Speakers Biographies and Abstracts 2013

Cardiff 2013 - Speakers Biographies and Abstracts

Speakers Biographies and Abstracts

Kate Barber

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Biography

After completing a Fine Art degree in 2006 I worked for a number of years in a commercial London art gallery, where I was able to gain experience in the newly formed archives and library of the gallery. I studied Paper Conservation at University of the Arts, London graduating in 2011; I continued my studies at Cardiff University obtaining an MSc Care of Collections in 2012. Having a practical arts background has informed my interest in the relationships between people and objects. How objects impact and inform our perception of history, other people and understanding. My research at Cardiff University focused on how touch informs our perception on a psychological level and how this can be used in a museum environment.

Abstract

Joint presentation (Kate Barber and Jane Henderson) - The Benefits of Touch

We learn and retain knowledge better when using multiple senses than when using just one. This paper examines the 'need to touch' archives as part of the process of using them. The need to touch depends on the user's perception of records and this is influenced by past experience, associations, attitude, mood and context. By examining the psychology of touch the presentation will explore situations when the benefits from touch can be shown to outweigh the risks. The presentation will help conservators and collections managers manage both practical and ethical tensions arising from handling collections.

Using collections makes them valuable and the level of use of a collection reflects its value to society. However touch has become synonymous with access creating a general sense that providing touch is a 'good thing'. There is also an awareness of the risks associated with handling and for some these two factors present organisational and ethical challenges.

There is no standard measure of the benefit of touch. Indeed benefits from touch are multifaceted and context led. The presentation will describe a range of benefits from access and the degree to which touch is essential to an individual's learning and retaining of knowledge, enjoyment, empathy and sense of privilege. The presentation will build a vocabulary of the benefits of touch, from the wider perception of the institution as an accessible organisation. The presentation will describe both immediate and longer term benefits to be gained from touch. These benefits are experienced discretely and opportunities for the greatest benefits can be described in order to ensure that when handling occurs it is framed in a context to maximise the outcomes while intelligently planning for the conservation of collections.

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Elisabeth Baumgartner

Biography

Elisabeth Baumgartner graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Fribourg, is admitted to the Bar in Zurich since 2002 and holds a Master in International Humanitarian Law of the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. After having practiced as a lawyer in Zurich, she joined the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and worked in Colombia and Ethiopia. She then worked as a researcher at the University of Lucerne and as a lawyer for the Office of the Prosecutor of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) in Freetown. She is currently teaching international criminal law at the University of Lucerne, where she also writes her PhD thesis in international criminal law on victim participation at the International Criminal Court. In 2009/2010 she worked as a coordinator of the Mediation Support Project for swisspeace. In 2011 she joined the Dealing with the Past team, which she is heading. She is coordinating the project Archives and Dealing with the Past.

Abstract

Joint Presentation (Elisabeth Baumgartner and Sandra Rubli) - The Role of Truth Commission's Archives in Dealing with the Past Processes

To date, the role of archives in processes of dealing with a legacy of massive human rights violations and humanitarian law has not been sufficiently researched. Records and archives can have multiple uses in transitional justice: they can provide evidence in criminal prosecutions and truth seeking mechanisms; they can be used in a vetting process; they can serve as the basis for a reparation program; or they can inform and shape memorialisation practices. Thus, the archives of transitional justice institutions form an important foundation on which democracy and justice can be promoted in societies in the aftermath of war, violence and authoritarianism.

From this starting point, this paper presents the results of a recent study on archives and records of truth commissions in around twenty countries. While truth commissions have often based their work on existing archives, they have also themselves produced extensive records which have been archived to varying degrees and with varying practices. Drawing on illustrative empirical examples and broader literature, this paper examines what happened with those records and archives after the closure of the truth commission, in what ways the archives policies are explicitly or implicitly linked to dealing with the past processes and how archives of truth commissions have further been used by other transitional justice institutions or projects.

Whilst archives of truth commissions might be used within a dealing with the past process, they may themselves be sites for negotiating various decisions about what the 'new' society might look like. In this way they are sites which promote, shape and perhaps even hinder citizen engagement with their own history, either as victims, perpetrators or bystanders. They may also be sites which secure the right to know in the aftermath of human rights violations and ensure accountability for crimes committed.

Dr. Briony Jones co-authored the paper but will not be present at the ARA conference in Cardiff.

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Stacey Capner

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Biography

Stacy Capner has been project archivist based at the Richard Burton Archives, Swansea University, since graduating with a Diploma in Archives and Records Management from the University of Liverpool in 2009. She is currently Business Archives Development Officer for Wales for Archives and Records Council Wales, funded by Welsh Government division CyMAL: Museums Archives and Libraries Wales. She has worked on a number of business archives related projects, including cataloguing project 'Powering the World: Looking at Welsh Industry through Archives', follow on promotional project 'Profiting from Powering the World', a survey of steel archives in Wales and work capturing the historical record of Trawsfynydd Power Station.

Abstract to follow.

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Michelle Caswell

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Biography

Michelle Caswell, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Archival Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her book, Archiving the Unspeakable: Silence, Memory and the Photographic Record in Cambodia, will be published by the University of Wisconsin Press's Critical Human Rights Series in 2014. The book traces a collection of mug shots taken by the Khmer Rouge regime from their creation as bureaucratic documents that streamlined mass murder, to their inclusion in archives, digitization, and use by survivors and the family members of victims to spark narratives about the regime and memorialize the dead. She is also the co-founder of the South Asian American Digital Archive (http://www.saadigitalarchive.org), an online repository that documents and provides access to the diverse stories of South Asian Americans. Her work has appeared in Archival Science, Archivaria, American Archivist, Libri, First Monday, and Journal of Documentation.

Abstract

Survivor Status as Provenance

Using Cambodia as a case study, this paper explores a circumstance under which it is not only defensible, but preferable for nongovernmental archives to claim custody of records documenting state-sponsored human rights abuses. The author posits that trust rather than inalienability is a more useful ethical lens through which to view custody disputes and argues that nongovernmental archives are often more trustworthy stewards of records documenting human rights abuses in societies still undergoing transitional justice. Finally, this paper concludes by both expanding provenance as it applies to records of human rights abuses to include survivors of abuse as key stakeholders and shifting the conceptual relationship between archives and survivors of human rights abuses from one of custodianship to one of stewardship. This paper argues that archivists working with records documenting state-sponsored human rights abuse have a primary responsibility to survivors and victims' family members rather than successor states or other institutions.

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Lisa Childs

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Biography

Lisa Childs is Archives Conservator at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum, Wales, where she is responsible for the care and conservation of the archive collections throughout the organisation. Trained at Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts, London, she qualified as a paper conservator in 1987 before taking up a post as book conservator at the former Public Record Office (now TNA) where she was employed for the next five years. In 1993 she joined AC-NMW as a mount-cutter preparing works of art for exhibition. In 1999 she took on the role of Archives Conservator. She is currently undertaking a distance learning post-graduate diploma in Archives and Records Management at the University of Dundee and is a member of the Archives and Records Association and the Community Archives Heritage Group.

Abstract

Under the Radar; Museum Archives

In 2010 the Amgueddfa Cymru-National Museum Wales instigated a condition survey of their archive collections, examining conservation and storage requirements in order to develop a structured preservation programme based upon identified priorities. However on its completion two years later the single most critical finding to emerge was that 47% of the archives surveyed were not accessioned and as such fell outside the remit of the Museum's Collection Management Policies and Procedures.

The AC-NMW non-accessioned archives chiefly comprise of associated documentation for the accessioned collections and provide evidence of their history, context and provenance, however there is no recognised standard for their management and preservation. This has limited full access to the information they contain and led to the perception that this material is somehow of less value or usefulness than the accessioned items.

