Conference Programme

Anna Kowalewska, Principal Registrar, The Asia and Pacific Museum in Warsaw
Chiara Mazzocchi, Professor, Associate Professor, The University of Warsaw

The future of conservation often lies in exploring the past while ensuring uncompromised safety of the examined object. Conservators, like medical professionals, must prioritise the health and integrity of the “object-patient”, maintaining the utmost respect for historical artefacts and preserving their authenticity.

When the prayer book of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots was delivered for conservation, the question arose whether its binding could be restored to open more easily, allowing sewing distortions in the vellum to be reduced and misplaced pages returned to their correct positions. Before any physical intervention, it was essential to select the least invasive diagnostic method. Micro computed tomography (μCT) imaging proved to be the most effective, revealing hidden structural details in the spine and informing decisions on treatment viability and risk mitigation. μCT visualised centuries of alterations and deterioration within the binding, providing critical insights into its current condition.

The application of μCT enabled precise planning and execution of this complex restoration, resulting in the unexpected discovery of an additional page. The scans directly influenced the conservation approach, reducing uncertainty and improving decision-making.

This project demonstrates the value of interdisciplinary collaboration between art conservation and applied physics, offering a harmless and highly informative diagnostic approach. As μCT remains rare in bookbinding conservation, this study pioneers its adoption as a standard tool for non-invasive structural assessment. It shows that μCT can serve as a “sixth sense” for conservators, guiding ethical and evidence-based restoration practices.

Laurence Wen-Yu Li, PhD Researcher, Royal College of Art / Victoria and Albert Museum
Viviane Wei-An Chen, Founder, Viviane Chen Studio

This paper presents a conservation-led collaboration between a textile conservator and a dress historian, aimed at developing a replicable, preservation-safe method for mounting flat-cut East Asian garments in three dimensions. Combining material research with interdisciplinary reconstruction, the project seeks to restore cultural silhouette and presence while adhering to conservation best practice, offering a model that other institutions can adopt.

Reconstruction of historical garments as a form of interpretation has become increasingly common in Western dress studies. This project argues that reconstructing historical Chinese clothing “from the skin out” is equally crucial to conservation - particularly for creating accurate three-dimensional supports for flat-cut garments. While Han Chinese clothing from the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) is often perceived as loose-fitting, underlayers played a key role in shaping the body beneath garments such as the dajinshan jacket. Without understanding these understructures, conservation mounting risks misrepresenting posture and proportion.

Research into historical Chinese undergarments is limited, especially regarding their fit on the body. This study draws on rare sources—including erotic paintings, period photographs, and extant garments—to reconstruct key underlayers: dudou (belly band), dadangku (trousers), zhong ao (middle jacket), and xiku (leggings). These were recreated using natural fibres and historical techniques to replicate original weight and drape.

The reconstructed ensemble was worn on a live model to study garment-body interaction. A bespoke mount was then developed using stable, reversible materials meeting preventive conservation standards, with historical posture and silhouette informed by Qing visual sources. This project establishes a replicable, conservation-safe framework for mounting East Asian garments, bridging cultural understanding and material care.

Anupama Gaur, Painting Conservator, ARC Resources and Services

For contemporary artistic production, where the medium is often the message, conservation must address both the materiality of the work and its conceptual intent. This paper examines the evolving landscape of contemporary art conservation in India, exploring how conservation practices are adapting to the material and conceptual complexities of installations, time-based media, and unconventional materials.

Drawing from professional experience, two case studies are presented to assess how museums, galleries, and conservators are addressing issues such as technological obsolescence, the fragility of in-situ works, and the ethics of replacing artwork components. The discussion is organised into five sections: historical overview, new mediums, diagnosis and treatment, challenges for Indian conservators, and recommendations for the future.

