#ARCSConf Les Bénévoles Volunteer Sites & Meetup in Denver Reminder ARCS Update Vol 4 | Update 15
August 13, 2019 | ARCS NewsReminder: ARCS Meetup in Denver, CO
ARCS is pleased to announce our next networking meet up for Registrars and Collections Specialists.
When: Wednesday, August 21st, 4:30-6:30pm
Where: Rino Beer Garden
3800 Walnut St. Denver 80205 (Free parking)
These events are a wonderful way for you to build relationships with fellow registrars and collections specialists in your area. This is a no host event, so start your tab at the bar. Bring your business card, because there will be a drawing for a free one-year ARCS membership! We hope to see you there!
More #ARCSConf Les Bénévoles Sites Announced
Here are some more great sites that will be hosting Les Bénévoles projects on November 6th as part of #ARCSConf 2019:
Chester County Historical Society
CCHS has been collecting materials about the history of the region since 1893. More than three hundred years of local history are represented with 80,000 museum objects, 750,000 manuscripts, 100,000 images in the photo archives, and 20,000 reference books. The Bénévoles project will focus on the Society’s collection of primarily 19th century shawls that reflect fashion of the 1800s and Quaker traditions. Tasks that CCHS would like to accomplish include: 1) inventory, 2) upgrading catalog records, 3) photo-documentation and 4) re-housing if necessary.
Darby Library History Collection
The Darby Library Company is one of the oldest public libraries in the United States, founded in 1743 as a subscription library before becoming free to the public in 1898. Nicknamed "The Gateway to The South" because of its status as a popular way station for travelers between Baltimore and Philadelphia, Darby was also an important stop for many freedom seekers on the Underground Railroad. The collection needs to be evaluated and condition reported.
Rose Valley Museum and Historical Society
The Rose Valley Museum and Historical Society preserves artifacts and honors the history of Rose Valley, Pennsylvania, an intentional community founded in 1901 by the nationally renowned architect William Lightfoot Price to embody the principles of the Arts and Crafts movement. The project will consist of 1) gathering advice on collections management databases to consolidate collection documentation and 2) gathering advice on materials for rehousing historic documents and photographs, and 3) organizing and cataloging collections.
Newsflash from A Member
From time to time, ARCS will highlight our members, the places they work, and the interesting projects with which they are involved. This week’s feature comes from Lauren Silverson, Registrar at the Portland Museum of Art, and involves “hidden” paintings and veterinary offices:
In 2018 the Berger Trust made a generous gift of paintings and watercolors by Winslow Homer to the Portland Museum of Art, Maine in honor of the Museum’s renovation of the Winslow Homer Studio in Prouts Neck, Maine.
One of the paintings was small and fairly unimpressive. It had the proper trappings of Homer’s technique – the bits of red to move the eye, the confident brushstroke but the subject, a grassy, flowery field – but overall it was nothing distinctive. Initially Museum staff thought it just needed a good cleaning, so we called in our contract conservator. She performed a small test and stated that the work was not grimy in the least. She also suggested we have it x-rayed to see if there was anything underneath this quiet scene.
A veterinarian friend of mine allowed us to use their x-ray facilities, so the conservator and I drove the painting to the clinic before they opened, unpacked it on the table and asked the x-ray technician to proceed. There on the screen a very different scene appeared, of a woman in a fancy hat standing next to a horse, outside a small barn in a grassy field with some flowers. Generally, a much more interesting painting than what we see today.
The veterinarians crowded around, the technician snapped some images and we all got a bit more insight into Winslow Homer’s process, and his frugality. All in all, a really fun experience as a registrar, especially since they let me pet the puppies in exchange!
Important Dates
- August 21, 2019. ARCS Meet Up in Denver, CO. Register here
- November 7 – 9, 2019. #ARCSConf 2019 in Philadelphia, PA.
