Custom Archival Housing for the Fernbank Museum's Humanities Collections

FAIN: PG-51206-11

Fernbank Museum of Natural History (Atlanta, GA 30307-1221)
Bobbi Michelle Hohmann (Project Director: May 2010 to December 2012)

Hiring a conservator to provide technical guidance for the housing of collections documenting the history and culture of Georgia and the Southeast, including unique, unusually shaped, and fragile objects from the museum's archaeology, ethnographic, and history collections. Among these are ceramics, textiles, decorative arts, and musical instruments. Also planned is an on-site training workshop and the purchase of preservation supplies.

Fernbank’s Humanities Collections are among the Museum’s most valuable assets and central to its mission to inspire life-long learning of natural history through dynamic programming to encourage a greater appreciation of our planet and its people. Featured in exhibitions, studied by researchers and examined by the public in Museum and classroom settings, these objects provide a lens through which to explore the unique history of Georgia and the Southeast as well as cultural groups from around the world. To ensure the preservation of these important artifacts, Fernbank designed a Custom Archival Housing Project with the guidance of conservator Kate Singley in April 2010. Following a consultation and on-site training workshop with Singley, the Museum plans to purchase the necessary supplies and equipment for staff and volunteers to create custom storage mounts and enclosures for the humanities collection and alleviate overcrowded conditions.