The findings of the completed survey reveal that while no critical differences currently exist between the condition of the non-accessioned and accessioned material, the fact remains that although each are equally supportive of the museum's research, exhibition and publications programmes, the one will always be neglected in favour of the other in the absence of any official acknowledgement of the needs and status of the non-accessioned archives.

This paper will set out to explain the findings and conclusions of the survey report before demonstrating how the Museum is taking steps to implement its recommendations; seeking to raise standards in curatorial care and records management for its non-accessioned archives in the face of the twin pressures of limited finances and staff.

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Matthew Collins

Biography

I completed a degree in Marine Zoology (Wales) then a PhD in Geology (Glasgow) before Fellowships at Glasgow and Leiden (Chemistry and Biochemistry) and postdoctoral research at Bristol (Biogeochemistry). I first lectured in Biogeochemistry (Newcastle) before moving to York in 2003 to establish BioArCh, an interdisciplinary grouping of Biologists, Archaeologists and Chemists with access to shared space and facilities on campus, within the Bioscience complex.

My research focuses on old proteins. I attempt to identify samples by differences in protein sequence, date samples by the extent of protein degradation and if both fail, to understand pathways of decay in archaeological materials

Abstract

Much ado about erdu: what can we learn about parchment origin, processing and damage from eraser waste?

Erasers are normally used to remove writing from paper. Thanks to a groundbreaking discovery we now know that they can reveal the animal identity and quality of parchment manuscripts: a pinch of waste shavings from a conservator's eraser (aka erdu) can yield collagen sequences. A similar recent exponential advance has been in the yield of DNA data: today it is possible to get a million times more data from parchment fragments than even three years ago.

The implications of such advances span bioarchaeology and manuscript studies. For students of manuscripts, the techniques can offer new certain evidence, since the identification of the animal origin of many manuscripts has often been contentious or uncertain. For scientists the parchment record of the past represents a largely untapped reservoir of genetic and biological information on the management and improvement of stock. Focus shifts away national repositories to local archives, with their boxes of parchments most likely written on skins from local herds and flocks.

10,000 Books and Beasts is a proposal to exploit these new developments. By 'crowdsourcing' samples from on-going conservation activity in archives we can keep sampling costs down and therefore focus most of our resources on the analytical cost (£200 per parchment). In this presentation we will discuss results from our pilot project in which we have provided county archivists with an online recording sheet (GoogleDocs). Animal identity and parchment degradation index are added by our team as soon as the results come off the mass spectrometer (typically within a week of receipt of samples) informing the conservators before a conservation project is complete.

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Phil Crockett

Biography

In 1963 Phil Crockett has graduated from Southampton University with a BSc. in Mechanical Engineering. He emigrated to Canada and joined Abitibi Paper. Returning to the UK in 1968 he joined Wiggins Teape, later Arjo Wiggins, as a project engineer and in due course became Manager of Corporate Engineering for the group. In 1994 he became a consultant and worked as a project manager at several UK paper mills retiring in 2004. He joined the British Association of Paper Historians in 1989 and was Chairman for a number of years.

Abstract

Paper & Sizing: History and Development

Paper is made of cellulose fibres and its properties depend on what the fibres are, how they are treated what other materials are added. Paper was developed in China and then spread across the world over many centuries firstly being made entirely by hand and in the last two centuries being largely made by machine. Many properties of paper and especially its resistance to water depend on the addition of size; originally natural vegetable sizes, animal gelatines and now chemical sizes.

Sizes may be applied when the paper sheet is being formed or they may be added afterwards, or both. Sizes may be applied in various ways: engine sizing, manual sizing, tub sizing and on-machine sizing. As paper-making speeds have increased on-machine sizing has developed into surface or film sizing. The problems with the use of acid sizing have led to the development of neutral or alkaline sizing systems.

Paper and sizing systems have been developed over time to meet the use to which the paper will be put: writing, drawing, water-colouring, printing, wrapping, blotting, filtering, photographs, copying, hygiene, ink-jets, thermal printing, the list is long indeed.

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Emma Dadson

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Biography

Emma Dadson is a Director and the Divisional Manager of Harwell Document Restoration Services, the leading service provider of specialist salvage for the heritage sector the UK and Ireland.

She has spent the last ten years developing HDRS' Priority User Service, used by over 900 local authorities and businesses providing a dedicated, specialist response to document or book damage, thus minimising costs and disruption to business continuity.

In 2012 Emma completed her book Emergency Planning and Response for Libraries, Archives and Museums (Facet Publishing). The content of this book was on the basis of her practical disaster recovery experience, coupled with her training and consultancy work with clients, including courses, inhouse training, desktop sessions.

Emma has been named the 'Business Continuity Consultant of the Year 2007' award at the Business Continuity Awards and is a previous Chair of the British Damage Management Association. She holds a Masters degree in Classics from Oxford University and is an accredited Disaster Recovery Technician of the BDMA.

Abstract

'Will it work?' How to update your emergency plan to ensure it works in practice.

This session will draw on experiences of plan implementation in real fire and flood situations to give guidance on how emergency plans can be updated and improved so that salvage operations can be conducted with maximum efficiency and minimal stress, and with a heightened awareness of safety and business continuity issues. This session will provide participants with an insight into how to adapt salvage tactics for different scales and types of event to ensure a sure-footed response from the moment the problem is discovered.

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Aynur de Rouen

Biography

Aynur de Rouen is the Curator of the Vera Beaudin Saeedpour Kurdish Collection; her work has involved processing the collection, setting up the exhibit, writing a finding aid for the collection, and creating an online exhibit/metadata. She has had curatorial experience in a number of museums in Turkey and the United States. As a development of this collection, she is currently conducting an oral history project, which is an assemblage of narratives of Iraqi Kurdish refugees living in the Binghamton area. She holds a B.S. in Classical Archaeology from the University of Istanbul and an M.A. in History from Southeastern Louisiana University. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate in History and the Theory of Art and Architecture at Binghamton University. She is also the Digitization Specialist in the Binghamton University Libraries.

She will be talking about her current projects at the following conferences:

"Do You Remember When?: The 1950s in Istanbul" at the VIIth Cultural Studies Symposium on Memory and Culture in Ankara, Turkey on 5-7 September 2013.

Dengȇ Kurda: The Vera Beaudin Saeedpour Kurdish Oral History Project at Binghamton University at for 2013 Annual Meeting of Oral History Association in Oklahoma City, OK, USA, on 9-13 October 2013.

Abstract

To Know a People : The Preservation of the Vera Beaudin Saeedpour Kurdish Library & Museum Collection at Binghamton University.

This study intends to display how to ensure accountability and protect a culture while sharing information and educating others. This study uses the Saeedpour Kurdish Collection- a significant assemblage of materials documenting Kurdish culture, history, and resources. The materials include various types of textual information, such as archival documents, oral histories and transcripts, legal documents, academic publications, and government reports. It also includes other formats: photos, posters, maps, artwork, clothing, jewelry, and small artifacts. This collection is unique for several reasons: it houses a permanent exhibit displaying Kurdish clothing, jewelry, and small artifacts; it includes a collection of narratives provided by members of the local (Binghamton) Kurdish population describing their diasporas, culture, and everyday life; we are building an online exhibit in order to share digital access to this collection with a worldwide audience.

This study aims (1) to promote justice for the Kurdish people through collecting, sharing, and preserving their culture, identity, and history (2) to provide access and education worldwide to students, scholars, or any interested individuals (3) to build potential partnerships within the university (history, sociology, anthropology departments) and to build community programs by collaborating with the local Kurdish Association in an effort to further develop this dynamic and on-going collection (4) to ensure accountability by displaying first-hand accounts (oral histories) and maintaining an objective perspective.

