America’s First School and Museum of Fine Art
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
Over the summer months, the Archives has been working diligently behind the scenes upgrading our digital collections platform–from Omeka to Omeka S. The new platform provides greater flexibility as we grow our digital collections.
We are still performing web and user interface tests, ensuring a seamless transition and simple, straightforward navigation. The launch of PAFA’s New Digital Archives will be September 1, 2019.
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
Preparing for a disaster is one of the most important things a museum can do to safeguard collections. Preparation ensures the museum has the knowledge, skills, and abilities to fulfill its role as stewards of collections.
On May 16, 2018, Alex Till, Liz McDermott, and myself attended the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts’ (CCAHA) Collections Care Training workshop to gain some hands-on training on disaster response and recovery.
Mercer Museum & Fronthill Castle was kind enough to play host for approximately 30 
library, archives, and museum (LAM) professionals from the region. Samantha Forsko, Preservation Specialist for CCAHA began the workshop reviewing the standardized Incident Command System (ICS) approach for emergency response. Included in her presentation were hypothetical scenarios when disasters occur at cultural institutions and how to handle certain objects–books, paper, art, artifacts, etc.
The majority of the workshop was spent applying what we learned in the classroom in a simulated disaster setup in the courtyard of the museum. The participants split up into three teams and were given specific ICS roles. Each participant had a chance to play a designated role to get a better sense of how the ICS worked in the field.
We recount our experiences in the “field” applying the ICS during a disaster.
Liz McDermott, Conservation Technician:
During the first round, I was in the Operations Section as the Object Retrieval Strike Team Leader. As the team leader, I oversaw the systematic removal of damaged objects based upon the information given to me by the Incident Commander. This was a really tough job and I found that, under pressure, I tended to want to dive into action too quickly without taking the time to adequately plan with the Logistics and Triage Treatment Team members who oversaw where the objects were going and what materials the objects will need when they land.
During the second round, I was a Triage Treatment team member. I felt much more comfortable with handling and caring for objects after they were retrieved from the disaster site and preparing landing sites for incoming objects. That being said, I think that all team members were much more calm the second time around since we were able to better understand the function and duties of each division and how they played out in real life—rather, “simulated” life.
I look forward to using what I’ve learned to help with re-vamping our own Disaster Plan before we reconfigure our collection in the new storage facilities slated to be completed by next spring. This was a fantastic workshop, but there is still so much more to learn—as one can never be too prepared, especially when it comes to caring for the oldest collection of American Art in the country.
Alex Till, Associate Registrar:
For the first round, I was made the Liaison Officer. This was the first time I was ever exposed to the Incident Command System, so I was honestly pretty unsure of what I was supposed to be doing and I think that others in the group shared the feeling. It ended up being more of a hypothetical job during the simulation. I ended up contacting a outside contractor to set up space to freeze some materials and I contacted an outside conservator to examine the painting we had in our pool. Valuable tasks, but in the case of the simulation, they were imagined because there was no one there to play those outside roles. After I completed those tasks, I was switched to the object retrieval team and helped fish things out of the water. I felt more comfortable in that second role because I have had experience handling a variety of objects throughout my career and because of the lack of hypothetical scenarios.
For the second round, I was made Incident Commander, so I was in charge of the whole team. After being briefed by the previous commander and looking over our project area, it became clear to me that we were running out of space to handle the materials that were remaining in our pool. I assigned most of the team to object triage and had them rotate the objects already saved from the water and make room for new ones. Based on the first round, I saw that we had before had too many people retrieving objects and not enough dealing with them after they came out of the pool. I think the whole group was a little more certain of the different roles the second time around. While I think I did a passable job as the leader, I felt a little awkward giving out orders and said as much to the team I was working with. Everyone told me I did a fine job though, so I’ll chalk that up to first time leading jitters.
I haven’t yet been heavily involved with our disaster plan here at PAFA, but I think that the experience here gave me a good impression of the confusion that can come about from just trying to organize a response to a disaster. I was glad to get the experience, even though it was simulated, and though I doubt that I’ll be assigned an Incident Commander any time soon in a real disaster, I think it was a valuable exercise.
Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
I’ve heard of the ICS in my previous work in disaster planning and emergency preparedness. I shared the same feelings with Alex and Liz when we played the ICS roles in the simulation. Moreover, since it wasn’t a “collection” we oversee, placing value on the object compounded the difficulty. For the first round, I was selected as the Triage/Treatment person. I felt comfortable in the position since the objects were things I’m accustomed to handling—photographs, negatives, textiles, paper, etc. Our disaster supplies were limited so we had to be resourceful in our efforts to treat the objects. I will admit, my group was a bit frenzied in regards to the chain of command and communication system since we were all basically strangers. I found some comfort since I had some colleagues on my team—Lillian Kinney (archivist) from the University of the Arts and Jennifer Vess (archivist) from the Academy of Natural Sciences.
After our debrief we had a chance to change roles for the second round.
After we assessed the situation with the new Incident Commander, we opted to use the flexibility of ICS and eliminated or combined certain roles. I ended up playing two roles, Safety and Logistics officer. Like Alex, we felt triage/treatment needed more people and object retrieval needed less people. We also knew we needed more space to treat the objects. I setup four staging areas so the object retrieval and triage teams could work more efficiently. As the session went on, we soon realized that documentation and tracking was really important in the overall scheme of the disaster. Essentially, documentation gathers all the data to discuss necessary services with vendors and senior staff. More importantly, there is no need to unnecessarily enter the disaster area since the documentation details all the objects impacted by the disaster.
Overall, it was a great experience. It was equally nice meeting fellow LAM professionals interested in disaster preparedness. Hearing their experiences and training alongside each other made for a very enjoyable and informative day.
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
Many people may not know that PAFA was originally located in another section of Philadelphia. More specifically, in Philadelphia’s Market East neighborhood on Chestnut St. between 10th and 11th streets.
The neighborhood has dramatically changed since the early-mid 19th century but one of our neighbors remains to this day. St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church was founded in 1823 and still stands at 19 S. 10th Street Philadelphia, PA 19105.
Recently, the church’s historian/curator Suzanne L. stumbled upon a large painting in the church with a PAFA label on the back. Naturally, she contacted me to facilitate research assistance.
We didn’t have a lot of information to work from but two historians, Suzanne and I, are better than one! We knew PAFA’s Annual Exhibition (1811-1969) would be the first place to begin our research. The label suggests the painting was at PAFA in April, the month the Annual Exhibitions were usually held.
The painting in question included a baptismal font that was created circa 1856-1857 and donated to the church a few years later in 1859-1860. We were able to date the painting using these details. The painting was not signed so there was no name to search. It did include a monogram but it was a bit difficult to decipher.
We knew the image was an interior of the church, so the title of the painting should include the name of the church, St. Stephen’s. We browsed the Annual Exhibition catalogs and painting registers. After sifting through hundreds of names, titles, and donors, we finally located information that would verify the paintings provenance!
Just from this one item in the archives’ collection, we were able to verify a number of facts:
Armed with this newfound information, Suzanne knew her work was not complete. The next phase of her research was to conduct more research on the artist and figure out how the painting eventually made it to the church since it was never sold at the exhibition.
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
Continuing the blog series on museum techniques, today’s topic is about housing and the transportation of art.
It all started a few months ago when three curators from the Library Company of Philadelphia visited the Center to conduct research on their upcoming exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist opening May 1, 2018.
The curators examined some of PAFA’s William Russell Birch miniatures and selected the ones they wished to loan for their exhibition. It is hard to tell from the above image, but if you look closely, the original housing of the miniatures were simple archival boxes. This type of housing is fine for long-term storage, but inadequate for transportation. Although the Library Company is located only 8 blocks away from PAFA, transporting such fragile works is still challenging.
The loan of the objects provided an opportunity to create new custom housing for the miniatures. Not only would the project make transporting the objects safer, but the new enclosures will ensure the objects are well preserved once they are returned to PAFA for long-term storage.
Creating the custom enclosures required some thought and a lot of patience. Liz McDermott, PAFA’s Conservation Technician, had to pay special attention to how other people would handle the materials during the multiple phases of the exhibition–transportation, installation and deinstallation, repackaging, and delivery.
Features include separate lift tabs for easy access, Tyvek lining to prevent abrasion, and ethafoam and volara foam to absorb shock and create a sturdy environment within the box. While it is impractical to create custom enclosures for all of works of art, in this particular case, it was a great opportunity for me to upgrade the housing for these amazing works of art.
Contributed by Liz McDermott, Conservation Technician
PAFA’s Richard C. von Hess Foundation Works of Art on Paper Conservation Studio is a dedicated space used to perform important preservation and exhibition related activities. From properly housing works of art on paper for storage to preparing works for exhibitions and loans, the Conservation Studio plays a vital role in supporting PAFA’s mission.
In preparation of PAFA’s upcoming exhibition, First Academies, the museum will put on display its most important document—the original 1805 Charter. Placing the charter on view highlights one theme of the exhibition—the founding of the first Academies in England (The Royal Academy of the Arts, established 1768) and the United States (The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, established 1805). Signed inside Independence Hall on December 26, 1805, the PAFA Charter is an important piece of history not only for PAFA, but for America as well. Framing the document required the utmost care.
The Charter is written on parchment. True parchment is an animal skin which has been treated, stretched, and scraped to create a durable and long-lasting surface for writing and drawing. Parchment is hygroscopic in nature, which means that it absorbs water very readily. This causes parchment to swell in conditions of high Relative Humidity (RH). Conversely, if the RH is too low, parchment will shrink and potentially even crack. Constant fluctuations in temperature and humidity can also degrade the parchment through processes that affect the collagen and lipids in the material. This vulnerability of true parchment to unstable climate conditions made framing the PAFA Charter a welcome challenge. After hours of planning, research, and consultations with colleagues in the art conservation field, it was decided to use the methods illustrated below:
First, perimeter hinges were adhered on the verso of the Charter about 4” apart. The above picture shows the process. Japanese tissue hinges were adhered and weighted using a very dry wheat starch paste. The ends of the Japanese tissue were frayed and overlap the parchment no more than 1/8” to ensure easy and safe reversal by future conservators.
Once the perimeter hinges were adhered, the Charter was positioned into the book mat for mounting. Notice which hinges have been adhered first—like stretching a canvas (but in this case much gentler), the hinges were first attached at the center, then moving opposite and outward, the hinges were attached one by one to create even gentle tension throughout the Charter.
Here is the Charter after mounting (photo by Barbara Katus). Notice the toned Japanese tissue paper at the top and bottom right. This was to disguise the bright white backing mat while on view since the window mat was constructed with a substantial gap to allow freedom of movement inside of the framed package.
Next, a sealed package was constructed to maintain the parchment at an optimum RH during transport and within the gallery environment for up to a year. This technique was developed by Hugh Phibbs, former Coordinator of Preservation Services at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
The UV- filtering, non-glare plexi glazing was first placed over the mounted and matted Charter and weighted down to prevent movement. Marvelseal 360, a puncture resistant, aluminized polyethylene and nylon barrier film (used for packaging space food!!), was cut to a larger size than needed, and the Charter was placed inside. Next, a specialized double sided tape for museum housing was placed around the perimeter to hold everything together for the next stage.
Using a tacking iron, the Marvelseal was heated around the perimeter. This completely sealed the package to prevent water vapor from leaving or entering the framed micro environment during climate fluctuations—hence the term “sealed package!” Some sealed packages have even been found to withstand flooding, and were found floating amongst the damage.
Next the edges of the Marvelseal were trimmed so that they can’t be seen beneath the rabbet of the frame while on view.
Here is the PAFA Charter fit into its new frame, ready to be enjoyed by our PAFA audience!
Be sure to come and check out First Academies, on view at PAFA from March 2nd – June 3rd in PAFA’s Historic Landmark Building!
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
One of the archives’ primary function is providing scholars access to PAFA’s extensive collections of primary sources. Primary sources are firsthand evidence of historical events. They are generally unpublished materials such as manuscripts, photographs, maps, artifacts, audio and video recordings, oral histories, postcards, or posters. In some instances, published materials can also be viewed as primary materials for the period in which they were written
In collaboration with PAFA’s Museum Education Department, the Center for the Study of the American Artist helped host one portion of a day long professional development workshop connecting art teachers with primary sources that can support classroom topics and promotes the effective use of PAFA’s resources.
The teachers examined works by George Harding, Elizabeth Osborne, Eadweard Muybridge, and Thomas Eakins in our study room. The workshop also included a behind the scenes tour of PAFA’s Works of Art on Paper Storage facility.
For more information on how to schedule classes at the Center for the Study of the American Arist, please visit our website.
Customized professional development opportunities are available through the School of Fine Arts (eowens@pafa.org) and Museum Education (csamson@pafa.org) with ACT 48 and New Jersey credits.
Contributed by Alexander Till, Associate Registrar
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Art’s collection, which includes artworks in various media—from painting and sculpture to media art arts and photographs—reveals key aspects of America’s rich artistic history. In recent years, the museum has made a concerted effort to build its collection by acquiring works by underrepresented artists.
Brooke Davis Anderson, Edna S. Tuttleman Director of the Museum, along with Barbara Katus, Manager of Imaging Services, marveling over recently acquired Violet Oakley charcoal drawings.
These works will need some conservation before they will be ready to be exhibited.
Before works of art can enter storage, they need to be cataloged and properly housed. Jennifer Johns, Senior Registrar, and myself work with Liz McDermott to remove the artwork from its shipping container. The works came in rolled and we needed to lay them out to flatten them.
Our work-study student, Sami Russels helping me unpack a new acquisition.
We’re also very excited to announce that PAFA has recently acquired 278 sculptures by 20th century African American artist John Rhoden. We won’t be keeping all works, but we will help broker the rest of the collection for other institutions! Read more here.
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
On behalf of the Museum Team, we wish everyone a very happy holiday season! This past week, PAFA staff and faculty came together for our annual holiday party celebrating over food, music, and prizes!
Three members of the museum team (Mark Knobelsdorf, Barbara Katus, and myself) were among the raffle prize winners!
We want to thank everyone for their continued support. Happy Holidays!
Contributed by Hoang Tran, Director of Archives
PAFA Alumna Njideka Akunyili Crosby was announced as one of the winners of the prestigious 2017 MacArthur Fellowship, otherwise known as the “Genius Grant.” In honor of the award, PAFA has hung her monumental two panel work, I Always Face You, Even When it Seems Otherwise. Now on View in the Samuel M.V. Hamilton Building at PAFA.
It took extra hands to hang such a large work. Our Team consisted of Liz McDermott, Michael Gibbons, Mark Knobelsdorf, and myself.
The MacArthur fellowships are awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to extraordinarily creative people who inspire the masses.
Contributed by: Tess Amram, IMLS Project Archivist
So many lessons learned from this project about digitization! I came into it a complete novice to the practice, and over 3500 images later, I think I’ve got a handle on the basics, at least. I’d only ever used a scanner for text-based documents and the occasional photograph, but I’d never had to scan to archival standards before, so the training I got at the beginning of the project was vital. Understanding the choice of color profiles and dpi to scan with, and Hoang’s explanations of debates among archivists on the topic, definitely helped me get a grasp on what the end result should look like, and what it would be used for.
If I could go back and start it all over again, I would definitely, definitely make sure the scanner was as calibrated as it could be before I got started. The main issue I ran into while digitizing was that of color – although the bulk of the images are black and white, the photographs are very old and most have gone yellow or red with age, whereas the scanner was producing images with a distinct green tinge. This was relatively easy to correct, by adjusting histograms before scanning, or doing a bit of a touch-up in Photoshop afterwards if necessary, but color correction took up a lot of valuable scanning time.