The paper traces the emergence of Indian contemporary art using unconventional media and examines materials specific to this context, where conservation remains relatively new and underdeveloped. Case studies—Gunjan Kumar Chawla’s Sifr 4 (2017) and Amar Kanwar’s Such a Morning - demonstrate how artists engage with ephemeral materials, industrial by-products, organic substances, and digital technologies. Their material choices, guided by symbolism, often create dilemmas around replacement and authenticity, raising critical questions about artist intent and intervention.

Existing institutions in India remain focused on traditional heritage, leaving conceptual art forms underserved. Inadequate documentation during acquisition limits access to vital information such as intended lifespan, material vulnerabilities, and artistic intent.

The paper concludes that sustainable preservation of contemporary Indian art must be grounded in proactive documentation, specialist training, and knowledge-sharing across the conservation community.

Kirsten Dunne ACR, Senior Projects Conservator, National Galleries of Scotland

In 2024, the National Galleries of Scotland (NGS) formed a Replication Working Group. Led by the Head of Collections Management and co-chaired by the Head of Collections Information Management, this collaborative, multi-team group brought together collections care, conservation, and curatorial staff with the shared goal of defining what ‘replication’ means for the NGS collection.

In parallel, the NGS edition of Self-Portrait by British artist Helen Chadwick—a photographic lightbox created in 1991 and lit by four fluorescent tubes—was requested for extended display at Tate and NGS. As fluorescent bulbs are being phased out, the conservation department sought a sustainable lighting solution to ensure the artwork’s long-term display and continuity.

The coincidence of these projects allowed Self-Portrait to serve as a case study for the Working Group, testing proposed terminology and workflows. What began as two separate initiatives evolved into a single process that demonstrated the collective power of cross-departmental collaboration in defining an ethical and sustainable institutional approach.

This paper outlines the formation of the Replication Working Group, the development of agreed definitions and workflows, and the lessons learned through this process. The workflow addresses terminology, suitability, permissions, production, documentation, cataloguing, and the lifecycle of replicas. Using Self-Portrait as a case study, it describes the treatment solution adopted to ensure sustainable display, and how collaborative decision-making balanced professional voices and object needs. This approach not only informed the artwork’s treatment but also strengthened institutional practice through shared ethical engagement.

Gael Dundas, Director, Collections Management, Imperial War Museums
Jon White, Head of Conservation, Imperial War Museums

The conservation of large objects - ranging from aircraft and vehicles to industrial machinery - presents unique challenges that demand specialised skills, robust infrastructure, and a resilient workforce. In response to a sector-wide skills shortage and an ageing professional base, the Imperial War Museum (IWM) has embarked on a strategic journey to establish itself as the National Centre for Excellence in Large Object Conservation. Central to this ambition is a sustainable apprenticeship programme designed to cultivate the next generation of conservator-restorers.

This paper explores the transformative potential of apprenticeships in large object conservation, drawing on IWM’s experience one year into its pilot programme. It examines the strategic rationale for apprenticeships, grounded in sector-wide research and workforce analysis, and highlights operational lessons learned through implementation. These include balancing practical training with risk management, addressing resource constraints, and fostering effective communication and mentorship within conservation teams.

The discussion shares insights into how IWM has aligned its training with sector needs, leveraging its unique collections and expertise to deliver meaningful learning experiences. It also considers the emotional investment required from mentors, the institutional support necessary for success, and the broader impact of apprenticeships on workforce sustainability and professional development.

While acknowledging challenges around integration, planning, and funding, the paper celebrates the programme’s achievements and enthusiasm from participants. By sharing IWM’s experience, it aims to inspire dialogue across the conservation community on the value of apprenticeships, collaborative leadership, and sustaining skills essential for preserving industrial heritage.

This panel explores the growing skills gaps threatening the future of heritage conservation. Panellists from across the sector will discuss endangered skills, technical expertise, and knowledge transfer, highlighting the causes of skills loss and collaborative strategies to sustain traditional and emerging practices vital to safeguarding our cultural heritage.

