Dear Vicky,

We care for our contemporary fiber art in much the same way as we care for
our historic textiles by using acid free materials specific to the fiber
type that the work of art is made of.  We are finding that many ready made
boxes are not working for contemporary fiber art and are constructing our
own out of acid free foam core.  Although we have not yet faced this
problem, many others dealing with contemporary fiber have found that within
a ten year period, some specific works have shown their fragility and look
very different from their original conception (much of this has to do with
the use of organic materials that continue to decompose or shrink/expand).
There was a great article in a recent issue of Art In America about
contemporary art and this issue of organic materials and preservation
(sometimes the artist's intent for the piece to decompose is at odds with
the Museum's interests in preservation).  The other person who has done a
lot of problem solving around this issue, specifically with contemporary
basketry, is John Vanon, Director of the Erie Museum of Art.  Hope this is
helpful.

Michelle Boardman
The Kate Fowler Merle-Smith Curator of Textiles
Allentown Art Museum
Allentown, PA
610-432-4333, ext. 24
[log in to unmask]


________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).