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Contact: Samantha Richert, 907-983-9222
The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is offering three free heirloom care workshops for the public this summer. The series will kick off on July 12th with an open house for community members to bring in their family treasures and receive a free condition assessment. The workshop will feature the Alaska State Museum's "science gun", a portable X-ray fluorescent spectrometry unit that allows conservators to identify different types of metal. The "science gun" will be operated by Scott Carrlee, Alaska State Museum's Curator of Museum Services. Participants will be able to bring their small metal objects for identification, but there will be lots of expertise on hand for other types of items. Mr. Carrlee is trained as a conservator with fifteen years of field experience with a variety of objects. The Red Onion's curator, Cori Giacomazzi, will offer her advice on textiles, and Klondike Gold Rush NHP's two artifact conservation interns, Katie Bonanno and Nicole Peters, will assist with condition assessments. The following two workshops will focus on care of heirloom items with hands-on experience. Participants in "Cleaning to Maintain Character" (July 26th) will learn gentle cleaning techniques used by conservators to maintain the look and patina of historical artifacts. There will also be demonstration of how to make your own vacuum attachment to clean fragile but dusty objects. On August 16th, participants can learn how to make their own museum-quality artifact housing from inexpensive, easily available materials. There will also be a discussion of the properties of different materials used for housing and considerations to think about when storing a family heirloom. The hands-on workshops will be conducted by Katie Bonanno and Nicole Peters. All workshops will be held at AB Hall from 6-9 pm on their respective days. Call 983-9222 to reserve your spot for the hands-on workshops. |
Last updated: April 14, 2015