Helen Lindsay ACR, Project Manager, The Restoration Trust
Daisy Rubinstein, Evaluator and Project Manager, The Restoration Trust

In 2018, Historic England published Wellbeing and the Historic Environment, identifying six routes to wellbeing through heritage. The report emphasised active engagement with heritage and connection to place, objects, and spaces. Since then, research and policy have increasingly explored how heritage can support mental health. Cultural activities offer distinctive opportunities to foster self-awareness, confidence, and belonging, helping participants overcome social isolation. The Conservation for Wellbeing (C4W) programme applies principles of culture therapy within heritage conservation to help participants feel less like patients and more like valued members of society.

Drawing on workshop examples and participant experiences, this paper outlines the C4W project framework and principles for partnership. Meetings of the C4W network revealed both anxieties and enthusiasm among conservators - highlighting a strong desire to collaborate despite confidence barriers. The paper explores these tensions and proposes ways to overcome practical and perceptual obstacles.

Evaluation of the pilot workshops used a free-associative interview method to understand the personal significance of participants’ experiences. Emotional and symbolic connections frequently emerged between people and objects, as reflected in one participant’s reflection:

You have to treat these things like you would treat a human being.

Through collaboration between heritage conservation and psychoanalytic epistemologies, the project identified the importance of holding—the creation of safe psychological space through care and empathy. Positive relationships between facilitators and participants, combined with supportive host environments, were key to successful outcomes. The paper concludes by introducing the C4W Toolkit, designed to guide future wellbeing-focused conservation projects.

Emma Callaghan, Conservator, National Museum of the Royal Navy
Joanna Valentine, Community Producer,  National Museum of the Royal Navy

The NHLF-funded Reimagining Figureheads project aimed to conserve three key Royal Navy ship figureheads - HMS Queen Charlotte, HMS Seaflower and HMS Martin. However, it also became a wider opportunity to research and reinterpret the National Museum of the Royal Navy’s (NMRN) figurehead collection, particularly those displayed at Portsmouth. Many of these objects embody complex histories, including legacies of colonialism.

Central to the project was collaboration with local community groups to diversify the interpretation of these objects. Co-curation was integral, with community representatives involved from the outset in decision-making on the activity plan, budget, conservation treatments (undertaken by Orbis Conservation) and display, both in-gallery and digitally.

One case, the figurehead from HMS Madagascar, restored in the 1990s, was identified by community groups as racially insensitive. The NMRN collaborated with the University of Southampton’s X-Ray Imaging Centre to CT scan the figurehead, revealing that resin used in previous restoration made any alteration destructive. Following consultation, the decision was made to remove Madagascar from display but to tell its story digitally through the Bloomberg Connects app, alongside others undergoing conservation and reinterpretation.

Thirteen community groups - including women’s, LGBTQ+, cultural, family, dementia and disability groups - contributed to discussions, helping inform ethical conservation and interpretation choices. A partnership with the University of Portsmouth’s School of Creative Technologies also engaged students in the project.

The initiative culminated in Queen Charlotte’s Tea Party, an event attended by 600 visitors celebrating the conservation work, community collaboration, and the renewed relevance of the figurehead collection.

Amalina Kohli Dave, Independent Book and Paper Conservator
Giovanni Pagani, Book and Paper conservator, Recanati e Restauro, Relic

This paper interrogates the imagined futures of collections decimated by occupation, colonisation, and genocide. It asks how conservation - its methodologies, pedagogies, and embodied practices that connect conservators to culture - can function as resistance in ongoing conflict, and how professionals can participate in building such futurity.

Since 7 October 2023, Gaza has faced full-scale invasion, with over 60,000 lives lost. Historic and religious sites have been systematically targeted, leaving most cultural centres and monuments partially or completely destroyed. In 2022, a Palestinian architect in Gaza and conservators from Italy and India established a small conservation studio to preserve manuscripts from the Great Omari Mosque library. Seed funding enabled space design, equipment acquisition, and in-person training in paper conservation for volunteers. By mid-2023, international support expanded the project to include restoration of the Ottoman-era Dar Al-Saada dome and a community-based capacity-building programme, alongside further training on Islamic bindings and supervised online instruction.

