AIC's 45th Annual Meeting

The process of deciding which conservation materials to use when planning a treatment is of natural interest to conservators-in-training. However, results from a series of interviews with professional object conservators in the UK indicate that material choice in conservation is worthy of scrutiny by the profession as a whole. Wood is a material that may require conservation fills for a variety of reasons. When it comes to choosing a wood fill material, there are many different combinations of adhesive and bulking agent that have been or could be used successfully. Many adhesives used on wood have been studied scientifically, with case studies published about their use in conservation. There are fewer studies on the use and properties of bulked adhesives. Without guidance from the literature, how do object conservators make decisions about what materials to use? A series of interviews were conducted with object conservators from a variety of backgrounds, working at six different museums in the UK. The results of the interviews show several obstacles in conservation practice that may at times prevent conservators from achieving high standards of material decision-making.The results of this research will be discussed during this presentation, with the goal of introducing a more open dialogue about material choice in conservation practice.