Workshops
The MACC Preservation Services department offers a large variety of workshops each year. Some are designed to address the most common collections care needs expressed by collecting institutions, while others cover more advanced and technical issues. Instructors include MACC staff along with other nationally recognized experts. MACC workshops serve the staffs of historical collections, Native American collections, culturally-focused collections, fine art collections, library collections, and archival collections. Please check back frequently for updates on workshop offerings, locations and dates.

Click HERE for the Workshop registration form.

Disaster Response: The Critical First 48 Hours

March 31, 2008 Iowa Museums Association
Location: State Historical Society of Iowa in Des Moines, IA
(Contact Cynthia Sweet imasweet@cfu.net or call (319) 239-2236)
May 2, 2008 Minnesota Association of Museums
Location: the American Swedish Institute in Saint Paul, MN
(Contact Nina Clark ninac@americanswedishinst.org or call 612-870-3374)

This workshop will cover the following topics: How to put a written Disaster/Emergency Preparedness Plan into action. Who is in charge at any given time. The size of the disaster may dictate the appropriate response. What happens when the affected area is declared a Federal Disaster Area. Recording a disaster for insurance or FEMA purposes. How to protect collections from further harm. Working with emergency responders (police, fire department, FEMA, etc.). Making sure cultural institution staff responders are safe, secure and well equipped. Changing priorities in an ever-changing event. How to maintain flexibility and communication. What to do if there is loss of life. Working with the media. Working with insurance companies and representatives.

Instruction will be conducted through a variety of methods, including lecture and PowerPoint, discussion, and practical and role-playing exercises. Neil Cockerline, Director of Preservation Services and/or Elisa Redman, Assistant Director of Preservation Services, MACC, will teach this one-day workshop.

After a Disaster: Saving and Salvaging Collection Materials and Artifacts

(Fall 2008) Midwest Registrar’s Committee
Location: Minnesota History Center in Saint Paul, MN

October 3, 2008 Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums
Location: Stearns History Museum in Saint Cloud, MN
(Contact Mike Worcester cokatomuseum@cmgate.com)

November 8, 2008 North Dakota Governor’s Conference
Location: State Historical Society of North Dakota in Bismarck, ND
(Contact Marilyn Snyder msnyder@nd.gov)

The instructors will discuss all aspects of a long-range salvage operation including an overview of various disasters and their effects on different types of materials; prioritizing salvageable artifacts; materials needed for a salvage operation; handling damaged artifacts; methods of drying various types of artifacts; pros and cons of various methods of freeze drying; preventing mold outbreaks; simple cleaning procedures that staff may carry out; types of damages that require a professional conservator; labeling affected artifacts; time factors involving recovery and salvage; recording recovery efforts; and the impact of salvaging collections on other museum operations.

Lecture and slides will be accompanied by practical exercises in various recovery procedures for damaged artifacts using materials from MACC’s study collection. Neil C. Cockerline, Director of Preservation Services and Elisa L. Redman, Assistant Director of Preservation Services will teach this one-day workshop.

Writing Grants for Basic Conservation Projects

March 27-28, 2008 –$245 Location: Northstar Museum of Boy Scouting and Girl Scouting in North St. Paul, MN www.nssn.org
(Contact MACC Preservation Services at 612-870-3128 or info@preserveart.org)

The instructors will present a comprehensive workshop on grant-writing for basic conservation-related projects including Overall General Preservation/Conservation Surveys, writing Long-term Preservation Policies, preservation training, and obtaining supplies and materials for basic rehousing of collections projects. Related topics will include discussing potential funding sources at the Federal, state and local levels, doing an internal review to facilitate presenting the organization in the best possible light, putting all of the pieces together before developing a grant, how to budget, and how to develop a realistic proposal.

The goal of the workshop is for participants to leave the session with an actual draft proposal. Preservation Services staff will then follow-up with participants who are developing full grants applications. Neil Cockerline, Director of Preservation Services and Elisa Redman, Assistant Director of Preservation Services, MACC, will teach this two-day workshop.

