I recently bought a painting in this format. It's a beautiful piece, but I'm really worried because, aside from the usual precautions (avoiding direct sunlight and maintaining a dry environment), I’m not sure what specific care it needs. If anyone could help me, I would really appreciate it.

I have two books over 100 years old in my collection. They're in pretty good shape, a little damage on the corners, but still able to read and good condition. I've been taking some courses in archival sciences, but was wondering if anyone had some advice on how to care for them better. They're currently on my bookshelf in a dry place with no direct sunlight, but any help would be appreciated!

Hello everyone, I am currently looking to go abroad for a Master's Program in the field of Art and Artifact Preservation and Conservation.

However, this is a field I’ve recently begun exploring and my background thus far, only includes a bachelor’s degree in Film and a relatively short career in Content and Script Writing, making this quite the career transition for me.
I am quite interested in the practical and technical aspects of the preservation field and am looking forward to knowing more about it. I am looking to get very hands-on experience and continue with that.

With only the basic schooling in the science field thus far, and quite the overwhelming amount of research online required to get into this field in a short amount of time (I want to start applying soon, I want to start the schooling by next year -2025) I wanted to ask people here for advice on more specified research to do over the internet for this, the Universities I can look into and the best countries right now for this field in the job market. Any advice from people in this field would be very helpful as no one I know so far has done anything in relation to this field.

Oh, also, any quick courses I can do to help better my chance of getting into this field (I have a knack for learning and picking up on skills quickly) or anyone I can email for more specifics would be appreciated as well.

Thank you very much!

I had some paintings conserved a couple of years back at Spicer Art Conservation in Delmar, NY. I emailed them recently and got no reply. I then I called their number (several times). The voicemail say the box is full so I couldn't leave a message. Does anyone know if she they still in business? Is Ms. Spicer ill. or is there any other reason I can't contact them?

Good afternoon, hopefully it’s okay to post here? If one was looking for an art restorer/Conservator (paper), to join a business. Where would be a good place to look?

I’ve recently decided that I want to pursue a career in conservation and have been doing research on what this entails. I’ve looked at pre-program requirements, started researching schools, I’ve watched videos from conservators on the process, but I feel stuck at this moment.

I considered getting a degree in art history to help knock out the requirements for a masters program, but I already have BS in psychology. I don’t want to go through another 3-4 year stint in school if I can work on my current foundation. I guess I need advice on what someone would do next in my shoes. I figured I could research individual masters programs and just take courses that fit. Or would it be best to go for the full degree? I live in NYC, what are some schools you would recommend? Do you know of any places I could possibly seek some hands on training with no prior experience (galleries, museums)? Who should I speak to in order to better cater my course work or to get some solid advice on my options?

I’m also autistic, and pretty introverted. So my people skills are good, but I struggle with maintaining long term connections. My biggest fear is that I’ll excel at school but won’t get any recommendations or internships. Like, who tf do I keep in touch with a professor outside of school? Email them regularly to check in? Help???

I love art so much, it’s a part of me that has never waned, but rather increased over the years. I’m older than most going back to school (33) but I’m excited to start this new chapter and would greatly appreciate any advice you have to give. Thank you all who reply.

Hi all, I'm currently in undergrad for art history, and I'm interested in entering Art Conservation in the future. Unfortunately, not many people at the university I'm at have experience/knowledge about the field. I was wondering if you guys had any book recommendations for someone who isn't super into the field yet that won't break the bank! I've been looking at the ones on Amazon and some of them look really advanced or just really expensive, and I'm worried some of the cheaper ones may be outdated.

Thanks in advance :)

Hi, I do traditional Tanjore art, which uses mixed media, including genuine 24K gold leaf, gouache or poster paint on watercolour paper, and embossing paste to create raised designs.

Since I'm still practicing this form of art, I'm using imitation gold leaf, but of course, there is the issue of tarnishing over time. I came up with a clever hack to paste loose-leaf gold foil on regular lined paper. From here, I cut out whatever shape I desire, paste it onto my canvas using gum arabic and I'm off to the races. Now, I just need to find a way to prevent it from tarnishing. I initially used Liquitex acrylic gloss medium and it left awful brown streaks all over the foil after it had dried. I'm assuming something in the medium reacted with the metals in the foil because it applied clear.