Subsequently, the dome and studio were destroyed, and the manuscripts remained under rubble for months. In late 2024/early 2025, an environmental clean-up addressed hazardous materials, unexploded ordnance, and structural stability; approximately two-thirds of the collection was salvaged. A makeshift apartment space now supports storage and cleaning.

International collaboration among conservators, non-profits, and local practitioners continues, contingent on intermittent internet access. This context compels reflection: dominant frameworks of method and ethics are strained when threats to people are inseparable from threats to culture. One conclusion is clear: Palestinian communities have not relinquished their heritage. When objects and cultural identity are inextricable, conservation must extend beyond laboratories to advocacy and public engagement, reframing practice as a means of cultural survival and resistance.

Janet Berry ACR, Head of Conservation & Collections Policy, Cathedral & Church Buildings Division, Church Commissioners, Church of England
Tobit Curteis ACR, Managing Partner, Tobit Curteis Associates LLP

In 2020, the Church of England (CofE) set an ambitious target to become a Net Zero Carbon (NZC) organisation by 2030. This commitment presents both challenges and opportunities for parishes and cathedrals, particularly those with historic buildings and interiors.

This paper focuses on the work of the CofE’s Cathedral & Church Buildings Department in developing national strategic guidance and support that integrates conservation and NZC goals. It discusses three key areas of activity:

1. Let’s Work Together – addressing decarbonisation and energy reduction in church buildings while maintaining appropriate conditions for both people and objects. The transition to NZC offers opportunities to strengthen the resilience of historic buildings and their sensitive interiors. The principle of “heating the people for comfort and the building for conservation” highlights the need for thoughtful planning and close collaboration between PCCs, architects, and engineers from concept through to delivery.

2. Cloudbusting – improving communication and collaboration to challenge misconceptions surrounding decarbonisation technologies and heritage contexts. This includes work on maintenance, thermal improvements, Environmental Protective Glazing, emerging heating technologies, and strategies for grant aid and guidance.

3. Take Me to Church – presenting case studies where NZC objectives and conservation priorities align in practice. These examples demonstrate how collaboration among consultants, suppliers, engineers, dioceses, and parishes is filling knowledge gaps, enhancing guidance, and contributing to ecological, environmental, and economic sustainability across the Church’s historic estate.

Maria Ledinskaya, Conservator, Conservation and Museums Advisory Service (CMAS)
Helena Jaeschke ACR, Conservation Development Officer, Museum Development South West

This paper examines the intentions, processes, challenges, and reflections of Hazards in Collections: Reducing the Risk, a major collaborative initiative supporting museums across South West England in identifying and managing hazardous materials within their collections. Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Art Fund, the project is led by Museum Development South West (MDSW), with content primarily developed by Wiltshire Council’s Conservation and Museums Advisory Service (CMAS) and MDSW, and contributions from the Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Bristol Museums, and Hampshire Cultural Trust.

The project responds to MDSW’s 2024 survey, which identified widespread uncertainty and procedural gaps among smaller museums. Its objectives are to:

• Equip museums with practical steps to manage hazards including arsenic, asbestos, controlled drugs, explosives, firearms, kinetic items, lead, mercury, mould, and nitrate film;
• Translate complex regulatory and technical information into clear, actionable guidance;
• Support smaller, under-resourced, and volunteer-led museums in protecting staff, visitors, and collections.

The paper presents the project from the perspective of CMAS conservators, who designed and delivered a modular, in-person training programme in collaboration with MDSW’s Conservation Development Officer, Helena Jaeschke. Each conservator researched specific hazards, collaborating to refine and align content. External input from hazard specialists and feedback from MDSW shaped an agile and iterative development process grounded in clarity and practicality.