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Jane Eagan

Biography

Jane Eagan is the Head Conservator of the Oxford Conservation Consortium, an Accredited Member of Icon, and a Fellow of IIC. She has a BA (Hons) in French Translation from York University, Toronto, and MA in Conservation from Camberwell College of Arts, London. Eagan was the editor of The Paper Conservator from 2002-2007, is an editorial board member for The Journal of the Institute of Conservation and the Honorary Librarian for Icon's Chantry Library. She is currently working on a translation of Joseph Jérôme Lefrançais de Lalande's account of boardmaking.

Abstract

Lalande's Art du cartonnier – an exploration of eighteenth-century paper boards

Paste- and pulpboards are common binding materials and an appreciation of how they were manufactured and selected for use is important for book conservators who encounter this material frequently when carrying out conservation treatments. My paper explores the production and characteristics of eighteenth-century French paperboard through a detailed contemporary account and seeks to relate this information to boards observed in historic library collections.

L'art du cartonnier [The Art of the Boardmaker] was published in Paris in 1762, part of the ambitious publishing project undertaken by the French Academy of Sciences from 1761 to 1788 called the Description des arts et métiers. Written by the astronomer Joseph Jérôme Lefrançais de Lalande, this account of boardmaking offers a wealth of detail on the method of production, types, and use of board in eighteenth-century France based on observation and practice, and is a unique and valuable source of information about the production of this ubiquitous material.

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Dr Craig Gauld

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Biography

Dr. Craig Gauld is a professional archivist with a PhD in archival theory and the role of the archivist. Previously employed at Ayrshire and Shetland Archives, Craig now works for the Centre for Archive and Information Studies and tutors two Archive and Records Management modules (The Theory and Context of Recordkeeping / Archive Management: Principles and Practice).

Abstract

Archival Accountability: The demise of professional responsibility and the dilution of public trust?

The archival profession, since the early 20th century, has been underpinned by Hilary Jenkinson's notion of the moral and physical defence of the archive i.e. that archivists would ensure the preservation of the record and make the record available for access. Over the past 20 years this role has come to be viewed as antiquated and theorists such as Terry Cook and David Bearman have advocated a more activist archivist, a position centred upon a concept of archival accountability. The archivist is to 'stop rowing and start steering', is to be an 'agent of accountability'.

Whilst a return to a Jenkinsonian universe is certainly not desirable there are important differences between the display of accountability, as advocated in much professional literature, and undertaking responsible archival practice that has the record at its core. In drawing a clear distinction between accountability and responsibility in the archival domain, specifically via the creation of the record and the use to which it is subsequently put, this paper will argue that the archive is opening itself up to a variety of tensions and pressures that could lead to the dilution of public trust.

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Prairie Hady

Biography

Prairie Hady received a BA in History in from the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota, focusing her studies on human rights in the Soviet Union. She received her Master Degree in Library and Information Studies with a concentration in Archives and Records Management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She currently works as an archivist for the Department of Transportation in Phoenix, Arizona.

Abstract

The Healing Power of Archives: Memorialisation and Reconciliation in a Racially Divided Community

On June 15, 1920, in the industrial northern city of Duluth, MN, three black circus workers accused of raping a young white woman were lynched by a mob of 5,000 to 10,000. It was later found that the allegations were false and the men were innocent. Rather than addressing the racial issues that led to the lynching and working toward reconciliation and justice; the story was swept under the rug, written out of the official history and selectively forgotten in the town's collective memory.

It is only by examining the records created at the time the lynching took place that members of the community can find the humans held within them. This personalization of the individuals "trapped in a snapshot," is essential to fostering a sense of ownership over their shared history and discovering a more comprehensive truth upon which their collective memory can be founded. Furthermore, it is the role of the archivist to actively seek out opportunities to extend the use of these records to the community and to provide an environment where individuals feel free to interact with the records openly. This means that archivists must be willing to accept as valid the various conclusions and interpretations that may result. For it is this variation in interpretation that will allow for the voices of the marginalized to be heard, their humanity discovered and the true process of healing to begin.

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Rolf Hage

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Biography

Born in 1957, married to another archivist, two children, 8 and 11. University grades in history, law and cultural anthropology. I graduated from the State Archival School in The Hague in 1988. In the same year I founded "Records Management Consultancy", a small business advising companies and civil administrations on records keeping issues. From 1990 I worked for as project manager, solving archival problems for all kinds of organisations and providing newly graduated archivists work experience. In 1996 I was appointed to the post of City Archivist of 's-Hertogenbosch, the capital of the province of Northern-Brabant in the Netherlands. I am still happy in this ever interesting job, managing a department of 16 dedicated colleagues and 35 volunteers. Every thinkable and sometimes not so thinkable aspect of archival work crosses my desk. I was chairman of the Union of Northern-Brabant Archivists, with close ties with our colleagues in Belgian Brabant. I am currently member of the Code of Ethics Committee of the Royal Society of Archivists in the Netherlands. In my spare time I am working on a dissertation about elopements and abductions in the Dutch Republic.

Abstract

Archives in the Eye of the Hurricane

The main question of this conference shows a certain dilemma: are we records keepers or are we working for society? My answer is: both. There is no choice, but a need to position these activities in a broader scope. The basis always was, still is and forever will be our depot where the City's memory is stored and available for research (the "Eye"), the City being 's-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands. We keep these records according to the Code of Ethics. We are, as many Archives, experiencing a digital revolution and growing pressure of demands from all quarters of society (the "Hurricane"). Our strategy is an active one: go with the flow, we do want to provide organisations and individuals with historical data and illustrations. We do want to advise the City administration on Archival and record keeping matters. We promote the City's prominent history to tourists and inhabitants. Being visible and active in society, cooperating with many different institutions and organisations outside the historical network, is a part of our Archive Policy Statement. I will explain why and how we do this.

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Jane Henderson

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Biography

Jane has been working in and studying in conservation and collections care in Wales since 1984. Jane now teaches on Cardiff University's BSc in Conservation and MSc's in Collections Care and in Conservation Practice. Jane is the stewardship representative on the Welsh Federation of Museum and Art Galleries and the Trustee representing Wales for ICON The Institute for Conservation. Jane is the author of Managing the Library and Archive Environment published by the Preservation Advisory Centre and has published on issues related to: conservation decision making; influence for collections care; sustainable conservation practice; teaching and assessing conservation.

Abstract

Joint presentation (Jane Henderson and Kate Barber) - The Benefits of Touch

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Barry Houlihan

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Biography

Barry Houlihan is a professional archivist and in this capacity focuses on Human Rights/Conflict archives and Theatre and Literary archives. He has catalogued the Project Arts Centre archive, National Library of Ireland, established an archive for the Gaiety School of Acting, and produced a research guide on the history of Smock Alley Theatre. Barry has worked as a researcher for 'Cultureshock' program on Newstalk FM radio and also for the RTÈ Radio 1 documentary series 'From Stage to Street'. Barry is an archivist at the James Hardiman Library at National University of Ireland, Galway, where he is cataloguing the Prof. Kevin Boyle Archive, is an advisor on the Mary Robinson Library and has catalogued the archives of Druid Theatre Company. Barry contributes to the literary review site Writing.ie, is a member of Archives and Records Association (ARA) and the Association for Performing Arts Collections (APAC). Twitter @Nuigarchives & @Stagedreaction.

Abstracts

A Voice for Human Rights – How the archive is contributing to accountability, learning and change.

"All Human Rights for All" was a rallying cry for the UN Declaration for Human Rights. As a basis for campaigners and advocates for the voiceless, those who sought change and affected change did so with this refrain in mind.

