Preservation Assessment of American Indian Objects in the Tweed Museum of Art

FAIN: PG-51142-11

University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN 55455-2009)
Camille V. Doran (Project Director: May 2010 to November 2012)

Hiring a consultant to conduct a preservation assessment of 420 Native American artifacts from the Great Lakes region housed in the Tweed Museum of Art, and to provide workshop training to museum staff in best practices for the care of collections. These fragile objects made from organic materials range from the mid-19th century to the present and include birch bark containers, woven baskets, mats, quillwork, and beadwork.

A private consultant, Paul Storch, will assess the preservation needs of the 420 American Indian artifacts and objects in the Tweed Museum of Art collection and make recommendations for the short- and long-term preservation of these objects. In addition the consultant will provide a workshop to Tweed staff and interns on the theory and methods of storing and handling ethnographic objects in collection. Over 400 of the objects were gifted in 2007 from Richard E. Nelson. This collection is unique due to its size and focus on artifacts from the Woodlands cultures surrounding the Great lakes region and the Objiwe in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The works range in date from mid-19th century to contemporary and from birch bark containers to woven baskets and mats, quillwork and beadwork. Without proper preservation and storage of these works the access to and study of these objects will be severely restricted.