The annual ANAGPIC conference is about 6 weeks away and UCLA/Getty students are working hard preparing for the conference. This year the conference is hosted by the Conservation Center, Institute of Fine Arts, NYU and Columbia University. Our students are looking forward to attending the conference and of course exploring New York.
This year we have students presenting in both the formal presentations and the lighting round. Morgan Burgess and Marci Burton will be presenting their study on a 1st edition BarbieTM doll, work they completed as part of a directed individual study. Michaela Paulson will be discussing her MA thesis research that looks at how the color of Kingfisher feathers is effected by light, adhesives and pressure when used in cloisonné style jewelry. We’ve also got 4 lighting round projects on a wide variety of materials and projects. Make sure to check out the abstracts below to learn more about the presentations and these interesting projects.
Good luck to all those presenting and we hope all the students have a great time at this year’s ANAGPIC Conference and in the Big Apple!
Presentation Abstracts
The Technical Analysis, Study, & Treatment of a First Edition 1959 BarbieTM Doll
Morgan Burgess and Marci Burton
Advisor: Ellen Pearlstein
This study focuses on a privately owned, autographed, first edition (c. 1959) BarbieTM doll made from poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) plastic and stored with contemporary plastic accessories in a contemporary case. Contrary to the more frequently encountered condition that collectors might refer to as “sticky leg syndrome”, where plasticizer migrates from the PVC and deposits on the surface as a tacky liquid, this doll exhibits a bloom of a fugitive, waxy, white solid on the legs from the mid-thighs to the ankles. In addition, the doll was autographed by Ruth Handler, the designer of BarbieTM and a co-founder of the Mattel Corporation. Her signature and the date are now barely legible, as the once sharp lines of ink have migrated within the PVC plastic. The lifetime expectancy of plastics, including PVC materials, can be unpredictable and inconsistent due to a number of polymeric mechanisms that lead to irreversible degradation reactions and component separation.
Multi-spectral imaging and x-radiography were performed on the doll to non-invasively and non-destructively examine the plastic and gain an understanding of the manufacturing procedures. In addition, with collaboration from the Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute (MCI), computed tomography, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, Fourier transform Infrared spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy data were collected on the plastic components of the BarbieTM doll. The results collected from the analysis provided insight into the process of manufacture, material composition and structural integrity of the doll, assisting in determination of the agents of degradation and identification of the waxy bloom compound.
After the removal of the waxy bloom, the (c.1959) BarbieTM, along with her clothing, accessories and case, were all housed with archival materials and kept in a monitored environment to slow the degradation process and prevent another waxy bloom outbreak on the PVC plastic.
The Effects of Adhesives and Pressure on Color in Kingfisher Feathers
Michaela Paulson
Advisor: Ellen Pearlstein
The Chinese tradition of tian-tsui, “dotting with kingfishers”, utilized blue, blue-green, and purple feathers adhered to a metallic background. This technique appears most prevalent as feather mosaics on clothing, palanquins, and cloisonné style jewelry. Through a technical study of kingfisher feather jewelry from the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery at Scripps College and light aging studies and pressure tests completed on mocked up samples of kingfisher feathers adhered to supports, this study evaluates the effects of original and later adhesives and coatings, in addition to effects of mechanical interactions, on the structural colors of the feathers.
Feather specimens from skins of Halcyon smyrnensis, the White-breasted Kingfisher, donated by the US Fish and Wildlife Department, were cut and adhered onto inert quartz plates and subjected to three methods of light aging, with color measurement occurring before and after. These aging methods included museum conditions (UV free), window conditions (UV present), and high intensity UVA conditions, with an additional control group. Adhesive systems tested were those documented as having been used originally or in the conservation of kingfisher featherwork, including: protein glue (isinglass or animal hide), wheat starch paste, methylcellulose, funori, and Paraloid B-72. Characterizing the adhesive used on the Scripps collection items provided supporting technical evidence.
Mechanical disruption of kingfisher feather coloration has been observed as small, straight lines appearing darker blue than the surrounding feather, and which appear to align with mechanically dented areas on the cloisonné jewelry. Such disruptions were replicated on other mock-ups by subjecting them to varying pressure and observing the effect on the color rendering.
Taken together, the results of this study provide insights into kingfisher feather tian-tsui technology, and the effect of adhesive systems and mechanical action on the preservation of these structurally colored feathers.
Lighting Round Presentation Abstracts
The Man in the Ancient Bronze Mirror
Hayley Monroe
Advisors: Professor David Scott and Vanessa Muros
In the spring of 2016 the conservation students at UCLA had the opportunity to work on a collection of ancient Chinese bronze mirrors from Scripps College. The author conserved an example dated from the T’ang period (618-907 CE). During the process of mechanically removing thick areas of burial deposit, an unusual feature emerged on the decorated surface.
The classic T’ang ornamentation is comprised of flowers and birds in flight with flowing ribbons grasped in their beaks, however cleaning gradually revealed a figure of a man, clearly part of the original casting though in a completely different style, quite literally peeking out from behind one of the flowing ribbons.
While portable-XRF analysis so far indicates that the alloy is correct for the period, comparative examples have yet to be found.
With luck and further analysis, the mystery of the man in the mirror can be further illuminated.
Investigation and Treatment of a Carved Wooden “ngoni” from Connecting Cultures Mobile Museum
Mari Hagemeyer
Advisor: Ellen Pearlstein
Connecting Cultures Mobile Museum, a unique institution which brings artifacts to Los Angeles schools for teaching purposes, loaned a Malian ngoni (a type of African lute) to the UCLA/Getty Conservation program for treatment of numerous conservation conditions, including a complex break to the neck of the instrument which was being held together with black duct tape. The object was examined in order to understand both its original construction and its current state, including prior treatments, which may have been carried out by school personnel. Conservation treatment was undertaken on: the complex break to the neck; a second break to a decorative element which was mended with an unknown adhesive; a fatty/waxy spew which was apparent on the wood and skin elements on the body of the instrument; inappropriate stringing with monofilament causing slippage and damage to skin tie elements; the presence of metal tacks used to stabilize these slipping ties; and the presence of insect debris.
International Collaboration for the Creation of a Conservation MA Program in Peru
Lindsay Ocal
Advisor: Ellen Pearlstein
Peru is a country with a wealth of archaeological, ethnographic, and artistic treasures, but no formal graduate education program in conservation. Currently, professional conservators learn the trade through apprenticeships or they must pursue graduate study abroad, mainly in Europe and North America. In order to remedy this problem, the Museo de Arte de Lima (MALI) and the Universidad de Ingeniería & Tecnologia (UTEC) are developing a master’s program in Preventive Conservation. In January 2017, Ellen Pearlstein, a professor in the UCLA/Getty Program in the Conservation of Archaeological and Ethnographic Materials, Lindsay Ocal, a second-year UCLA/Getty student, and Leah Bright, a third-year graduate student in the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, were invited to Peru to participate in an intensive week long planning meeting. Conservators, museum professionals, archaeologists, and engineers from museums, sites, and universities across Peru met in Lima to create a curriculum for this new MALI-UTEC master’s program.
UCLA/Getty Conservation Program 