July 30, 2020
Kaushal Sapkota
We are thrilled to introduce our new Research Scientist, Dr. Meredith Sharps. Meredith joined IPI in June after a postdoctoral fellowship at the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum Conservation Institute, where she conducted collections-based research in the microanalysis laboratory. Meredith has a PhD in chemistry from the University of Oregon, where she gained experience in a variety of material characterization methods while studying nanomaterials used in lithography applications. Her position at IPI includes managing the operation of IPI’s testing services and performing research related to materials used for the storage, transport, and display of cultural heritage collections.
In the summer of 2021, IPI distributed an online questionnaire about crate, crate preparation, and packing materials used by collecting institutions to transport paper-based objects. The questionnaire was posted to the American Institute for Conservation’s Global Conservation Forum and Member Community distribution lists in June and via this quarterly newsletter in July.
The Image Permanence Institute received a National Leadership Grant for Museums from the Institute of Museum and Library Services in the amount of $375,543 to support a three-year research project that will identify critical preservation challenges associated with 3D printed materials and technologies found in museums and develop resources that will support 3D printed object preservation.
In an effort to understand how changes in mechanical system operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic impacted collections environments across institutions, IPI launched a field study through an online submission platform from October through November 2020.
IPI is thrilled to announce that Dr. Emma Richardson will start her role as Director of Research in July 2021. Emma is the first to hold this new leadership position, responsible for guiding IPI’s research agenda. Emma brings extensive research and leadership experience in the applied sciences, and an impressive professional record in higher education with a focus on cultural heritage.