5 Reasons to Take an Online Course from the FAIC Online Education Program

Many face-to-face and online courses, and many books, describe how to organize and manage a small business. The FAIC Online series is the only information source designed specifically for the community of art and artifact preservation specialists. The courses are led by experienced online teachers who have an intimate knowledge of conservation as well as their subject matter, and are able to provide advice and solutions based in the reality of a conservation practice today.

Not convinced? Here are five reasons to take an online course offered by the FAIC Online Education Program.

Availability and Timeliness

At present, the FAIC Online Education program includes eight courses:

Five different courses are offered each calendar year. You are never more than about eighteen months from the next offering of the course(s) you want to take. (Desperate to know now? Ask about minimum fees and participant numbers for a special offering of the course you want to take.)

Convenience

It’s easy to fit an FAIC Online Education course into your schedule. You have 24/7 access while the course is taking place. You can be anywhere, as long as you have a computer or smartphone and an internet connection. Check into the site when you have a minute or two. Respond to requests or comments as the mood strikes you.

Build Your Skills

Each week of every course introduces new activities for all skill levels. Learn what you need to know now. Use the basic activities as a review. Reserve more advanced assignments for later. Don’t find what you need on the site? Ask the leader: He or she has the expertise to help you with the questions you’re facing. Don’t forget that you can also ask questions of your colleagues in the course. You’ll find them a source of real-world experience and you can be confident that they understand what a conservator does.
The online environment accommodates your learning style, too. Whether you’re someone who constantly asks and answers questions or the one at the back of the classroom who watches and learns but prefers to remain silent, there is room for you to learn best what you need to learn the most.

Create a new network

The FAIC Online Education courses provide an opportunity to work with conservators beyond your existing network. Meet with and learn about colleagues in other specialties, who work in different regions of the U.S. or the world. You develop a new node in your network: a cohort of people who know you and your skills, people to whom you can turn for advice—and with whom you can share referrals—even though they are not in your backyard.

Expense. Or Rather, the Lack Thereof.

Each FAIC Online Education course is four weeks long. Each week is the equivalent of a very full, daylong conference. AIC members pay $200 per course. It’s like attending 4 seminars at $50 each.

 

Courses remaining in the FAIC Online Education series for 2011:

Want more information? See the FAIC Online Education page on the AIC website. Take the quiz, “Is Online Learning Right for You?” Talk to one one of the more than 500 program participants.

Want to be informed of next year’s schedule when it’s available? Contact Abigail Choudhury, FAIC Development and Education Associate, achoudhury[at]conservation-us.org.

The impact of the rising cost of bronze on artists’ material choices

According to an article in the August 16, 2011 issue of The Wall Street Journal (“The Dawn of a Faux-Bronze Age?”, by Daniel Grant), due to the rising cost of bronze, sculptors are beginning to use materials like polyester resin, plaster, and terracotta which are either mixed with metal and mica powders or coated in order to produce a finish that resembles bronze. The resin sculptures are often labelled as “cold cast bronze” or “bonded bronze”. This may lead some buyers to believe that they own a metal sculpture.
As conservators, should we be concerned that owners, thinking their works are metal, will exhibit them in conditions appropriate for bronze but not for the other materials?

Northern California ECPN Meet & Mingle

When I first emailed Melissa asking if she was interested in meeting up to talk shop about being a pre-program student I was excited to talk with one person. Little did I know, once we both put the word out we would have a group of thirteen!

Our group was so well diversified that all curious questions were answered and if no one knew the answer then there was someone they knew who could help. We made introductions and expressed what we were most interested in. It was amazing to hear the wide variety of backgrounds that brought us all to this career choice. The most important part was that all different levels of interest attended. From the just curious about what this whole art conservation thing is to third year students at Buffalo in their internships and a graduate of the NYU program. We had several who just finished chemistry requirements and are prepping to apply this upcoming winter to others who are working at obtaining lab hours. It was great to meet so many new people and to learn about different programs and internships.

We really encourage others to put the word out in your area and see who responds. It was a great learning experience and a way to meet others who are in the same boat as you. You get to hear stories of others and form a group of associates to reach out to if you ever have questions. We are definitely planning more meetings in the future. In fact, as a result of this meeting many professional conservators have expressed interest in getting to know the emerging conservators of the Bay Area. We will be coordinating a meeting where emerging and professionals can come together in the future.

– Melissa Stone & Jennifer Martinez

MEMBER NEWS FROM CLUB QUARTERS

MEMBER NEWS FROM CLUB QUARTERS

New Club Quarters to
Open in London Early 2012
Club
Quarters will open a fourth London hotel – Club
Quarters, Lincoln’s Inn Fields
at the beginning of 2012. It is located
at Kingsway near Holborn in the heart of London (“Midtown”) and
close to Covent Garden and the theatre district.

