Considering Consumption
Working in cultural heritage, we consider materiality daily. But how often do we think about the materials we use to care for our heritage? This talk will reflect on our responsibilities and address some of our powers as consumers. Can we make a social and environmental impact through work purchases and consumption? Let’s talk about it.
Please note that this program will take place over two days:
January 10th, 2pm-3pm ET: Webinar/Q&A with speaker
January 11th, 2pm-3pm ET: Discussion session
Considering Consumption is the second session in CCAHA's Let's Talk About That: Dialogue and Change in Collections Care series. The aim of this series is to assist in building a DEIA infrastructure within collections care that can be sustainable beyond this moment in history. Each session will focus on a different issue facing the field and will be comprised of two components: a traditional webinar with a speaker highlighting their own observations in the field, and- the following day- a community dialogue led by facilitator, Sarah Pharaon. The goal is not to present a definitive guidebook on these topics, but rather to build this guide together as a community. As each topic is discussed and processed as a group, key takeaways will be compiled and used to build a publicly-available resource document that can serve as a toolkit for individuals looking to begin or expand this work at their own organizations.
The toolkit will be continually updated throughout the duration of this program- click here to explore the sections that have been released thus far, or visit our event page to register for other sessions in this series.
About the Speakers:
Joanna Hurd (she/her), CCAHA Mellon Paper Conservation Fellow
As a Paper Conservation Fellow, Joanna assesses condition and treatment needs, documents findings in reports, and treats a wide range of objects, including works of art on paper and archival materials. As a conservation advocate and activist, Joanna helps to develop programs related to access and equity, and has a passion for getting students of all ages excited about the intersection of art and science. Joanna spent five years exploring the different fields of conservation before specializing in paper conservation with a minor in photograph conservation in graduate school. She has since interned at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Weissman Preservation Center, and the American Philosophical Society. Joanna received an MS in Art Conservation from the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation and a BA in Art History from Boston University.
Sarah Nunberg, Conservator, NEH Tier II Principal Investigator, and Visiting Professor at Pratt Institute
Sarah Nunberg has been in private practice as an objects conservator in Brooklyn NY since 2006. Sarah has become a leading expert in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for sustainable practices in cultural heritage through her work as a Principal Investigator for a Tier I and Tier II National Endowment of Humanities Grant to create STiCH, Sustainablity Tools in Cultural Heritage, including an LCA library and carbon calculator supported by FAIC. Along with continuing her private practice, Sarah teaches materials properties at Pratt Institute. Sarah was awarded the 2021-22 Adele Chatfield-Taylor Rome Prize in Historic Preservation and Conservation for continuing her work with LCA. Sarah received her advanced certificate in conservation and her MA in Art History from the Institute of Fine Arts Conservation Center at New York University in 1994 and her MA in Archaeology from Yale University in 1990.