesting too!

And since the course, participants have…

• Added Curdlan to my practice and had really good results across treating multiple objects.
• Experimented with Curdlan gel (10/12% mainly) to remove surface dirt from a gilt frame surface, followed by gentle agitation with a cotton rag to remove soiling.
• Tested Agarose for surface cleaning a water-sensitive acrylic painting.
• Planned a treatment where I will be testing Peggy gel with solvent to remove residues from a rough/impasto paint surface.
• Found Gellan gum very useful for removing masking tape!
• Felt a lot more confident in discussing potential treatments in terms of both techniques and outcomes.
• Felt more confident in using and experimenting with the different materials tested while in Glasgow.
• Found hydrogels… much less mysterious… than they were before the class despite having used them for several projects.
• Tried using gels to soften deformations in canvas, to clean sensitive unvarnished paint surfaces, to remove stains in raw canvas and even to remove and preserve degraded paper labels…amongst other things!
• Completed a dissertation on gels and presented a conference poster.

The June Baker Trust
Without support from the June Baker Trust attending this course would have been out of reach for me, and I am very grateful for the support. The Trust’s long-standing and permanent programme awards grants of around £300 each to help conservators at all career stages to attend conferences, workshops and short courses, take study tours, improve workshops and purchase tools, books and materials. To be eligible applicants must be a conservator and able to demonstrate a connection to Scotland through work, birth, living, education or other means.

The deadline for applications to the June Baker Trust is 31st May each year and the application is a straightforward 3-page document. If you have an idea for something you need some financial support to achieve, I encourage you to apply!
Find out more here: June Baker Trust | Scotland Group (icon.org.uk)

For more information on gels a good place to start is IAP’s ‘Gels in Conservation’ conference, held in 2017. See recordings of the presentations here: Gels Conference | International Academic Projects

Conservation Tour of the Scottish National Gallery

Join Icon Scotland Group for a tour of the Scottish National Gallery!

• Friday 26 January 2024
• 9.30am – 11am GMT or 11.30am – 1pm GMT
• National Galleries of Scotland
• The Mound, Edinburgh, EH2 2EL
• £5 to £12

‘Celebrating Scotland’s Art’, has been an ambitious NHLF-funded project to create new spaces for Scottish art in the Scottish National Gallery. The project began in 2016, and following an extensive programme of building works and collection preparation, the new galleries opened to the public in September 2023.

The displays include artworks which have never been shown before, such as the Bell Scott Screen, whose treatment brought together experts in the conservation of leather, paper and frames. And we welcome back artworks which have been away on loan for many years, most notably the painting of Christ Teacheth Humility by Robert Scott Lauder, which has been a focus for public engagement during the project. The new galleries include dedicated display areas for works on paper, and our paper conservators can discuss the behind-the-scenes research that was undertaken to enhance our technical knowledge of our ‘top 100’ works on paper.

The Princes St Gardens entrance will become the main point of entry to the Gallery, giving instant access to the Scottish collection and much easier routes to the rest of the building as a whole. The project will create a beautiful new space in the heart of Edinburgh, which will be free for everyone to use and enjoy. A series of large windows, running the length of the gardens-level façade, will fill the galleries with light and colour, and offer spectacular views over one of the most celebrated cityscapes in the world. Extensive new landscaping in the gardens will radically improve access to this much-loved part of the city, and a new buggy park will also make it easier for families to enjoy everything the Gallery has to offer.

This hugely exciting project will create the perfect showcase for the nation’s extraordinary collection of Scottish art, giving it room to breathe and showing it off with real pride to the world. All will be welcome, whether to come in and immerse themselves in the romantic paintings of the Scottish Highlands, to take part in a family day or just to linger, enjoy the views and maybe pick up one of our sketch pads

Sir John Leighton, Director-General of the National Galleries of Scotland

Please join us to find out more about the highs (and lows!) of this exciting project. For tickets of the early morning tour check here, for tickets of the later tour check here.

Scotland Group: Paper Cradle Making for Exhibition Display of Books

Learn the basics of bespoke book cradle construction, mounting techniques and their requirements

• 13 December 2023
• 9am – 5pm GMT
• V&A Dundee, 1 Riverside Esplanade, Dundee DD1 4EZ
• £50 – £80

During this one-day workshop, delegates will learn how two different book conservators, Abigail Bainbridge and Brannah Mackenzie, make their bespoke paper cradles to support bound material while on exhibition display.

The workshop is being hosted by V&A Dundee, in their extraordinary building in the heart of the city which is easily accessible by train.

The workshop will cover:

• The basics of determining safe opening angles for a book
• Measuring for, and making cradles of two designs using conservation board
• How to strap the book to secure it

Participants will be provided with tools and books to use for the day and will be guided through making at least one cradle to take home.

The group will discuss options for other types of bindings with specific needs and how the cradles can be modified to fit accordingly.

This event is a collaboration between the University of St Andrews, V&A Dundee and the Icon Scotland Group.

About the venue:

Located on the river Tay waterfront, directly across the road from Dundee train station, V&A Dundee is Scotland’s first design museum and the only other V&A museum in the world outside London.

The building was designed by internationally acclaimed Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, inspired by the dramatic cliffs along the east coast of Scotland, and is the show piece of the £1 billion, 30-year regeneration of Dundee’s waterfront.

Described by Kuma as ‘a living room for the city’ we are delighted to be welcomed into this extraordinary building for the workshop.

Click here to book.

Scotland Group: Tour of University of Stirling Art Collection

Join Icon Scotland Group for a guided tour of the University of Stirling’s fantastic art collection

• 30 November 2023
• 2pm – 3pm GMT
• £8 to £12
• We’re also running our AGM and the Plenderleith lecture on the 30th of November. More information in previous posts!

Come and discover the art collection at the University of Stirling. This guided tour, led by Deputy Head of University Collections Emma McCombie, will introduce you to the university’s collection. First established in 1967, the University’s first Principal, Dr Tom Cottrell, believed their artworks should be accessible to all. The collection spans printed works collected in the early days of its development, to the present day focus on contemporary Scottish art. Artists represented include Eduardo Paolozzi, Wilhelmina Barns Graham and Barbara Hepworth.

Proceeds from this event will go towards Icon Scotland’s Accreditation grant fund.

Getting there:

The Pathfoot Building can be seen up on the slope on your left as you enter the campus by the main entrance.

Parking: Parking charges apply Monday to Friday, 09:00 – 17:00. The best way to pay is using the RingGo app or by pay-by-phone; the first two hours of parking are free. Blue badge holders are not required to pay for parking. UniLink buses run from Stirling City Centre every 8 minutes. You can also rent a Next Bike and park it on campus. To plan your travel go to https://www.stir.ac.uk/about/getting-here/

Access Information: The Pathfoot Building is fully accessible to all. Wheelchair access is available at the main front entrance by ramp and there is level access at the back. Although the building is over several levels, all levels are accessible by lifts, and all doors to the main gallery spaces can be remotely operated.

This event is on the same day as the Icon Scotland Group’s AGM and Annual Plenderleith Memorial Lecture (Conservation and the Kelvin Centre: Supporting Growth in Scotland). Come to Stirling earlier and make a day of it!

Click here to book.