The
Hotel will have unique features including an

LIF Exterior Draft Photooutdoor terrace
facing Lincoln’s Inn Fields offering dining and bar services throughout the
day. Adjacent to the terrace will be the Club Living Room with social
networking and business center areas.

Guestrooms will have a new look for London, a progression from the very
popular Club Quarters, World Trade Center in New York. Standard rooms will
have an “activity center” designed for working, dining, or
relaxation and incorporating the latest in-room technology.

Like all Club Quarters, most services are complimentary: Internet access,
business center, printing, bottled water, coffee and tea, newspapers,
launderette, and even exercise equipment in the room. Guests at all Club
Quarters earn “Night on the House” certificates each stay after
the first one and now can earn a $100 savings bond.

As is our practice, memberships are first offered to existing
members.  As memberships will be filled quickly in London, please let
your Membership Managers know before October of your interest in membership
at Club Quarters, Lincoln’s Inn Fields. Alternatively, you may contact
Kathleen Curran, Director of Memberships, United Kingdom at +44
207-451-5901 or via email kcurran@clubquarters.com.

The room rates will be exactly the same for this brand new facility as our
London City hotels.

Accepting reservations
in September 2011 for arrivals in 2012

9/11
Memorial Site Opening Opposite Club Quarters, World Trade Center

 

Club Quarters

WCH View, World Trade Center
will host employees and guests of member organizations who wish to visit
New York to participate in the 9/11 Memorial Events in September.  The
hotel overlooks the Memorial Site which will be dedicated on Sept. 11, 2011
in a special ceremony for victims’ families. The Memorial opens to the
public on Sept. 12, 2011.

Call Member Services for advanced reservations at 203-905-2100.
Visitor passes to the Memorial site must be reserved in advance at http://www.911memorial.org/visitor-passes.

Photography: one of two
reflecting pools at the 9/11 memorial site.

 

New
York Fall Season: Reserve Early at all (4) New York Locations

Fall is
peak season in New York.

Club Quarters, World Trade Center: Located
opposite the Freedom Tower and newly opened 9/11 Memorial, as well as
the World Financial Center, Club Quarters, World Trade Center is within
walking distance of major financial institutions.

Club Quarters, Wall Street: Located near the
New York Stock Exchange and all major financial institutions, Club
Quarters, Wall Street books quickly during the Fall season when many
companies are announcing third quarter earnings.

Club
Quarters, opposite Rockefeller Center
:
Located on West 51st Street
just off Fifth Avenue, employees and guests of member organizations are
within walking distance of major corporations on Park Avenue, Fifth Avenue
and Avenue of the Americas.  The 7th Floor Terrace Club has
unfettered views of Rockefeller Center.

Club Quarters, Midtown: Located in a
landmarked building on West 45th Street between Fifth and Sixth
Avenues and within walking distance of Grand Central Station and Times
Square – as well as the Theatre District, Fashion Avenue, major office
buildings and “Restaurant Row” – on West 46th Street.  Home
to the Midtown Executive Club,
the hotel is suited for small and business meetings.

Low  member rates
are always honored as long as rooms remain available – even over peak city
wide event dates including the following:

9/11 Ten Year Memorial
Events
: September 4-11, 2011

Wall Street Room

New York City Fashion
Week
: September 8-15, 2011

World Business Forum
2011
: October 4-7, 2011

Web 2.0 Expo New York:
October 10-13, 2011

International Fine Art
& Antique Dealers Show
: October 21-27, 2011

New York City Marathon:
November 5-7, 2011

Rockefeller Center Tree
Lighting
: November 30, 2011

Complimentary Meeting
Room Available to Member Organizations Through September 30,2011

Members
who plan their next offsite meeting at Club Quarters will be offered a
complimentary meeting room* for a full or half day with no required
purchase of food and beverage. Your low member room rates are always
available for meeting attendees.

Table inside Terrace Club - Meetings

To
check availability
, please call Member Services at

203-905-2120 or click here. If there is someone else
in your organization who arranges meetings, please click here to Forward
this message to a friend
.

*Valid for
US locations. Available for new meeting reservations only.  Limit one
per member. Offer expires September 30, 2011.

 

Always
Complimentary for Members
 Included in your low fixed member rates, our complimentary services provide
significant overall savings.