I'm considering trying other products and would appreciate some advice if anyone has experimented with something similar and succeeded. I just came across Liquitex professional gloss varnish spray. Would that be suitable for my purposes?

Hi! I was referred here from r/archivists who said the folks here might be more qualified to give me so advice. I recently acquired an apple written on by an artist and I’d like to preserve it.

My research tells me that coating it in resin would still allow the apple to rot. I also read that I could spray the food with an acrylic sealer and let it fully dry and then reapply with more times before pouring over resin on a rack, seal in the air. Resin coating foods for a bakeshop. Any suggestions?

A couple of weeks ago I came here asking for stories of people who have left the field, which some people had (thank you!)

There was a reason I posted “anonymously” here, since I wasn’t ready to share my thoughts about leaving the field with colleagues and - of course - my job. I’ve since had a couple of people from Reddit find me on linked in, which means they would have had to dig way back through my post history to figure out where I live and guess at my specialty. That is super weird. I know Reddit is not truly anonymous, but please don’t try to find your fellow conservator who is asking for advice 😅 Thank you and thanks for this great forum!

Hi all! I currently hold an undergraduate degree in Ancient History, but after taking a conservation class in my third year I would like to study an masters in most likely object conservation. I have looked at the options in the UK, where I am based, and there doesn’t seem to be a very wide range of funding assistance available. Has anyone completed a degree abroad that has scholarship/funding opportunities for UK residents or just more affordable tuition/living costs? I wouldn’t mind studying for another undergraduate if there was the right course also! Alternatively, anybody that has completed a UK masters, was there a way you made the cost more manageable?

I have some large canvases I have stretched for oil painting, sized with Rabbit Skin Glue then primed with gamblin. As they are large scale I concerned with cracking over time, and wondering if it would help/is possibke to do a coat of high quality PVA on the back of the sized, stretched and primed canvas?

Hi all,

I'm a teacher by day and artist by night who is considering making a career change into art conservation (I'm in my late 20s). I'm looking into Masters programs right now (mostly FIT) and was wondering if anyone on here would be willing to talk or give some advice about the job market and general day to day of art conservation. Just trying to get a better sense before I plunge myself back into debt to get a masters that I'm doing the right thing for myself! I've done some art conservation (as part of a study abroad experience) in college and loved it but hoping to get more of a sense of the job culture and environment/prospects for growth and longevity in the field.

Hi all! I’m an artist (oil painting mostly) currently enrolled in an MFA program. I’m hoping to start introducing photo collage images into my oil paintings for a project and wondering what you would all recommend. I’d like to be able to alternate between oil painting and photo collage and oil painting on top of the collage. Obviously the smartest choice would be to just switch to acrylic but I’m really trying to avoid that as I just don’t like working with them. I would love to use wheat paste for its affordability and the material’s conceptual ties to the project but I worry about painting back over top of the paper even if it’s “sealed” with wheat paste I’ve also seen people use cold wax medium but it also seems like the paper becomes transparent when applied? Don’t the solvents in cold wax affect the paper?

Thank you so much for the help!

Did anyone here get accepted in the CIBA internship? I would love to have a quick chat about the application process! Comment and I will DM you. Thanks!

Hi everyone!

Before I begin, this is my first post on reddit, I'm still learning how to use the site.

I've studied Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage in Spain (I'm italian), and I've been working as a self employed art restorer for the past five years, intervening mostly on easel paintings and wood sculptures (religious art mostly) for collector and the heritage delegation of the local bishopric.

For the past few weeks I've been thinking how would it be to work in a museum and, after seeing some of the paintings that the American museums have I'm quite impressed, mostly with the fine craftmanship of the restorations.

I'd like to know how is the job outlook there. In my case, if I wanted to apply for somekind of museum as an art restorer (or also an art conservator, possibly easel paintings or polychrome wood sculptures) which are the steps to do? There's somekind of webpage (something like linkedin maybe?) where I could apply? Would my degree+experience be enough? I'm also aware that I'll need some kind of visa.

