• The Research Agenda 2008-2012 includes  five research programmes focussing on collection-management. Their binding factor is ‘valuation’.

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  • Program

    Value and valuation

    Development of methods and techniques to objectify the value and appreciation of cultural heritage.

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    Under 'valuation' in relation to heritage we mean making substantiated and verifiable statements about the value of an object or a collection, based on a question falling under an appropriate frame of reference and concerning certain stakeholders. Predetermined and predefined criteria are applied.

    This explicit defining of an assigned value is necessary to steer preservation, development and utilisation and to enable a societal basis for heritage to emerge. After all, who determines the value of the collection now that the 'expert' no longer counts as the sole authority? How do you valuate an object or collection if there is no objective measurable value? How do you provide sufficient societal support for heritage at a time when the cultural sector is under pressure?

    Awareness

    The Value and Valuation programme aimed to make the various players in the heritage field (owners, managers, policy makers and funders) aware of the importance of the intrinsic (non-financial) value and valuation of cultural heritage, and to develop methods and techniques to attribute value to objects and collections. As valuation benefits from a broad interdisciplinary approach, the emphasis lay on dialogue and collaboration with external partners. A new system was developed in close consultation with the museum world to facilitate the process of value attribution. This has resulted in the publication of On the museum scales: collection valuation in six steps.

    Independent valuation

    This practical guide takes the user through the valuation process step-by-step and results in a description of object/collection significance, a valuation ranking or grouping, or an investment plan. With well-founded arguments it is possible to explain to others the value of an object or collection and the reasons for the value. This facilitates decision-making on interventions, making conflicting interests negotiable and making stories behind the collection accessible.

  • Program

    Collection Accessibility

    Research into the effectiveness of methods and means to make heritage and related knowledge accessible online.

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    New media forms a tempting alternative to traditional analogue guides for the public as staff and resources in museums are generally scarce. But do they function as well or better than gallery texts, guided or audio tours?

    Are some applications more effective than others? Are there any applications that actually generate more visitors, and if so, which?

    Effectiveness

    The Accessibility programme focused on the effectiveness of virtual resources to make heritage visible and to interest new types of public. Possibilities include apps, 3D and AR techniques, and also social media like Facebook and YouTube. But what to choose from the overwhelming number of new techniques?

    Insight 

    The RCE carried out an inventory to provide collection managers with an understanding of the developments and possibilities of new media (and the institutions that can assist in developing applications). This also aimed to chart the applications most effective for specific objectives for both content and generating visitors. The projects on which these questions were tested were diverse in nature:

    • Conservation of two textile objects of polypropylene. In this project, the practical applicability of conservation knowledge about polypropylene was tested. In addition a conservation treatment of polypropylene was recorded for educational objectives and the conservation file placed online. As a result, both the object and the information are permanently accessible for consultation by collection managers and conservators.
    • Imago revisited: research into two installations in a case study using good practice (developed during the Inside Installations project) regarding the daily and long-term management of complex (multimedia) installations.
    • Generating and sharing knowledge online about the conservation of contemporary art in the two-year European project PRACTICs by museums, institutes and universities. Associated with this was a public testing of the film Installation Art: Who Cares? as an educational tool, to investigate how much visitors appreciated having a look 'behind the scenes'.
    • CARTA project, an inventory of documentation projects and documentation systems with which research findings are linked to locations and artworks.
    • Inventory of the operation of two thematic networks (INCCA Education and Postdoc Network) under INCCA.
    • Archiving the website with all details of the Inside Installations project, the preservation and presentation of Installation Art Project (2004-2007), a research into the re-installation and documentation of 33 complex multimedia installations.
    • Participation of the RCE as a research partner in the pilot project of MuseumApp, under which the effectiveness of this app for heritage institutions was studied.
    • Development of guidelines to increase the effectiveness of museum institutions online.
  • Program

    Object in context

    Enrichment of the object in its context on the basis of technical art history and research, for the benefit of its conservation and restoration.

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    Objects that have been handed down to us from the past can tell a story of their history of creation and how they have changed over time.

    The Object in Context programme makes such stories accessible through research on the material object and its contextual clues (historical evidence). In addition, the program focuses on questions concerning the restoration and conservation of a range of objects, from classical antiquity to contemporary art, from paintings and textiles to metal and plastics.

    CSI

    Under Object in Context, analytical chemistry researchers and forensic specialists delve into cause and effect. Besides a keen eye for detail, they employ a research laboratory and technological methods that enable the visualization of evidence visible only at a molecular level. Although analytical research often forms the basis for research, collaboration with other disciplines, such as art and cultural history, is always sought as well.

    Arts meets sciences

    A connecting link between the many projects under Object in Context is the extent to which ageing is regarded as acceptable. That limit of acceptance is subjective and cannot be considered purely from the material-technical perspective. Thus the theme of 'perception of the surface' is key in several projects. This involves coupling the scientific 'looking' through apparatus with subjective, human visual perception.

    Download here the comprehensive introduction to the Object in Context program, including an introduction to the projects in PDF.

  • Project

    European collaboration in the field of the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage.

  • Project

    Manufacture, consolidation, cleaning and use of plaster casts, models and objects.

  • Project

    Cleaning unvarnished painting surfaces from the 20th century.

    Paintings with dirty surfaces are generally cleaned with aqueous solutions or solvents, but this is not always possible.

    Unvarnished impasto paint, detail.

    Unvarnished impasto paint, detail.

    This project investigated alternative cleaning options using dry materials or materials that could reduce contact with the solvent as much as possible.

    Unvarnished

    The surfaces of unvarnished paintings are very susceptible to the accumulation of dirt and the development of bloom. These are common reasons for cleaning works but there is often uncertainty about the extent to which the phenomenon occurs, the relationship with natural ageing (patina), how rapidly the phenomenon will reoccur and how environmental factors play a role. Furthermore, cleaning is sometimes problematic due to surfaces being sensitive to water and solvents, underlying paint that is sensitive to mechanical action, and dirt that has combined with the paint.

    Need

    Discussions with 'the field' have quantified the need for methods and decision-making models concerning surface cleaning, which also encompass practical, technical and ethical considerations. It is also important to form a quantitative overview of the issues in modern paintings.

    Methods

    In 2010 Maude Daudin completed a major project on dry cleaning methods. Maude proposed various materials including make-up sponges, which can be regarded as relatively safe alternatives to solvents in certain circumstances. Later research (including that by UvA student Zuhura Oruç-Iddi) proved that the amount of substances remaining on paint surfaces after such cleaning does not lead to changes in the long term.

    Results

    A description of the options and considerations has been presented in various publications (JB: add links?). The results formed the basis for workshops in the Netherlands and several other countries, including France, Italy and Spain. Under the umbrella of the project on 20th century oil paintings, it is aimed to continue updating the outcomes of the on-going dry cleaning research on the RCE website. This will include information about dry cleaning materials.

    Students

    The students who have been involved in the subject of the cleaning of water-sensitive paint surfaces:

    • Beatriz Verissimo (possibilities of slightly moistened dry cleaning materials).
    • Annegret Volk (using agar gels for cleaning surfaces).
    • Alexia Soldano (measurement of conductivity of the paint surface: a simple diagnostic technique. This proved to be a particularly good method for predicting water sensitivity).
    • Zuhura Oruç-Iddi (long-term effects on the paint surface of dry cleaning additive residues).
    prev  /  next Dry cleaning, workshop. Workshop Dry cleaning. Annegret Volk at work. Cleaningtest.

    Publications

    Publicaties projecten 20e-eeuwse olieverf (Watergevoelige olieverf?! en Droge reiniging)

    Daudin-Schotte, M., Bisschoff, M., Joosten, I., van Keulen, H., Van den Berg, K.J., 'Dry Cleaning approaches for unvarnished paint surfaces', in: Mecklenburg, M.F., A. Elena Charola en Robert J. Koestler (red.), New Insights into the Cleaning of Paintings Proceedings from the Cleaning 2010 International Conference Universidad Politécnica de Valencia and Museum Conservation Institute, Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press (Washington D.C.), 2013, pp. 209-219.

    Daudin-Schotte M., en H. van Keulen, ‘Dry Cleaning: research and practice’, Book of abstracts ICOP, Amersfoort, 28-29 maart 2013, pp. 118-120.

    Keulen, H. van e.a., Dry cleaning products analysed and tested at the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE), tabel, 2012. 

    Oruç-Iddi, Z., Droge reiniging: Het effect van zes soorten residuen op ongeverniste olieverflagen, MA-thesis, Universiteit van Amsterdam 2013.

    Soldano, A., Investigation of the practical use of conductivity measurements on water-sensitive modern oil paints, intern rapport, RCE juli 2010.

    Veríssimo Mendes, B., New approaches to surface cleaning of contemporary unvarnished oil paintings – moist sponges and cloths, MA-thesis, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 2010.

    Veríssimo Mendes, B., K.J. van den Berg, L. Megens, I. Joosten en M. Daudin, ‘New approaches to surface cleaning of contemporary unvarnished oil paintings – moist sponges and cloths’, poster 1328, preprints ICOMCC conference Lisbon 2011.

    Veríssimo Mendes, B., K. J. van den Berg, L. Megens, I. Joosten en M. Daudin, 'New approaches to surface cleaning of contemporary unvarnished oil paintings – moist sponges and cloths', poster 1328, preprints ICOMCC conference, Lissabon 2011.

    Veríssimo Mendes, B., K. J. van den Berg, L. Megens, I. Joosten en M. Daudin, ‘New approaches to surface cleaning of contemporary unvarnished oil paintings – moist sponges and cloths’, Book of abstracts ICOP, 28-29 maart 2013, Amersfoort, pp. 66-67.

    Volk, A., Approaches towards the surface cleaning of water sensitive oil paints with aqueous methods, MA-dissertation, Staatliche Akademie Der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart, september 2012.

    Volk, A., L. Wijnberg, M. Chavannes en K. J. van den Berg, ‘Agar - a new tool for the surface cleaning of water sensitive oil paint’, Book of abstracts ICOP, Amersfoort, 28-29 maart 2013, pp. 121-123.

    Projectmanager

    Klaas Jan van den Berg

    Team members

    Maude Daudin (freelance), Henk van Keulen, Ineke Joosten, Luc Megens, Madeleine Bisschoff, Suzan de Groot

    Students

    Beatriz Verissimo, Alexia Soldano, Zuhura Iddi, Annegret Volk

    Partners

    Louise Wijnberg (Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam), Kathrin Kirsch, Lydia Beerkens, Aviva Burnstock (Courtauld Institute, Londen)

     

  • Project

    The painting methods of Rembrandt's pupil, Govert Flinck.

  • Project

    Artist Interviews as an essential source of information for the conservation of contemporary art.

  • Project

    The inventory of damages and problematic situations of art in public spaces.

  • Project

    The use of natural dyes on textiles and furniture.

  • Project

    New Strategies in the Conservation of Contemporary Art.

  • Project

    The degradation and conservation of plastics.

  • Project

    How to conserve cellulose acetate (CA) art works, based on the case study of two plastic (CA) books.

  • Project

    Degradation of polyurethane (PUR) elastomers: research into properties, degradation and conservation treatments.

  • Project

    The conservation of art works of broken, transparent, unsaturated polyester and polymethyl methacrylate.

  • Project

    Preservation OPlastic ARTefacts in museum collections.

  • Project

    Influence of objective and subjective aspects in decision-making about the cleaning of objects.

  • Project

    Research into archaeologic and historic objects.

  • Project

    Fabrication techniques and conservation of archaeological metals.

  • Project

    Origin of red garnets in early medieval jewellery in the Netherlands.

  • Project

    Fabrication and origin of magnetic cannons, White Delft and a shipload of semi-finished articles.

  • Project

    Van Gogh's work process in the context of his time.

  • Project

    Mondriaan's Victory Boogie Woogie: his last work under the microscope.

  • Project

    Research into the history and application of early synthetic dyes.

  • Project

    Causes of water sensitivity in the oil paints of 20th century paintings.

  • Program

    Museometry

    Quantitative research on composition, use and policies concerning museum collections.

