#askaconservator

[usnatarchives]

In 1977, Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek's Uhura) appeared in a recruitment film for NASA!

Some of the original footage is here in our Catalog: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/80620160

[usnatarchives]

🔊 #AskAConservator – Sound waves meet conservation! Our ultrasonic welder bonds polyester film to create protective sleeves for delicate maps and documents. Hull maps, for example, get their own sleeves, allowing them to be digitized safely and easily. Just align, secure, and with a press of the foot pedal, it’s welded! 🖤

[usnatarchives]

📜 #AskAConservator – When working with moisture-sensitive materials, like documents with iron gall ink or water-sensitive inks, remoistenable tissue is a game-changer! It activates with just a hint of moisture, protecting fragile details. We prepare these by layering an adhesive onto ultra-thin repair tissue, creating a perfect tool for delicate repairs.

[usnatarchives]

🛠️ #AskAConservator – Here’s a peek into my stash of conservation tools! From essentials like scalpel blades and bone folders to unique items like a homemade Delrin lifter, each tool plays a role in preserving history. Paper pieces serve as protective barriers, and even graphite-scribbled blotter helps detect adhesive residue! Every item here has a purpose—some still waiting for their moment.

[usnatarchives]

The Audio-Video (A/V) Preservation Lab at the National Archives 📼

The Audio-Video (A/V) Preservation Lab provides appropriate digital products for National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) audio and video collections.

Join us to learn a little bit more about our work in this thread for #AskAConservator! 🧵📼

Audio and video records arrive to the lab to be digitized for preservation and access. One of the formats that we see most frequently is 1/4” audio. Sometimes we need to splice leader onto the heads or tails of a 1/4” reel in order to capture all of the content.

This is what audio looks like once it has been digitized for preservation. Sometimes we bake tapes before playback to reverse the effects of sticky shed or soft binder syndrome. We also work on newer formats like miniDiscs which were popular during the late 1990s and early 2000s.

When we digitize a videotape we use additional tools like test signals, time-base correctors, waveforms and vectorscopes to ensure that the color and brightness levels are correct.

One of the formats that we digitize regularly is VHS video. We have seen these tapes range in run time from as little as 2 minutes to as long as 9 hours!

Sometimes we need to rehouse videotapes into new cassettes in order to successfully play them back. Typically we clean tapes before we play them back as well. Here are a couple images of one of our Umatic or 3/4-inch cleaners.

Thank you for your interest in the Audio-Video Preservation Lab at NARA! We hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about the work that we do!

https://www.archives.gov/pres…/products/definitions/av-lab

[usnatarchives]

🛠️ #AskAConservator – Ever wondered about the tools that conservators use daily? From the classic bone folder (made of cow bone) for precise creases to the Caselli spatula for gently lifting materials, each tool serves a unique purpose. Tweezers help handle delicate mends, while small rulers and scissors ensure accuracy. Scalpels and cutting tools add the finishing touch for clean, straight cuts.

Learn more here: https://www.archives.gov/preservation

[brooklynmuseum]

Today is #AskAConservator Day! To celebrate the growth of the field, our #BkMConservation staff will be answering your questions today from 9am-5pm EST. 

The BkM Conservation lab is one of the oldest in the country, starting in 1934 by two pioneer paintings conservators, Sheldon and Caroline Keck. Since then, our lab has expanded and is made up of ten conservators, four interns working across paper, painting, and object conservation as well as four Collection Management staff. Our conservators worked on approximately 840 objects and artworks this year while our Collections Management team has worked on multiple large, long-term storage/rehousing projects across all our collections. Have a question for any of them? Leave it for them here!

Photo by Walter Andersons

[brooklynmuseum]

November 4th is #AskAConservator Day! Conservators around the world will be answering questions about their work in the spirit of sharing knowledge and celebrating the growth of the field, and our #BKMConservation staff would love to hear from you. Our conservation lab is made up of ten conservators, four interns working across paper, painting, and object conservation as well as four Collection Management staff. Our conservators worked on approximately 840 objects and artworks this year while our Collections Management team has worked on multiple large, long-term storage/rehousing projects across all our collections.

Have a question for any of them? Look out for our post and Instagram stories on November 4th. The lab will be answering questions from 9am-5pm EST.⁠

Photos by Maribel Vitagliani and Cindy Ortiz