– –

– Free broadband/WiFi  Internet
access                                   –
Fitness Room access

– Unlimited
chilled purified bottled
water
– Launderette onsite

– Computer access and
printing                                                   –
Guest Request Closet with extra amenities

– Member guests earn a “Night
on the House”

Coffee and tea available

each stay after the first stay and can now earn

a $100 savings bond

Click here for more details

CLUB QUARTERS

The Smart Hotel for the Sensible Traveler

Rockefeller Center,
Wall Street,
World Trade Center,
Fifth Avenue/Times
Square,
NYC

Trafalgar
Square
, St.
Paul’s Cathedral
, Bank
of England/Gracechurch,
London

White House,
Washington DC  Downtown
near Faneuil Hall
, Boston Liberty Place,
Philadelphia

Central Loop,
Chicago  Wacker at
Michigan
, Chicago

Downtown
Houston Embarcadero
Center
, San Francisco

Lincoln’s Inn Fields
near theatres and Covent Garden
, Central London (opening
2012)

www.clubquarters.com

For
reservations, contact Member Services at +1.203.905.2100 (US) or +44.020.7451.5800 (UK)
email: memberservices@clubquarters.com or online at www.clubquarters.com

From the pages of “Science” magazine

In recent weeks, Science (the magazine of the American Association for the Advancement of Science) has published a number of short notices on developments of interest to conservators. Among them: “Miniature Art Masters” (July 8, 2011, Vol.333)  which notes that Spanish conservators are using bacteria to remove incrustations from murals; “Modernizing Mummy Maintenance (July 15, 2011, Vol.333)  which discusses the new conservation center in the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, Egypt ; and  “In the Hands of Mummy Experts, Ancient Faces Gain New Life” (July 22, 2011, Vol.333), a report on a paper presented at the 7th World Congress on Mummy Studies (held in San Diego,CA on June 12-16, 2011) on the use of computed tomography and other techniques for facial reconstruction of ancient (and not so ancient) remains.

AIC-CERT in Minot, ND

AIC-CERT had “boots on the ground” Friday, August 5, 2011 to assist the Ward County Historical Society in Minot, North Dakota. The call for volunteers went out on Tuesday afternoon.  By Thursday, we had an Incident Action Plan, a three-person team, and airline tickets, car rental, and hotel rooms booked. This is a real testament to the dedication of the team volunteers and to the maturing nature of AIC-CERT. Go to www.conservation-us.org/cert.

Status of Preserve America and Federal Historic Preservation Funding

As of early August, 867 Preserve America Communities have been designated, 34 Preserve America Stewards recognized, 20 Presidential Awards bestowed, and more than $21 million awarded for 281 competitive grant projects throughout the country. While Preserve America Grants were not funded in FY 2011, and it appears unlikely that they will be funded for FY 2012, the First Lady continues to be engaged in the program with the formal designation of Preserve America Communities and Stewards.

The U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Interior and Environment Appropriations approved the FY 2012 Interior spending bill on July 7, 2011; it was approved by the full committee on July 12. The bill zeroed out funding for Preserve America and Save America’s Treasures grants (as proposed in the President’s budget) and also included a 9 percent cut ($5 million) to the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) from $54.5 million to $49.5 million ($42.5 for State Historic Preservation Offices [SHPOs] and $7 million for Tribal Historic Preservation Offices [THPOs]). The ACHP would receive $5.498 million for its operations (an 11 percent cut from the FY 2012 Administration request). All of these numbers reflect FY 2009 levels.
The proposed bill would provide overall funding for the Interior Department of $9.9 billion, $720 million below the agency’s current budget and $1.2 billion below the President’s FY 2012 request. This translates into the following:

  • A $129 million cut for the National Park Service (NPS) down to $2.5 billion.
  • National recreation and preservation programs, which include the National Register of Historic Places and National Heritage Areas, were funded at $49.363 million (a net reduction of about 15 percent from $57.87 million in FY 2011).
  • American Battlefield Protection Grants were funded at $2 million under NPS land acquisition, an increase of $640,000 from FY 2011.

Assuming that the full House of Representatives will vote to accept the bill as proposed, the focus will shift to the Senate and possibly a conference committee to reconcile differences and try to come up with an agreed budget.  Given the current political climate, it is quite possible that a final budget will not be in place until well after the start of the new fiscal year on Oct. 1, 2011. A stop-gap measure may have to be negotiated.

An earlier “dear colleague” letter circulated by Reps. Michael Turner and Russ Carnahan as co-chairs of the House Historic Preservation Caucus had asked for support for the HPF totaling $50 million for SHPOs, $11 million for THPOs, and $9 million for fully competitive, non-earmark grant programs “like Save America’s Treasures and Preserve America.”

From the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.