Resources
Art Conservators
The cleaning, repairing and preservation treatment of artwork and photographs is handled by conservators. Most art conservators specialize in particular areas, such as
Photographs
Works on paper
Paintings
Textiles
Books
and/or Objects.
A few disciplines do cross-over. For example, some paper conservators will accept photographic projects if they are knowledgeable in photographic materials, and vice versa, i.e. there are a number of photo conservators that also treat works on paper. That said, and per a trusted colleague, one should be wary of a conservator that claims to specialize in all materials.
To find an art conservator in your area, the American Institute for Conservation (AIC) has a directory of professionals accessible via their website.
The AIC also provides guidance in finding a professional who can best help you with the artwork in your care.
For photography conservation services, Stoots has experience working with, and can confidently recommend:
• Lisa Duncan, Art Conservator, LLC / Seattle, WA
• Gawain Weaver Art Conservation / Bay Area, CA
Authentication Services
The authentication of a piece of artwork centers around determining whether or not the item is genuine. This is the role of someone who has deep knowledge of an artist’s production, and could be a scholar, curator, former studio assistant or connoisseur. The best resources are, of course, the creator/artist, their studio, or their estate (or foundation). For some of the most prominent artists in history, catalog raisonnés* are available, either at select libraries, museum libraries or, in a few cases, via online databases.
A brilliant resource is the International Foundation for Art Research (IFAR), which provides a directory of catalog raisonnés and links to the official website for the artists or their estate. Link to Website.
“Catalogues raisonnés — scholarly compilations of an artist’s body of work — are critical tools for researching the provenance and attribution of artwork. […]” — Catalog Raisonnés, International Foundation for Art Research
Cataloguing and Archiving
Maintaining good inventory and bookkeeping records is always good practice, whether you’re a collector or creative. While appraisers often inventory collections, as part of the initial appraisal process, it is not their highest and best use, especially for exceptionally large collections and/or archives. If you find that you need help cataloging the artwork in your collection, the inventory of your studio, or the archive of an artist or photographer whose legacy you’re managing, the skills and expertise of a professional cataloguer or archivist are recommended, as they can help you set up a system to organize and document what’s important.
As noted by Diane Shaw, Special Collection Cataloger at the Smithsonian:
“Being a cataloger is a very important job, because your concise, expertly-informed, and accurately-crafted record makes it possible for your institution’s reference staff, researchers, and others to find the materials they are interested in that are tucked away out of sight in the closed stacks.”
The work of an archivist is similar, in that,
“Archivists work wherever it is important to retain the records of people or organizations, including universities, large corporations, libraries and museums, government institutions, hospitals, historical societies, and religious communities. They work with digital documents, rare manuscripts, analog film, letters, postcards, diaries, photographs, organizational records—and that’s just the start of it.” — Society of American Archivists
Resources for hiring a cataloger or archivist:
• College Art Association / Job Board
• Local Library Science Programs
• Society of American Archivists “Find an Archivist”
Research Resources
If you’re trying to find out more information about an artwork or photograph you own, museums, historical societies and libraries are a great place to begin your research.
Museums
The mission of most museums is to exhibit, and use, the objects and artifacts in their collections to the benefit of the public. In the course of the last two decades, institutions have started to digitize their vast holdings such that information about individual artwork and items are accessible online, via their website. To find a museum that may have more information about an artist or artwork, a directory of American museums is available via the American Alliance of Museums, and you can search by type of museum and/or state, region or province. Access Website here.
Historical Societies
Historical societies are a wonderful place to start research, especially if the item you have is most likely significant to a particular community or region. Historical societies often describe themselves as repositories of a state (or city’s) “collective memory” and are custodians of a wide variety of materials, including documents, books, films, photographs, ephemera, maps and even oral histories.
Search the same AAM directory above to locate historical societies.
Libraries
Librarians are amazing and an invaluable resource. In addition to local libraries, staff at university libraries can often help with materials or information specific to their holdings, as well as the librarians at federal libraries and archives.
National Library Directory