The Research and Writing of a Long-Range Preservation Plan

June 26-27, 2008 –(2 days)$295 Location: Plains Art Museum Fargo, ND
(Contact MACC Preservation Services at 612-870-3128 or info@preserveart.org)

July 10-11, 2008 –(2 days)$295 Location: American Association of University Women – Minneapolis Branch http://www.aauwmpls.org/index.html
(Contact MACC Preservation Services at 612-870-3128 or info@preserveart.org)

A Long-Range Preservation Plan is an essential document for all cultural institutions that own collections. Once a General Preservation Needs Assessment Survey is completed, a cultural institution should develop a Long-Range Preservation Plan, based upon the general survey and institutional priorities. This plan is an in-house document that defines preservation goals and priorities, determines a logical course of implementation and establishes parallel funding strategies to accomplish these goals. Federal Funding Agencies and other potential supporters like to see funding requests based upon planning, not stand-alone, individual projects. All too often, cultural institutions apply for grants “out-of-step” and are disappointed when grant applications are turned down. Incorporating step-by-step procedures into long-term preservation and conservation planning is essential for raising funds from any source and accomplishing needed objectives.

This course will incorporate a combination of lecture, Power Point, and practical exercises, as well as individual, one-on-one advice resulting in a detailed outline of a Long-Range Preservation Plan for your institution. This two-day course will be taught by Neil Cockerline, Director of Preservation Services, or Elisa Redman, Assistant Director of Preservation.

HVAC Systems: Design, Construction, Operation and Associated Implications for Museums, Libraries, and Archival Collections Care

May 8-9, 2008 –$355
Location: Minitex, University of Minnesota – Minneapolis http://www.minitex.umn.edu/
(Contact MACC Preservation Services at 612-870-3128 or info@preserveart.org)

A comprehensive workshop on issues regarding heating, ventilating and air conditioning design, construction, operation and associated implications for cultural collections care. Workshop topics will include: Defining Performance Criteria; Central Air Handling Systems; Central Heating Systems; Central Cooling Systems; Humidification Systems; Dehumidification Systems; Building Pressurization; New Buildings, Renovations and Building Additions; Value Engineering; Operating Cost Implications; Commissioning; Energy Conservation and Energy Management; Case Studies; and Best Practices.

Workshop objectives are to provide attendees with information needed to understand, influence, and evaluate the work of design, construction, and operations teams in their respective institutions. Each workshop participant will receive a comprehensive notebook of information containing technical leaflets, articles and related materials. This two-day workshop will be taught by Rebecca T. Ellis, PE, LEED® AP, CCP, CxA, Questions & Solutions® Engineering, Chaska, Minnesota.

Stay Tuned for 2009 ...

Dangerous Collections: Chemical Poisons In Native American Materials

Date: TBD, 2009
Location: The Science Museum of Minnesota – Saint Paul
(Contact MACC Preservation Services at 612-870-3128 or info@preserveart.org)

A comprehensive workshop on the history, use, identification and potential removal of chemical poisons applied as pesticides and fungicides to Native American Materials, which are often found in modern museum and tribal collections. Collections Care Specialists have long held a double concern regarding this issue. The first issue is that the use of these chemical additives may cause unpredictable, disfiguring, and irreversible changes to the objects treated. The second issue regards the ongoing threat of these chemical poisons to the collections care staff that must access, examine, handle and care for these materials. This second issue has even more serious implications since the passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), where sacred objects that could be contaminated may be returned to their traditional ceremonial or religious context and use by native peoples.

This workshop will focus on determining the potential hazard to the contaminated objects and to the persons handling contaminated objects; testing and sampling techniques to detect pesticide residues; medical interpretation of analyses; recommendations for personal protective equipment and techniques for handling and storage; and the potential options for pesticide residue removal will be discussed through lecture, demonstration, and discussion. Each workshop participant will receive a comprehensive notebook of information containing technical leaflets, articles and related materials. This course will be taught by a combination of lecture, demonstration and discussion. Each workshop participant will receive a comprehensive notebook of information containing technical leaflets, articles and related materials. The workshop will be taught by Nancy Odegaard, Conservator, Professor and Head, Preservation Division, Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona.