Press Release
Katy Corneli will present a lecture entitled Caring for Your Collections in which she discusses the best ways to prevent damage and decay of heirlooms, art, photographs and other personal treasures. The lecture will take place at the Castle Valley Archaeological Society meeting on March 15 at 7 p.m. The meeting will be hosted at the USU Eastern Prehistoric Museum.
The average person does not have the budget nor the resources to care for their personal collection in the same way that a museum does. Nevertheless, there is much one can do to prevent faded photographs, tarnished silver and broken pottery. The lecture will cover how to care for a wide range of material types, including paintings, sculpture, textiles and metal objects. She will talk about light levels, temperature and humidity, pests, and general care and handling as well as what to do in an emergency, such as a fire or flood. She will also discuss how to tell if an object needs professional treatment and how to find a professional conservator.
Ms. Corneli is the Curator of Collections at the Prehistoric Museum where she is responsible for preventive and interventive conservation of more than 60,000 archaeological artifacts and paleontological specimens. She holds an M.A. in Conservation of Archaeological and Museum Objects from Durham University, UK and a B.A. in Archaeology, Anthropology, and Art History from the University of East Anglia, UK. She specializes in objects conservation and collections care. Before working at the Prehistoric Museum, she cared for art and artifacts at Historic Jamestowne and Colonial Williamsburg, in Virginia, and at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts in Salt Lake City.