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    In the museum sector, procedures and processes of collection management are analysed using figures and indicators to only a limited extent. As a result, decisions are often based on impressions or tradition.

    Ad hoc quantitative analyses have been performed in recent years. Again and again it has proved difficult to generate reliable figures.

    Structural

    When comparing museums it was also revealed that the number of variables arising form an almost insurmountable barrier for benchmarking. The RCE therefore opted for a structural, long-term program with the focus on a statistical approach to research questions concerning collection management.

    EBM

    Under the Museometry programme, quantitative research is conducted on the composition, use and exploitation of museum collections. Trends and developments are distilled from the collected facts and figures on museum collections (museometry). The resulting figures and analyses are made available for the museum professionals and managers responsible for museum collections. In turn, they use this quantitative data for the formulation of various policies concerning these collections. In this way museometry contributes to evidence-based management (EBM) in the museum sector.

    Projects

    Projects under this program include:

    • The Loan Monitor: a website that visualises on a map loan movements between national and international museums for exhibitions.
    • The Modern Art Collection Audit (CMBK), a statistical analysis of how Netherlands museums have collected modern art from 1999 to 2009. The database, comprising acquisition data from about 40 museums with relevant collections of modern art, makes statistically based statements possible about the collection policy of the museums.
    • The 20th century Artist Index, in which major artists are inventoried from the period 1870 to the present.
    • Completion and verification of available data on international collection mobility, accessibility and cultural participation arising from the implementation of the indemnity scheme.
    • An inventory and analysis of museum annual reports.
  • Program

    Collection Risk Management

    A user-friendly method for heritage managers to assess and manage risks themselves.

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    The Collection risk management (CRM) program is aimed at minimizing the loss of value at the interface between preservation and use. The existing CRM methodology has been tested in different situations, developed and simplified in order to bring it within reach of smaller institutions with limited time and resources.

    To this end, new instruments were developed and information necessary to quantify the various risks was generated and made available in the convenient form of a digital manual. The program concluded with an international meeting on risk management.

    CRM

    Risk management examines all the threats to which collections are exposed and combines preventive conservation, security and facility management. This forms the next step in the professionalization of collection preservation and management. In applying this strategy, the risks for a collection are identified, analysed and evaluated. These risks can then be compared on the basis of the expected value loss over a given period (risk assessment) and ranged to set priorities for measures to reduce this loss of value. This aids the collection manager in making informed and substantiated choices in the deployment of the often limited resources available to collection management.

    Methodology

    Under the CRM program, the methodology was tested in case studies, courses and workshops, then further developed and simplified so that smaller institutions with limited time, resources and knowledge can also gain insight into their own situation. To this end knowledge must be generated to qualify or quantify the various risks and ultimately made available in a usable form. This process was carried out in a number of projects under the program. Knowledge development and deployment of the indemnity scheme also fell under this program. The field of security risks and calamities was covered in collaboration with the Safe Heritage programme.

    Handbook

    The before-mentioned knowledge and instruments are for the most part collated in the Digital Collection Risk Management Manual. This describes the methodology step-by-step, provides instruments for conducting a risk analysis and sets out the available information on the ten most important damage factors. In this way, the user is able to carry out a risk analysis with their team. The Manual helps in formulating the right questions for external experts.

    Risk analysis

    Two projects under the program were intended to generate data to aid in assessing risk scenarios and to determine extent of risk. On the one hand quantitative information was collected for events that could lead to loss of value (damage factors of fire, theft and vandalism, mechanical forces and water), and on the other, degradation processes (damage factors of climate, light, mechanical forces vibration and air pollution/dust). In addition, a model was developed under the Cost Effectiveness project for determining the cost-effectiveness of conservation measures.

    Research on Paper

    Finally the Metamorfoze project (National Programme for the Conservation of Paper Heritage) sought solutions for the preservation and treatment of original paper documents. The research focused on inherent deterioration such as ink corrosion, the usefulness (or uselessness) of air purification in depots and the development of a portable instrument for the on-the-spot determination of light sensitivity of objects.

    The CRM programme concluded in 2012 with the meeting Reducing Risks to Heritage in collaboration with ICCROM and CCI.