The archive, by its record, presence and honesty is a clear voice for Human Rights. The archivist is a mediator between this record and those who work for or against the agenda of 'All Human Rights for All'. In this act of mediation, through preservation of evidence and offering of accountability, the question arises to what extent archivists can be activists?

I will discuss the role of the Human Rights archive – exploring justice, democracy and equality in tandem with the responsibility this places on the archivist and institution. The Human Rights and Conflict archives of the James Hardiman Library, such as the Duddy papers, include records of those displaced from their rights in Northern Ireland during 'The Troubles' and also records of warring factions, peacemakers and citizens on all sides of the divide.

The Prof. Kevin Boyle papers, a pioneering Irish advocate for international human rights, are affording new studies and voices to emerge from the Human Rights archive on cases of freedom of religious belief and expression. In a new partnership with NUI Galway, the Mary Robinson Library will champion co-operation between academic, civic and educational engagement with Human Rights archives.

Being a University archives service raises questions on the role of education and research in Human Rights. These are landmark times in the study of democracy. In Northern Ireland, peace has been especially fragile of late. Internationally, political conflict and human rights archives have placed the duty of the archivist and power of the archive into global headlines.

What are the implications for archivists with this in mind? Are we curators or educators? Are we passive or active in the face of ethical and professional boundaries for archivists? These archives are the record of injustice but also of change. As archivists, how far can or should we pursue this through collaboration with education, outreach and technology in the face of painful memories? In these tentative times, questions of security for sensitive material in archives, where individual and national memory – memory that may be for better or for worse – resides in your care and in your control, have never been more pertinent.

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Sophie Houlton

Biography

Sophie Houlton has worked as an Archivist, Records Manager, Data Protection Officer and Freedom of Information Officer and has been the Archives and Records Adviser at the National Trust since September 2012. Prior to this Sophie was the Corporate Records Manager at English Heritage for five years. Her previous roles have included Archivist at Hastings Borough Council and Head of Data Protection and Records Management at Somerset County Council.

Abstract

Forever for everyone: a strategy for the Records and Archives of the National Trust.

The National Trust holds Records and Archives that document the work of the organisation since its foundation in 1895. As well as reflecting the history of the Trust and its purpose, the Records and Archives are essential for the interpretation and management of the Trusts landscapes, properties and other assets, including over 300 historic buildings and 700 miles of coastline. However, the management of Records and Archives in the Trust has lacked a consistent approach which exposes the organisation to risks and means that the potential of its Archives is not being realised.

The development of a vision and strategy to improve the management and realise the full potential of the Trust's Records and Archives has been an opportunity to ask some fundamental questions - important to every organisation - about the value that Records and Archives have to the Trust and in a wider context.

This session will explore some of these questions, such as:

• What are our Records and Archive for and why do we keep them? How do they link to and support the core purpose and values of our organisation?

• How do we define our Records and Archives? What is their position in the organisation? How are they distinct from, but linked to, our other collections and assets?

• Where do our Archives fit in the local and national archive landscape? What is their wider significance?

• How can we use our Records and Archives more fully – where are the opportunities? What should we do ourselves and what could we work with others to provide?

• Who are the stakeholders for our Records and Archives and how do we involve them?

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Michael Jones

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Biography

Michael Jones is a Senior Research Archivist with the University of Melbourne's eScholarship Research Centre. Since joining the Centre in 2008 he has worked on numerous paper-based and digital archival projects, and with academics, government departments and arts and community organisations to explore the potential of structured informatic systems to support sustainable organisational and public knowledge. His roles have included: National Program Manager, Find & Connect Web Resource project; Advisory Group Member, University of Melbourne Digital Research and Data Preservation Strategy; and Lead Data Archivist (Victorian Node), Australian Data Archive.

Abstract

Identity, records and archival evidence: exploring the needs of Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants

Archives can be strange, confusing places for inexperienced users. To the uninitiated, attempts to navigate a world of complex finding aids, archival metadata, provenance entities and access conditions – not to mention variations in these across institutions – can feel like running into a series of barriers to finding and understanding information. Yet national, state and organisational collections hold records of enormous value to communities. In Australia, one such community is the estimated 500,000 individuals who experienced institutional 'care' as children during the twentieth century – the people known as Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants.

In many cases a childhood in 'care' was characterised by trauma and abuse. As adults, people seek documents, photographs and records in the hope these will help them reconstruct their story and personal identity. Records can also provide important evidence when seeking redress, exploring legal options, or making contributions to formal enquiries such as the recently-announced Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. But these essential records (where they have survived) may be distributed across multiple collections and organisations with variable documentation and inconsistent policies. Negotiating multiple, diverse archives and understanding the relationship between distributed collections and complex organisational histories is difficult at best, and at worst can be an emotional, potentially re-traumatising experience.

This session will discuss issues of identity, accountability and justice with particular reference to our work on the Find & Connect web resource (http://www.findandconnect.gov.au/), a national collaborative project where archivists, social workers and historians work in consultation with government and the community to make hundreds of distributed record collections more discoverable, accessible and understandable online. More broadly, we suggest archivists need to be conscious of the social justice element of their work, and should regularly shift their focus away from individual collections and repositories toward the needs of individual people and communities.

The Find & Connect web resource project is a collaboration between research archivists, historians and social workers from the University of Melbourne and historians from the Australian Catholic University, and is funded by the Australian Government Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs.

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Toi Chi Kwok

Biography

Toi Chi joined the National Archives of Singapore in 2009. Prior to that, she has amassed a wealth of experience in mass communications, national marketing and media relations when she was with the then Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts. She currently assists her Deputy Director in leading the team of records management archivists in appraising government records, developing and reviewing record-keeping policies, guidelines and standards, setting up a digital repository, as well as organising training programmes for government officers on record-keeping. Toi Chi is also a member of ICA-Req project team (International Council of Archives Standard on "Principles and Functional Requirements for Records in Electronic Office Environments") chaired by National Archives of Australia.

Abstract

Preserving Evidential Records: Policy and Strategy – the Singapore Experience

The session will analyze the approach undertaken by the National Archives of Singapore (NAS) in the capture, management and preservation of government digital records to ensure the integrity and future retrievability of the records. Specifically, it will look at the key challenges facing any government agency or organization in a digital world today, namely:

(i) the timely capture, management and preservation of email records that contain important policy discussions and decisions;

(ii) the capture and preservation of digital information in databases and other digital application systems;

(iii) the preservation of important discussions and announcements (reflecting the changes in political and cultural norms of the society) captured in websites and other social media platforms.

The session will focus on the approaches undertaken by NAS in confronting the challenges enumerated in (i) and (ii), such as developing functional requirements for an electronic registry system that prevents emails saved (within the system) from being tampered with to ensure its integrity and reliability, as well as the standards and practices adopted by NAS in preserving digital records with dynamic characteristics (such as databases). It will briefly touch on the work done by the National Library in preserving websites and other social media. The session will also examine the more rigorous and stringent approach undertaken by the archives in handling government records as evidence, vis-à-vis the library's way of dealing with publications as a secondary source of information.

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Sarah Money

Biography

Sarah Money graduated from Camberwell College of Arts in 2008, where she specialised in works of art on paper, gaining additional experience at the National Art Library and the word and image department at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Since then she has worked at Flintshire Record Office as a Conservation Assistant. Sarah joined the Wiltshire County Council Conservation and Museums Advisory Service (CMAS) at the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre in April 2012 as Senior Conservation Officer, Archives; a varied role that combines remedial and preventative conservation of items from Wiltshire and Swindon Archives and conservation and advisory services for a wide range of outside organisations and individuals. Sarah is a member of ICON and has published an article for ARC magazine.