Challenges included balancing technical precision with accessibility, addressing the varied needs of participant museums, and managing limited time and resources. In its second phase, the project will deliver tailored follow-up visits, providing bespoke support and gathering structured feedback to inform future practice.

As Hazards in Collections continues into 2026, early reflections highlight the value of collaboration, flexibility, and shared expertise in empowering museums to manage hazardous materials confidently and sustainably.

Cathryn Harvey, Conservation Science Fellow, English Heritage

Preventive conservation practices often rely on maintaining narrow environmental parameters for material types through whole-room systems such as HVAC, which are energy-intensive, carbon-heavy, and financially unsustainable in the long term.

The EU-funded GoGreen project aims to make the conservation sector more sustainable and environmentally responsible. As part of this initiative, English Heritage is developing new preventive conservation methods by investigating material vulnerability to create a series of damage functions for metals, stone, and glass.

Damage functions are mathematical models that predict the level of deterioration based on environmental conditions. They can be integrated with climate change projections to forecast future damage scenarios. While existing functions have been developed for outdoor contexts, they are often unsuitable for indoor heritage environments. This project therefore seeks to refine and adapt them for use in collections care.

These functions enable conservators to evaluate environmental conditions and determine the necessary level of mitigation. For example, they can help assess whether full air conditioning is required, or if microclimates, dehumidification, or adaptive ventilation would suffice. When combined with system performance models, they also allow for estimation of the carbon footprint of different conservation strategies.

This paper discusses the development of damage functions within GoGreen and their potential to transform preventive conservation. By deepening understanding of material vulnerabilities and establishing more realistic environmental standards, damage functions offer a path towards sustainable, data-driven preservation practices that balance heritage protection with environmental responsibility.

Heather Murphy, Preventive and Filming Conservator, Spencer & Fry
Eve Andreski, Preventive and Filming Conservator, Spencer & Fry

Hosting filming at heritage locations is an important element of future-proofing within the sector. Filming not only generates significant income but also keeps historic sites visible within public consciousness. The UK film industry contributes billions of pounds annually to the national economy, with filming activities funding conservators’ roles and commissioning approximately £205,000 each year in freelance conservation work.

However, filming can pose substantial conservation risks. The fast-paced nature of the film industry - often characterised by the saying “it needs to be done by yesterday” - can conflict with the heritage sector’s more deliberate approach. Developing strategies to assess and quantify risk allows for quicker, safer decision-making in these contexts.

Conservation work within film production environments offers valuable opportunities to expand professional skills. Understanding the aims of the film production enables conservators to anticipate and mitigate potential risks through preventive measures. Examples include commissioning lidar scans of underground archaeology before vehicle access or structural surveys for spaces with weight-loading concerns. Such assessments, often funded by the production, enable efficient planning and reduce risk, while providing data that can inform future conservation approaches.

Time spent on set also fosters collaboration among conservators, allowing shared learning and the practical application of preventive principles in situ. Working within these non-traditional contexts encourages conservators to adapt core skills and values, applying them dynamically across new settings. This cross-sector engagement strengthens both conservation practice and the resilience of heritage sites within a rapidly evolving cultural and economic landscape.

This session explores how heritage professionals can uphold the highest conservation standards through realistic, resource-aware approaches. Panellists will share examples of innovation, partnership, and volunteer engagement that maximise impact. The discussion will champion pragmatic, sustainable models of care that keep conservation effective, inclusive, and future-focused despite financial and operational pressures.

