• 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.

  • 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.

    Common damage and problematic situations are inventoried and illustrated with case studies of Dutch artworks.

    Detail of the War Memorial in De Bilt by Jaap Kaas.

    Detail of the War Memorial in De Bilt by Jaap Kaas.

    In addition, a network being set up in which management aspects such as risk reduction and organization are discussed. This project gives cause to continue research in the future.

    Aspects

    Conserving art in public spaces differs in many ways from conserving art in museum collections. The influences of outdoor conditions (weather, traffic) and the social context prevail. Art in public space touches on various conservation research issues; materials and technique, valuation, management and organization. In this project the emphasiswas  on the material/technique side, but it also formed the impetus for the creation of a network for discussing the management aspects.

    Valuation

    The valuation of art in public spaces has certainly played a part, but this topic should take on a more central role in future research. For example, the question of how valuation changes through changes in surroundings and when ageing is evaluated as patina and when it is not.

    Risk Reduction

    The project included a survey to inventory the most common damages and problematic situations, from which three case studies were selected.
    As a result, a network is being set up for stakeholders involved in the management and conservation of these works of art. A workshop on the occasion of the presentation of a step-by-step plan made it clear that future research should focus more on risk reduction and the question of whom the problem owner is.

    The completion of the project is actually in an intermediate stage. More research and collaboration is required to achieve a manageable situation for artworks in public spaces. 

    prev  /  next The war-monument of Kees van Renssen in Emmen. The projectteam and the Zeskantige Kubus van Arie Berkulin in Emmen. Erosion of letters at the war memorial in De Bilt. PH-measuring on the war-monument. Indication of moss.

    Publications

    Breder, F. e.a., Behoud en beheer van moderne en contemporaine buitenbeelden, NL-vertaling van F. Breder, J. Giebeler, K. Kmiotek-Nogalski, R. Morelissen en V. Panter, Erhaltung von modernen und zeitgenössischen Außenskulpturen, Verband der Restauratoren e.V., 26. april 2011.

    Morelissen, R., e.a., Metaalsculptuur ‘Zeskantige Kubus’ door Arie Berkulin; Onderzoek, conditie- en restauratieadvies, RCE (Amersfoort) 2011.

    RCE, Bibliografie Kunst in de Openbare Ruimte, 2008-2012.

    RCE, Enquête Kunst in de Openbare Ruimte en bevindingen, 2008-2012.

    RCE, Oorlogsmonument De Bilt. Jaap Kaas,1958, rapport RCE (Amersfoort), 2012.

    Renssen, C.W.F. van, Opengescheurde Archiefdoos: oorlogsmonument Emmen (1985), Onderzoek, conditie- en restauratieadvies, RCE (Amersfoort) 2012.

    Links

    Kennisplatform voor kunst in de publieke ruimte in Nederland DHAPS  (Digital Helpdesk Art & Public Space)

    Projectmanagers

    Rutger Morelissen, Karen te Brake

    Team members

    Simone Vermaat, Geertje Huisman, Ineke Joosten, Luc Megens, Hester Lensink

  • 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.

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

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    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.

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    Research into archaeologic and historic objects.

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    Fabrication techniques and conservation of archaeological metals.

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

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

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

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

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    Research into the history and application of early synthetic dyes.

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    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.