Abstract

Joint presentation with Beth Werrett - Message in a Bottle: The Conservation of a Victorian Time Capsule

A Victorian time capsule dating from 1864 was discovered during construction of the Gainsborough Hotel in Bath; formerly the site of the Bath United Hospital. AC Archaeology were monitoring the site in 2012 when the capsule was found under the foundations by construction workers. The capsule was created to mark the building of the Albert Memorial Wing. Beneath a copper alloy plaque was an iron canister holding a porcelain urn and a glass bottle containing two documents. The diversity of the materials allowed departments at Wiltshire Conservation Service to collaborate. Strong lines of communication were maintained continuously, allowing stronger relationships between colleagues and clients as a result of the project.

The bottle was firmly sealed with a glass stopper and the rolled documents were difficult to see. The Leaflet was stained but seemed sound and dry. The other document appeared damp or coated. We liaised with other professionals for advice on opening the bottle. Suggested methods including using heat and solvents were tested increasing in severity.

Unsuccessful tests and the deterioration of the second document necessitated the controlled opening of the bottle with a glass cutter. On opening there was a smell reminiscent of items treated with arsenic. To avoid health risks, tests were implemented and strict safety precautions followed. After opening we discovered that the second document was waterlogged parchment. It was blocked and had lost its structure completely. Many techniques were applied to relax the document, which were unsuccessful. The parchment was x-rayed, showing an applied seal, as the parchment was severely deteriorated and the seal could be salvaged, it was removed and cleaned.

The bottle was not reconstructed on the request of the client. The canister and plaque have been cleaned and stabilised, but some evidence of burial was retained where the stability of the object would be unaffected. The porcelain urn was conserved to display standard including the replacement of missing decorative features where possible, following examination of contemporary examples.

The collaborative approach has been beneficial allowing the sharing of materials and techniques. The combination of archival material and an archaeological setting presented complex chemical and ethical issues. The unique circumstances dictated that there was no perfect solution and no conventional treatment was effective; we had to choose the most appropriate action. The collection will be displayed with a replica bottle and parchment document in the new hotel.

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Leslie Nellis

Biography

Leslie Nellis received her Bachelor of Arts in 2011 from Augustana College having studied English literature, French literature, and religious studies. She graduated from the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2013. While earning her Masters degree, Leslie worked at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, Wisconsin Library Services, the University Archives, Circus World Museum, and the Wisconsin Historical Society. She is a member of the Society of American Archivists.

Abstract

Freedom Summer: documenting and implementing an online civil rights collection at the Wisconsin Historical Society

The Freedom Summer Project of 1964 was an American Civil Rights initiative of the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) with the purpose of registering African-American voters in the state of Mississippi. The project recruited volunteers to live in Mississippi for a summer to register voters, establish Freedom Schools and Freedom Houses, set up community centers, and provide aid to African-American citizens living in the American south. During many civil rights projects occurring in the United States at this time, the Wisconsin Historical Society sent volunteers and employees to the American south to actively collect materials relating to these movements. Not only were organizational records collected, but ephemeral materials pertaining to Freedom Schools, grassroots organizations, and volunteer papers were also collected. Because of this effort, the Wisconsin Historical Society has one of the most notable, and diverse, civil rights collections in the United States. Organizations such as CORE, COFO, SNCC, and the MFDP are all represented, as well as major civil rights leaders and lawyers papers. Also included in the collection are grassroots organization papers, volunteer correspondence, and pamphlets. This paper discusses the implementation and need for a digital collection focused on the Freedom Summer project. It not only covers the selection process for materials, but also the digitization and description stages. Finally, this paper advocates for the need to responsibly collaborate with people and organizations involved with the Freedom Summer collection, including civil rights volunteers, collectors, donors, and organizations.

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Dr Elizabeth New

Dr_Elizabeth_New_Photo

Biography

Dr Elizabeth New is a Lecturer in Medieval History and Senior Researcher for the AHRC funded Exploring Medieval Seals project at Aberystwyth University; she also contributes to the Archive Administration programme at Aberystwyth. She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and works on aspects of the social history and material culture of medieval Britain. Dr New has a particular interest in the form, function and uses of seals, and works extensively with colleagues from different academic fields and across the heritage sector to promote further understanding and better use of this valuable historical resource. Dr New is the author of numerous academic publications, recent and forthcoming newspaper and magazine articles (including a contribution to the Western Mail's 'Objects in Welsh History' series), and of Seals and Sealing Practices, part of the British Records Association's Archives & the User series.

Abstract

A good impression: the preservation and interpretation of seals.

Hundreds of thousands of seals survive in archives, museums and private collections across Britain. Most are small but can convey a great deal of information about the people and institutions that owned and used them, and provide a valuable repository of images and words from the past. Despite this they remain an under-exploited resource for researchers, while the archivists, curators and conservators who care for them may also feel the need for more information and guidance, especially with regard to how to preserve and interpret this material.

This paper will highlight the work of the Seals in Medieval Wales and Exploring Medieval Seals projects, both funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council and based at Aberystwyth University. Drawing on an extensive new data-set compiled from 26 collections across nine different repositories, it will provide information about seals and sealing practices and how this material can be interpreted. The principal focus will be a consideration of the challenges involved in storing and conserving seals, (both impressions still attached to their parent document and loose impressions and casts) how to make them accessible while maintaining their long-term security, and how and why researchers might want to use them. Above all, this paper will address the key question of how conservators, archivists and researchers of different kinds can work together to ensure that the concerns of the preservation of and access to seals and sealed documents are taken fully into account as this material becomes more widely used for historical and cultural studies.

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Antony Oliver

Biography

My career in Archives began as a school leaver in what was then Staffordshire County Record Office. My first post there was as Stack Room Assistant, part of the job was the issuing of original documents to the public and the other part involved the preservation of the collections at Stafford including the formulation of packaging systems, re – boxing, environmental monitoring plus the general housekeeping of the strong room areas.

It was whilst I was in this post that I became interested in Conservation. Watching the Conservators at close hand made me realise my true vocation.

I was allowed to carry out basic repair work as well as assisting the Conservators in some of their tasks and that's how it all began!

In 1986 I became a full time Conservator in Stafford and embarked on the Society of Archivists Training Scheme for Conservators in 1988. I graduated from the scheme in 1991.

In 1996 I became a registered Conservator and in 2000 I achieved accredited status through the Society of Archivists.

I left Staffordshire Record Office in 1999 to take up the post of Conservator with Sheffield Libraries Archives and Information.

I am currently serving as Training Officer on the committee of the Archives and Records Association Preservation and Conservation Group.

Abstract

The conservation of a series of black and white photographs

Many archive repositories contain within their collections photographs that require specialist care and attention. Often, photographs are housed in inappropriate packaging systems which can in some cases cause irreversible damage to this most sensitive of media.

The aim of this presentation is to show (via a practical demonstration) how damaged surface emulsions can be treated sympathetically with gelatine and how tears and damaged areas on the backs of photographs can be supported.

The presentation will also look at preservation packaging of photographs using appropriate materials and their storage.

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Rhian Phillips

Rhian_Phillips

Biography

Rhian Phillips is Senior Archivist at Glamorgan Archives. Rhian graduated in Welsh History and English from Aberystwyth University. She worked as Trainee Archivist at the National Library of Wales before obtaining her archive qualification from Aberystwyth University in 2001. After qualification she spent a year working as Archives Hub Project Archivist for Aberystwyth and Lampeter Universities. In 2002, Rhian began working as an Archivist at what was then Glamorgan Record Office (now Glamorgan Archives), becoming Senior Archivist in August 2005. In 2006 Rhian moved to work as Senior Archivist at West Glamorgan Archive Service, where she was responsible for public services and outreach. She returned to work as Senior Archivist at Glamorgan Archives in February 2011, where she holds responsibility for Access and Community Engagement.

Abstract

Joint presentation (Rhian Phillips and Mari Takayanagi) - People and Parliament: Connecting with Communities in Cardiff

Since 2009, the Parliamentary Archives has been working with regional archive partners in a project called 'People and Parliament: Connecting with Communities'. The project sought to widen access to the Parliamentary collections and develop new audients by exploring connections between the people of the UK, their communities, and Parliament. Groups in five regions undertook a variety of activities which linked the rich and largely unknown local history archival material held at Westminster with related holdings of regional archives. The resulting case studies demonstrate how people have influenced Parliament in various ways across the centuries, and how Parliament has in turn affected communities.

During 2011-2013, the Parliamentary Archives and Glamorgan Archives worked in partnership to explore the history of Cardiff Docks. Members of Grangetown Local History Society in Cardiff sought to discover how and why their community developed. They undertook research using records held locally at Glamorgan Archives and at the Parliamentary Archives. The long memories and varied experiences of individual members contributed to a broader picture of how their city developed during the 19th century. Schoolchildren from Mount Stuart Primary School also participated in research activities, aiming to ensure that the heritage of Cardiff Docks wouldn't be forgotten by the new generation now living in Butetown. A resident artist then worked with Grangetown Local History Society to interpret the archive material in a new and creative way.

The work undertaken during the project drew especially on evidence submitted to Parliament by members of the public who both supported and opposed the Bute Docks Bills. One of the main thrusts was the examination of the impact of Parliament on the development of Cardiff and communities within the city. But additionally the project focussed on the impact which the people of Cardiff in turn had on decisions made by Parliament; decisions that would ultimately influence not only their lives but those of generations to come. The project served to give people aspirations through history, to establish a pride in their community through an understanding of its rich and diverse heritage, and to create trust in official organisations through contact with their archive services.

The end products are a web based case study exploring the project work and 'Sea of Words', a short animated film by artist Trevor Woolery. The latter will be shown at the end of the session.

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Mario H. Ramírez

Biography

Mario H. Ramírez is a Project Archivist at the University of California, Berkeley. He is author of "Witness to Brutality: Documenting Torture and Truth in Post-Civil War El Salvador" in Archiefkunde, "The Task of the Latino/a Archivist: On Archiving Identity and Community" in Interactions: UCLA Journal of Education and Information Studies, and co-author, with Laurence Lepetit and Patrizia Lapiscopia, of "The Role of Social Media and Web 2.0 Technologies in the Protection of Cultural Heritage." His current research interests include the role of states of repression in the creation of documentary evidence, the archiving of human rights violations in Latin America and the construction of memory and national identities in post-conflict societies and their Diasporas. He is a founding member of the U.S. Chapter of Archivists without Borders, and is a steering committee member of the International Archival Affairs Roundtable and the Manuscript Repositories Section, both of the Society of American Archivists.

Abstract

Archives and Post-Conflict Identity Formation in Latin America

Over the past thirty years, several countries in Latin America have emerged from periods of violent state repression that have left an indelible mark on the identities and psychological development of their populations. Archives from governmental sources and the human rights sector have played a key role in not only the pursuit for justice and reconciliation, but also in how these societies have formulated their collective and individual identities post-conflict. Drawing on contemporary research in archives and human rights, post-conflict studies, memory, trauma and Latin American Studies, this essay looks at the influence of archives on the building of national identities that seek to reconcile histories of violence and political repression with emerging needs for social and cultural cohesion. It explores the contrasting narratives and notions of self dictated by archival resources, and the ways in which they reflect historical tensions and exclusions that may prohibit the possibility of assuming a unified national identity. Moreover, this essay interrogates the place of archivists in this equation, what informed their record keeping practices during and after repressive regimes and their subsequent influence on the shaping of these narratives of identity.

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Louise Ray

Louise_Ray_Photo

Biography

A freelance archives and records consultant working with a wide range of organisations, including international and national strategic bodies, Louise is also an Honorary Lecturer in UCL's Department of Information Studies. In previous roles at The National Archives and NCA she provided capacity-building support to UK archive services, helping lever over £50 million into the sector through training and one-to-one development advice. She has also worked as archivist for the National Theatre, Tate and SOAS. She is founder convenor of PSQG's sub-committee on Volunteering and a member of the ARA Diversity Working Group.

Publications include: Volunteering in Archives (2009) National Council on Archives, Funding the Archives Sector with Elizabeth Shepherd and Marie Laperdrix (2012), The National Archives/University College London, Management Skills for Archivists and Records Managers, editor (forthcoming – Facet Publishing), Guest Editor of Journal of the Society of Archivist 'Community Engagement and the Olympics and Paralympics' (Apr 2012).

Abstract

The Business of Archival Ethics

Archivists, records managers and conservators are increasingly recognising the need for better management skills in order to run effective services. Drawing on the conference theme this talk will consider whether these management practices add a further level of complexity to archival ethics or are these skills essential in servicing the accountability agenda? Do they hinder the archivist in meeting the conduct ascribed in profession codes of ethics, or do they help in arming the archivist to function in a wider organisational environment?

This presentation will examine whether being a 'good' manager and a being a 'good' archivist require conflicting or complementary working practices and ethical standpoints. This presentation will draw on a number of research projects undertaken by the speaker to explore specific areas such as fundraising, volunteer management, advocacy, and impact evaluation, with particularly reference to the UK, to consider how these tensions play out in practice.

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Sandra Rubli

Biography

Sandra Rubli is a PhD candidate at swisspeace and the University of Basel. Her thesis "Transitional justice as an instrument for political struggles" analyzes the role of transitional justice in Burundi's post-conflict state-formation process. Since November 2008, she has also been working as researcher and programme officer for KOFF and the Dealing with the Past Programme at swisspeace where she conducts research for one project, among others, on archives of truth commissions. She has previously worked as a research assistant and analyst for the conflict early warning programme FAST International, where she was responsible for Burundi, Rwanda, DRC, Ethiopia and Somalia. She holds a MA in Political Science from the University of Berne, Switzerland (2007). Her research interests include dealing with the past, the politics of transitional justice and state-formation processes in (post-)conflict countries.

Abstract

Joint Presentation (Sandra Rubli and Elisabeth Baumgartner) - The Role of Truth Commission's Archives in Dealing with the Past Processes

Dr. Briony Jones co-authored the paper but will not be present at the ARA conference in Cardiff.

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Stephen Scarth

Stephen_Scarth

Biography

Stephen is Head of Public Services at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) and has responsibility for all visitor related services for both onsite and online users. He is also responsible for the delivery of exhibitions and events and for the marketing of PRONI at Titanic Quarter, and is a board member of the Centre of Migration Studies at Omagh. He is PRONI's representative on the Alliance of Libraries, Museums and Archives (ALMA); the Archive Accreditation Workstream; NI Community Relations Council-led Roundtable Marking Anniversaries; Universities Ireland History Group and PSQG Steering Group.

Abstract

Archival Accountability for a New Northern Ireland

Stephen will explore how PRONI has repositioned itself having moved into brand new purpose built premises in the historic Titanic Quarter area of Belfast in 2011. The £29m move was set against the backdrop of a post-conflict reconciliation landscape and the embedding of Devolved Government in NI. Consequently PRONI has responded by transforming itself into an institution that is more relevant to NI citizens, that takes a lead with partner and peer institutions, and engages with the wider archival community. This paper will touch upon how PRONI has fostered partnerships, developed advocates and worked with tourism and media partners to promote the Northern Ireland brand. It will also show how PRONI is addressing the targeting of socially excluded communities; taking a lead on the marking of centenary commemorations; and realigning with the education sector.

