News

May 2, 2023
Job Opportunity: Sustainable Preservation Specialist
Job Opportunity: Sustainable Preservation Specialist

The Image Permanence Institute (IPI) in the College of Art and Design (CAD) at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is pleased to announce its opening for a Sustainable Preservation Specialist. The Sustainable Preservation Specialist will provide information and guidance to a range of collecting institutions on the role of environment in preservation, and best practices for sustainable environmental management through a variety of consulting, outreach (teaching and publication), research, and technical support activities.

February 1, 2023
Survey Results: 3D Printing and 3D Printed Objects in Collecting Institutions
Survey Results: 3D Printing and 3D Printed Objects in Collecting Institutions

In May-June 2022, IPI conducted an online survey assessing how collecting institutions are using 3D printing and interacting with 3D printed objects and materials. The survey covered three major areas: 3D printed objects and artwork found in collections, conservation treatments of 3D printed objects, and 3D printing in preservation and access activities, including its use as a tool in conservation treatments of non-3D printed objects, exhibition and display, and collections transportation.

October 26, 2022
Introducing Dr. Marvin Cummings, Research Scientist
Introducing Dr. Marvin Cummings, Research Scientist

IPI is thrilled to announce that Dr. Marvin Cummings will join the team as Research Scientist in November 2022. Marvin brings extensive research experience from the technology sector, with a solid interdisciplinary background across the physical sciences, engineering, and archeometry.

September 15, 2022
Mapping Environmental Conditions That Prevent Plastic Deterioration While Contributing to Sustainable Preservation Environmental Management
Mapping Environmental Conditions That Prevent Plastic Deterioration While Contributing to Sustainable Preservation Environmental Management

The Image Permanence Institute received a National Leadership Grant for Museums from the Institute of Museum and Library Services in the amount of $711,598 to support a three-year research project that will study the relationship between equilibrium moisture content (EMC) and the physical stability of plastics and plastic composite artifacts found in museums.

August 8, 2022
Preliminary 3D Printing and 3D Printed Objects in Collections Survey Findings
Preliminary 3D Printing and 3D Printed Objects in Collections Survey Findings

This month, IPI is completing the first year of a three-year research project aimed at building a foundational understanding of how museums are creating, collecting, and consuming 3D printed objects. In May and June of 2022, project work included an online survey assessing how collecting institutions are using 3D printing and interacting with 3D printed objects and materials across a broad range of activities.

January 25, 2022
Conservation Science: Heritage Materials
Conservation Science: Heritage Materials

IPI is pleased to announce the publication of the Second Edition of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Conservation Science: Heritage Materials, co-edited by our Director of Research, Emma J Richardson. To achieve greatest impact, conservation science requires close collaboration with key stakeholders such as conservators, curators, artists and the public, providing context for scientific analysis and ensuring critical questions are addressed.

January 6, 2022
IPI on the Green Museum Podcast
IPI on the Green Museum Podcast

Founded by host Hilary Wilson, Green Museum - a podcast explores the topic of sustainability within the arts and cultural heritage sector. IPI staff Kelly Krish, Al Carver-Kubik, and Meredith Noyes were Hilary’s guests for episode seven, Sustainable Preservation at the Image Permanence Institute.

October 27, 2021
Crate, Crate Preparation, and Packing Materials Questionnaire Report
Crate, Crate Preparation, and Packing Materials Questionnaire Report

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.

September 28, 2021
Foundational Research to Inform Preservation Guidelines for 3D Printed Objects in Museums
Foundational Research to Inform Preservation Guidelines for 3D Printed Objects in Museums

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.

July 26, 2021
Environmental Management During the Pandemic: Field Study Results
Environmental Management During the Pandemic: Field Study Results

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.

May 12, 2021
Dr. Emma Richardson Appointed Director of Research
Dr. Emma Richardson Appointed Director of Research

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.

April 5, 2021
Pollutant Research Partnership Opportunity
Pollutant Research Partnership Opportunity

IPI is looking to partner with three collecting institutions in North America as part of a three-year research project, Integrating Risk Assessment for Pollutants into Energy-saving Strategies, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The project involves two years of field research focused on monitoring room-level pollutant concentrations while implementing energy-saving strategies for mechanical system operation.

February 3, 2021
Sealed Frame Package Questionnaire Results
Sealed Frame Package Questionnaire Results

IPI distributed an online questionnaire in November 2020 to inform a current inventory of commonly used materials and designs for sealed frame packages. We are grateful to the more than 100 colleagues, working in a variety of collecting institution types around the world, who responded to our sealed frame package questionnaire.

December 22, 2020
Integrating Risk Assessment for Pollutants into Energy-saving Strategies
Integrating Risk Assessment for Pollutants into Energy-saving Strategies

The National Endowment for the Humanities awarded the Image Permanence Institute a Research and Development grant for $350,000 to support a three-year, field-based research project that will apply data from pollutant and environmental (temperature and relative humidity) monitoring to comprehensively balance these known risks to collections when implementing energy-saving mechanical system operations.

October 7, 2020
Online Environmental Management Workshops
Online Environmental Management Workshops

Applications are being accepted for an online environmental management workshop, offered once a month November through February. The workshop is four days long with two sessions per day from 10am-12pm ET, and 1-3pm ET. Content is designed to guide participants through the process of implementing a sustainable environmental management program.

August 7, 2020
Cost-Efficient Preservation Methods for Preparing Paper-Based Objects for Transit and Display
Cost-Efficient Preservation Methods for Preparing Paper-Based Objects for Transit and Display

The Institute of Museum and Library Services awarded the Image Permanence Institute $429,409 in funding to support a three-year research project designed to identify the most cost-efficient and environmentally responsible methods of preparing paper-based collection objects for transit and display while maintaining preservation standards.