Right now I'm quite packed with job here in Spain, so this is more like a project of sorts. A studing of the field.

Thank you!

Hello, I have some bronze sculptures that need some work done, and I'm too nervous to attempt to restore it myself. Does anyone have any recommendations for bronze conservators/organizations that could help me? Thank you!

Just finished the Latest Episode of The C Word with the National Trust Takeover. Super episode! The hosts dive into how the National Trust is adapting to climate change while preserving art, heritage, and nature.

It got me thinking:

• Where does your museum/practice/etc place the balance of the demands of conservation and sustainability? A lot of what we do isn't always the most sustainable, but of course it is important.

• Are there innovative approaches or frameworks that you've seen to balance the two?

Hello all! I'm a textile conservation student, and I'm looking for research on the interaction between weighted silks and magnesium sulfate. If you can help in anyway, I'd greatly appreciate it!!

For my graduate thesis, I'll be conserving a late-Edo period kimono (an uchikake specifically), whose embroidery is crumbling away. Specifically, only the pink and red silk floss used in the plum blossoms. The green of the leaves, goldwork, and the white ground fabric are all fine, save for the collar, which was cleaned with something that ate away at the silk and caused the red lining to bleed. My mentor hypothesizes that whoever cleaned it used something with magnesium sulfate in it, as it is a compound found in some modern spot cleaners that are advertised as safe for silk.

The piece itself was found here in the U.S., and the damage was already done by the time it came into my mentor's possession. I've got two comparable pieces from around the same time period in my possession, as does my mentor, and those pieces are perfectly fine with no signs of tampering and known provenance. But this piece is a mystery to us. I'll add some pictures of the damaged piece below, for context:

Embroidery in full. My mentor still has the piece, and the collar makes it too weak to hang, so this is the best picture I've got.

Closeup of the embroidery. The reds and pinks are crumbling, but the green leaves are perfectly fine

Damage to the collar, the rest of the lining is fine, no bleeding anywhere else, but here at the collar it's bled heavily and is incredibly fragile.

I am a member of a parish, and we have a statue of "Jesus and the children" at the front of the building. According to the Newspaper articles I have been able to find, the statue is made of "travertine stone quarried near the Holy City and also used in building St. Peter's." It was designed and built in Rome and shipped here in 4 pieces. It was installed around 1954. I don't know if anything has been done to it since.

Recently, I noticed a crack beginning to form across Jesus's face, and the statue is also in need of cleaning.

I am looking for advice for who to contact to help care for this statue. I reached out to a university but the contact they gave me never answered. I am in Delaware.

Hello! I made the project in picture when I was in 3rd grade, nearly 15 years ago. It is made of curved wire, presumably aluminum, with pantyhose stretched over it, then gesso-d and painted with acrylic. My father has it in his house and says it has started to flake and is weirdly sticky. I assume the hosiery or something underneath is degrading. What are some ideas you all might have on saving this piece? It means a lot to my dad to keep it and I’m all out of ideas. Is it too late?

I hope someone here can help. It's not about art but about saving an important letter my brother wrote me many years ago. You see one (or more) of my kids got into a box of memories I had and took out a letter my brother wrote me in 94 while I was in Indiana. The cat decided to pee on it. Now it's wet but that will dry. The smell probably won't go away, i could live with that. I just want to stop any further damage by the urine acid. I thought they couldn't get in to my box once again they proved me wrong. Someone please please please help it's the only thing I have left of my brother as he passed in 2002. Tia

Hello, I hope I’m in the right group for this. I found this artwork at a thrift store, but it has these yellow spots on the back of the frame. Is this mold or something else I’m not familiar with? Any way to treat this kind of thing or is the picture ruined?

I'm a freshly graduated high school student who is interested in studying art restoration/conservation in Germany. However, the program I'm trying to apply to requires 10 months of preliminary internship experience. I have been looking for an internship for months, and want to know if anyone would be able to give me some tips for landing an art restoration internship in Europe, I'm not picky where. Any help would be appreciated.