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Anthea Seles

Anthea_Seles

Biography

Anthea, a doctoral candidate at University College London studying digital repositories and developing nations, joined the Trust in September 2010. Prior to coming to London, she worked as the Archivist, Records Manager and Privacy Coordinator for the Archdiocese of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada (2003-2010). She is a graduate of the Masters of Archival Studies Program at the university of British Columbia. She co-authored the Trust's training module on Preserving Electronic Records (2009) along with Adrian Brown, Shadrack Katuu and Peter Sebina, and she has presented several papers at the Association of Canadian Archivists conferences as well as one at I-CHORA 2. She has served as a member of the Canadian Council of Archives National Adjudication Committee for National Archival Development Program Grants (2010) and as a member of the Religious Archivists Working Group for the Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commision (2009-2010); she was President of the Archivists Association of British Columbia (2005-2007).

Abstract

Culture or Accountability? The Primary Function of Government Archives and its Implications for Convergence

The debate about the primary function of public archives is, in the Anglophone world, as old as the archives profession. This paper will posit that the public archives is chiefly an administrative unit with a governance function, with the secondary function of supporting historical research. The tension between these two roles is implicit in the current trend towards 'convergence', whereby public archives are grouped with, or more frequently subsumed by, libraries or museums in an attempt to consolidate services and reduce budgets.

The archives profession is largely responsible for creating the grounds for these mergers in that it has failed to clearly articulate the administrative function of the archives. There has not yet been a critical review of the repercussions of 'convergence'. This paper seeks to redress this by posing questions such as: What is convergence? What are the repercussions, for public archives, of convergence with cultural institutions? How does convergence effect the funding, mandate, and perception of the archives? Are there useful forms of convergence? Is the Australian model, where the National Archives was moved to work more closely with other accountability agencies, more helpful?

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Maria Sienkiewicz

Biography

Maria qualified as an archivist from the Bangor course in 1996, and her first post was at Lancashire Record Office. In 1999, she moved to Oldham Local Studies and Archives, and in 2002, she proved how transferrable archive skills are when she became the Visitor Services Manager for Oldham's Museum and Gallery Service. However, the pull of archives proved too strong and in 2004, Maria moved to Barclays as Group Archivist.

Maria is a registered member of ARA. In its previous incarnation as the Society of Archivists, Maria served on Council as Assistant Secretary and on the committee of the Section for Business Records as Treasurer. Maria is also a member of the Business Archives Council and has published two articles in Business Archives Principles and Practice: 'A model archivist' (with Nigel Hardman and Jeannette Strickland), and Asset or liability: the value of an archive to a company's reputation' (both May 2008). Maria is also an occasional guest lecturer on the archive course at Liverpool University.

Abstract

The View From Within: a bank archivist looks back

Since 2008, the reputations of Britain's banks have been at an all-time low. 2012 was a particularly eventful year for Barclays, with the Bank embroiled in a scandal that led to the resignation of its Chairman, Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer. Since then, under new leadership, Barclays has attempted to rebuild its reputation, boost staff morale and change its culture.

This paper will consider how recent events have impacted on the archives, how the archives staff have responded, and how these experiences contain lessons that can be shared with the wider profession. Areas under consideration will include:

A personal reflection on working for an organisation under attack by the media and politicians – does this affect the archivists' ability to do their job? Is an important part of being an archivist an ability to maintain a certain degree of neutrality?

The impact of organisational change – how is the archive affected by budget and staffing cuts? Will restructuring impact the archives? How can we plan for the future in an uncertain world?

The demand for access to records as part of review and investigative processes – how does the archive cope with sudden, urgent and voluminous enquiries for records needed at the highest levels? And what can be done when the process highlights gaps?

The desire to use the archives and history of a business to help restore reputation – how can the archive respond positively to a sudden upsurge in interest while maintaining key services? How can the archive capitalise on increased interest?

In conclusion, the paper will contemplate the place of archives within businesses. Have these events demonstrated the value of business archives or exposed them as a risk?

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Nathan Sowry

Biography

Nathan Sowry received his BA degree in Religious Studies and Cultural Anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh, MA degree in History from Washington State University, and MLIS degree in Archives from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He works as an Archivist with the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African Art.

Abstract

Viewing Subject(s) as Creator(s): The Need to Re-examine and Re-describe Civil Rights Collections for Pluralist Provenance

This paper re-examines and re-describes three Civil Rights collections, in multiple formats, to illustrate broader inclusivity through the notions of co-creatorship and pluralist provenance. Although a thorough re-writing of all finding aid descriptions to represent pluralist perspectives is not tenable, it may be possible, with education and advocacy, for future archivists and researchers to better understand, recognize, and appreciate the multiple perspectives and co-creatorship that exist in so many archival collections. This approach reflects wider trends among continuum theorists and postmodern archivists who advocate that such an undertaking would "create an environment of respect" by illustrating the existence of "multiple simultaneous and parallel provenance." Finally, this approach, incorporated with relevant modes of technology such as electronic finding aids and electronic records, provides greater user access for researchers interested in connections between and across archival collections, their subjects, and creators.

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Mari Takayanagi

Biography

Dr Mari Takayanagi is Senior Archivist at the Parliamentary Archives, responsible for day to day management of public services and outreach activities. She has worked at the Parliamentary Archives since 2000 in various roles, and previously worked at the London School of Economics Archives and Guinness Archives. She has been a member of the Society of Archivists/ARA since 1997, and completed the Registration Scheme between 1997-2000. She was the Society's Registrar 2002-2005 and continues to act as an assessor for the Registration Scheme. She has an MA in Archives and Records Management from UCL and in 2012 she was awarded a PhD in history by King's College London. Her doctoral thesis was on the subject of 'Parliament and Women c.1900-1945'.

Abstract

Joint presentation (Mari Takayanagi and Rhian Phillips) - People and Parliament: Connecting with Communities in Cardiff

The end products are a web based case study exploring the project work and 'Sea of Words', a short animated film by artist Trevor Woolery. The latter will be shown at the end of the session.

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Natasha Trenwith

No photo available.

Biography

Since graduating from Northumbria University in 2010, (completing a postgraduate course in Fine Art Conservation focused on works of art on paper), I have developed and honed my skills to become a confident and knowledgeable paper conservator working in archives, fine art and private practices. I am currently employed as a maternity cover paper conservator at Northamptonshire record office, where I run a busy conservation studio, involved in making the archive collections we hold at the record office accessible to the public; working toward the PD5454 standard. I am also involved in training and working closely with volunteers. Being a member of ICON, IIC and ARA also allows me to keep up to date with new conservation practices by attending training days and conferences.

Abstract

Northamptonshire Archives and Heritage Service - Where there is a will there is a way: The treatment of 16th Century wills.

Where there is a will there is a way: The treatment of 16th Century wills; a presentation to discuss the beginning of a conservation project of our early wills collection.

At Northamptonshire record office we house a large collection of local wills and probates dating from 1469 – 1858, for the period 1510 - 1724 copies are available on microfilm. Although we do have copies of some of the more damaged wills on micro film, these aren't always legible due to poor repair work carried out in the late 19th century. This has caused the condition of our wills to worsen; become incredibly fragile and therefore requiring extensive conservation treatment. There are 27 volumes in total all in a similarly poor condition dating from 1510 – 1724 which, require immediate conservation to aid with the impending digitisation project.

The presentation will discuss the pilot project of our early wills conservation program which began with the 1st volume dating 1510-1520. The collection is increasingly popular with our visitors however the legibility of the wills restricts their production, therefore a priority for conservation treatment. Through sympathetic conservation treatments the wills will be removed from the strains caused by the volumes binding and the early repairs.

