Jessica Burgess ACR

Conservator, Soteria Conservation

Jessica began her career in the fashion industry, then enjoyed a brief stint at Christie’s before discovering conservation. In 2010 she gained a 1st Class Honours in Organics Conservation (specialising in textiles) at University of the Arts London, Camberwell College of Arts.

Jessica then went onto benefit from ICON’s HLF Internship Programme, working in Alison Lister’s studio based in Bristol.
Returning to London, she worked at Janie Lightfoot Textiles and managed the studio for 8 years.

She currently works independently, aiming to run a studio with a sustainable conscience, whilst recognising the impact conservators have on cultural heritage and future learning.

Jenny Beasley ACR

Senior Textiles Conservator, Janie Lightfoot Textiles

Jenny studied for her first degree in textile design at Leeds College of Art and Design, then part of Leeds University, between 2006-2009. In 2011 she moved to the University of Glasgow Centre for Textile Conservation and Technical Art History. Here she attained in 2013 an MPhil with merit in textile conservation. Then she took up a short term new graduate position at the Houses of Parliament working on some modern tapestries. She moved to Devon, taking an internship at the Tetley Workshop in carpet conservation. This became a full-time post as a conservator until 2015. She then took up a short-term project with May Berkouwer in Suffolk, and then moved to her current position at Janie Lightfoot Textiles, where she has been a senior conservator for the last two years.

Mark Furness ACR

Conservator, University of Manchester

Mark graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with a BA(Hon) Information and Library Management in 2002, working as a librarian up until 2008 before gaining a PGDip Conservation from Camberwell College of Arts.  He went straight to working at The John Rylands Library, The University of Manchester as a Conservator.  What started as a temporary contract developed into an ongoing role as Conservator before becoming Senior Conservator in 2017 with responsibility for the process of Loans Out to Exhibition.