Laura Caradonna-Snow, Collection Care Team Leader, John Rylands Library, University of Manchester
Gurtek Singh, Honorary Research Fellow, John Rylands library, University of Manchester

The conservation of Punjabi MS 5—a seventeenth-century manuscript of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the sacred scripture of Sikhi—required a multidisciplinary approach that combined technical expertise with cultural sensitivity. A core team of conservators and curators collaborated closely with external specialists, notably Sikh conservator Jasdip Singh and Sikh educator Gurtek Singh, whose contributions were indispensable. Jasdip Singh provided critical guidance to ensure that conservation methods upheld the manuscript’s religious integrity and cultural significance. Equally important, Gurtek Singh facilitated engagement with local Sikh communities, fostering dialogue that informed decision-making and enhanced cultural awareness. This collaborative framework elevated the project beyond technical preservation, embedding respect and inclusivity at its core.

By integrating community perspectives, the team ensured that conservation minimized physical deterioration while enabling meaningful, respectful access. Ultimately, this inclusive approach safeguarded the manuscript's sanctity, ensuring its preservation for future generations while strengthening ties with the communities it serves.

Joelle Wickens, Director of the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, University of Delaware, Department of Art Conservation
Anisha Gupta, Preventive Conservator & Doctoral Candidate, University of Delaware, Department of Art Conservation 

This paper explores how collaborative practice has reshaped both professional approaches and broader understandings of conservation. At its core, this evolution represents a shift from focusing on outcomes and objects to centring people—their needs, identities, and relationships to cultural heritage. Beginning in 2019 with the Advancing Equity and Inclusion in Conservation (AEIC) initiative, this work has evolved through numerous collaborative publications, presentations, discussions, courses, and projects. It now manifests in the Community Conservation Initiative, the Conservation Collective, and preventive conservation education at WUDPAC.

The authors describe a transition from goal-oriented to process-oriented practice. Initially focused on object preservation, their approach has developed to prioritise the needs of people—the communities and professionals engaging with heritage. This shift also involves recognising the value of identity and lived experience as essential to conservation practice.

Transformative collaboration often arises from looking beyond disciplinary boundaries. In developing the Community Conservation Initiative, the authors found inspiration in public libraries - with their makerspaces, object-lending programmes, and community-led disaster response networks—demonstrating models adaptable to conservation contexts.

A further lesson has been the value of slowing down. AEIC, initially planned as a weekend workshop, expanded during the pandemic into a fourteen-month virtual series. This slower pace fostered deeper insights and reframed success as the process of care and connection rather than the production of fixed outcomes.

People-centred conservation broadens participation in heritage care, encouraging inclusivity and resilience. By embracing collaboration, conservation becomes more adaptive, equitable, and sustainable - qualities vital to the field’s future.

Diane Gwilt, Keeper of Collection Services, Amgueddfa Cymru
Professor Jane Henderson ACR, Cardiff University

The Whole Truth About Power

This paper explores the transformative potential of power within conservation practice, challenging the prevailing assumption that conservators inherently lack it. While discussions of power in the field often focus on hierarchical structures - where authority is exercised by those in senior positions - this narrow view risks obscuring the significant influence conservators already possess. Recognising this influence is essential for strengthening advocacy and supporting ethical, sustainable practice.

Who Do We Have Power Relationships With?

Adopting a relational understanding of power, this paper examines how conservators negotiate influence through everyday decision-making, communication, and collaboration. Power is embedded in both internal and external professional relationships, as conservators operate within networks of shifting interdependence. It manifests directly - for example, through decisions about exhibition installation - and indirectly, through the public’s perceptions of how they may engage with heritage. By acknowledging and navigating these multiple forms of power, conservators can enhance their impact across institutional and community contexts.

Acquiring Power Is Not the Answer

A limited or misunderstood view of power - particularly when framed as something to be acquired - can unintentionally weaken inclusive and interdisciplinary practice. Conservators already play a powerful role in shaping how heritage is interpreted, accessed, and valued. Their work contributes to public engagement, community empowerment, and cultural sustainability. Reframing conservation not as a position of powerlessness but as an active site of influence allows practitioners to recognise their agency without diminishing that of others, leading to more equitable and collaborative approaches.