Throughout the talk I shall evaluate the treatment, the decision making, what problems were encountered, the ethical issues that needed to be considered and how we ensured the wills can become accessible to our community.

An early stage in the project involved the use of social media to document and publicise the step by step process of conservation. We assessed different methods with the public, to improve engaging their understanding of archive services. By allowing people to see what is going on behind the scenes, we hope to continue increasing engagement through awareness, educate participants and potentially generate income through donations.

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Beth Werrett

Biography

Beth Werrett initially studied Art History at the Courtauld Institute of Art continuing to complete an MSc in Conservation for Archaeology and Museums at UCL. Previously employed by both the Wallace Collection and the Science Museum in London Beth moved to Wiltshire Council Conservation and Museums Advisory Service (CMAS) in 2009.

As a Contract Conservator at CMAS Beth provides advice, preventive, investigative and remedial conservation services for a diverse range of clients including archaeological units, independent museums and larger Heritage organisations.

As an accredited conservator Beth is committed to the development of the conservation profession. As a member of the ICON Archaeology Group committee Beth actively works to provide opportunities for skills sharing and cross specialism collaboration. Beth regularly publishes papers on interesting or innovative projects most recently in The Geological Curator, ICON News and a web based publication in connection with the annual IFA conference.

Abstract

Joint presentation with Sarh Money - Message in a Bottle: The Conservation of a Victorian Time Capsule

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Patricia Whatley

Patricia_Whatley

Biography

Patricia Whatley is a registered archivist and is University Archivist, Director of the Centre for Archive & Information Studies and Hon Lecturer, University of Dundee. She is a history graduate and will submit a history PhD (University of Dundee) in June. She is Chair of the Economic & Social History Society of Scotland, a trustee of the Scottish Historical Trust, Vice-Chair of the Scottish Council on Archives, a member of the Arts and Humanities Research Council Peer Review College, a member of the Section Bureau of the ICA Section for Archival Education and on the Advisory Board of a Finnish Academy-funded research project 'Making and Interpreting National Pasts – the Role of Finnish Archives as Networks of Power and Sites of Memory'. Recent publications include 'Scottish Archival Education: the Centre for Archive and Information Studies, a Dundee perspective', Scottish Archives, 2012 and Lost Dundee 2nd ed., with C.A. McKean, Birlinn, (pending 2013).

Abstract

Ethics and the Archivist: 'The Moral Defence of the Archivist'[1]

This presentation will address issues surrounding the ethical responsibilities of professional archivists in the workplace. Ethical issues arguably produce greater long term challenges than either technological or other professional activities. How archivists perceive their main responsibilities, particularly with regards to ethics and accountability affect their approach to core functions including appraisal, access and outreach. How is the profession responding to this?

Issues will include:

the context of community and other non-custodial archives.

Whether archivists can focus on acting ethically and with accountability and trust if their employers undermine their personal and professional morality and are unwilling to back them up, perhaps fearing legal action

The impact of local and national political, social and economic sensitivities

The need to protect the physical and intellectual integrity of archival collections used by a range of individuals and companies, including the media, as a cultural resource

The potential for and the consequences of mis-interpretation / representation and the ethical implications

Ongoing debates by leading archival educators and writers will be addressed, including the issues of power in the archive and the impact of recent compliance legislation; has legislation reduced the effectiveness of recordkeeping? Are our ethics strong enough to withstand the pressures that arise from it? Are all archivists' actions inherently political, can they maintain impartiality and objectivity.

[1]Professional Ethics: The Moral Defence Of The Archivist, Eric Ketelaar, October 1998, http://www.ucd.ie/archives/html/conferences/cyber4.htm.

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Dilwyn Williams

Dilwyn_Williams_Photo

Biography

I have been working as a book and archive conservator since 1985, where I joined the staff of the Conservation Unit at The National Library of Wales. The first four years were spent as an apprentice doing in house training to learn the many aspects of book and archive conservation under the guidance of Mr Julian Thomas who was the head of the Conservation Unit.

Years were spent working on the vast collections of the NLW and as I did not have a recognised qualification I enrolled on the Society of Archivists Conservation Training Scheme in 2005. Over the next couple of years I spent time away at different conservation studios learning new and different techniques. I was successful in obtaining my Certificate in 2008.

I have attended many SOA/ARA/ICON conferences over the years and also SOA Regional meetings where on occasion I have presented talks. Hopefully at the end of this year I will become an ARA instructor for the training scheme. In December 2009 I had an article published in the ARC magazine entitled 'Six Facsimiles of The Pennal Letter'.

During the restructuring of the library's departments two years ago I was given more responsibility of being a line manager for the library's box making team who operate 2 Kasemake machines.

Abstracts

The Boston MSS

A brief history of the Boston MSS and how it came to be in the possession of the NLW. I will describe the work undertaken to disbind, repair, digitize and to rebind the volume. I will also discuss our methods of producing two identical facsimile copies of the manuscript for educational purposes.

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Dr Helen Wilson

Dr_Helen_Wilson

Biography

Dr. Helen Wilson graduated in Chemistry from the University of Oxford in 2007 following a research project on iron gall ink on paper. Between 2007 and 2008 Helen was an ICON HLF Conservation Science intern at The Pigmentum Project, London. The following Science and Heritage Programme PhD project with the University of Manchester and the British Museum (2008-2012) investigated non-aqueous chemical stabilisation treatments for iron-tannate dyed organic materials. Helen is currently a Research Fellow at The National Archives developing preservation protocols for transparent paper.

Wilson, H., Cruickshank, P., Hacke, M., Carr, C., Daniels, V., Stacey, R., and Rigout, M., 2011. Investigation of non-aqueous remedial treatments for iron-tannate dyed textiles.

In: ICOM-CC 16th Triennial Conference. Lisbon, Portugal 19 - 23 September 2011. Lisbon: Critério - Produção Gráfica, Lda.

Wilson, H., Carr, C., and Hacke, M., 2012. Production and validation of model iron-tannate dyed textiles for use as historic textile substitutes in stabilisation treatment studies. Chemistry Central Journal, 6:44.

Abstract

Developing preservation protocols for transparent paper

The National Archives, the official archive of the UK government, England, and Wales, preserves and makes accessible a growing collection of documents, files, and images. Transparent paper is one of many material types present in the collection but one which is proving problematic to conserve due to its fragility, large size, instability to moisture and/or solvents, and dispersal throughout the collection. A one year research project is underway to develop a much needed pathway through the complex considerations necessary when determining the most appropriate preservation method for transparent paper at The National Archives. This pathway is being achieved through the development of a Preservation Framework and framework tools.

The Preservation Framework was developed following discussion with conservators at The National Archives, and consideration of the role of records and the processes through which transparent papers undergo to fulfil that role. The framework summarises the factors that must be considered when determining the most suitable preservation method for transparent papers at The National Archives. From this framework, knowledge gaps and areas of the decision-making process in need of improvement have been identified. Three of these areas have been selected for the development of framework tools (methodologies/resources):

Improving understanding of the formation and conservation of transparent papers to aid conservators in their decisions about conservation treatments for transparent paper;
Improving understanding of the condition and location of transparent paper within the collection to enable better planning of conservation work and provide an accessible source of transparent papers for analysis;
Providing methodologies for the identification of different types of transparent paper since the different types of paper can respond differently to conservation treatments.

The tools that are developed in these three areas can be expanded upon after the completion of this project. In this manner, the evidence and knowledge base upon which preservation decisions are being made will continue to be improved which will further improve the preservation of transparent papers at The National Archives.

Last Updated (Thursday, 09 May 2013 11:03) Thursday, 03 May 2012 09:51

Speakers Biographies and Abstracts 2013