Attending a conference for Conservators of Cultural
Materials, Tauranga Historic Village  |
| ERCO tote |
Even the promotional material on offer at the 2024
conference of NZCCM - https://nzccm.org.nz/ - was
something of a revelation to one of the newest members of the society
(me). ERCO, one of the sponsors for the
conference, offered, in a high-quality and stylish tote bag, two equally stylish,
impeccably designed magazine-type pamphlets intended to describe “the encounter
between artwork and collector… a special moment that deserves qualitative,
individual light…”
The intensity so often present in GLAM sector language was,
refreshingly, not often used in the papers put forward over the following two
days. Nevertheless, the underlying commitment
and concerns expressed by those describing their own encounters with items as
various as a silk embroidery of Queen Alexandra, the dendroglyphs on Rēkohu
(Chatham Island), whāriki (fine woven mats) recovered after the devastating
Cyclone Gabrielle flood at Rangatira Marae , and the sailing vessel Edwin
Fox, “a large – very large – composite object” stood alongside the
practical realities and continual compromises needed to solve problems, do no
(or as little as possible) harm, and – invariably – find ways to pay.
Putting a price on the survival of cultural objects
is, of course, the most materialistic attitude of all. However agonising it is when matters are
taken away from human agency – as when the expected protection of a shipping
container storing harakeke raranga and other taonga proved inadequate to meet
the fury of Cyclone Gabrielle (“Swept away – now on its way to China”
co-presenter Dr Rangi Te Kanawa was told) – it seems even worse when the costs
of preservation are deemed to be too much for the owner to bear. No doubt this is a factor explaining the
abiding popularity of the TV programme, The Repair Shop, where small
items of immense sentimental value are lovingly re-created - apparently at no
cost - to a condition that satisfies (we only ever see the success stories, of
course) the owner.
In a stimulating juxtaposition of engineering and
conservation, Dr Kepa Morgan offered his Mauri-ometer , “a useful alternative to
other decision support tools including cost benefit analysis” to attempt to
establish the value of, well, almost anything that has ecosystem, cultural,
community and economic dimensions – characteristics of most memory
institutions, often vexingly considered only for their economic viability.
Compared with the coyness within the Repair Shop barn,
money is often front-of-mind in the Baumgartner Fine Art Restoration studio,
based in Chicago. American respect for
paying for the best (expertise as well as artwork) is a consistent and often
overt aspect of Julian Baumgartner’s practice.
But not this time. As is evident
in his video ,
this overlooked artifact seems to have been an uncosted part of a job lot – the
memories associated with it as faded as the object itself.
 |
| Baumgartner still shot |
“We don’t own
them – we merely care for them, for the next generation,” Julian muses as he
prepares to unveil what museum-trained conservators might regard as a rather
over-done exhibit. (You will have to
watch the video for the full before-and-after effect.) But the dawning delight of the inheritor of
Aunt Vi’s framed wedding photograph, and the plausible possibility that the
framing workshop made this as a one-off, special tribute to her, are important
elements of what we here in Aotearoa would call the mauri of this object.
The NZCCM conference offered some rather more low-key,
local insights into “the complex reality of private conservation practice” from
two practitioners, one at the start of her career, the other heading her own
business, Heritage Preservation and Field Support Solutions (the name says a lot),
based in Taranaki. The talk was
headlined, “Balancing Ethics and Efficiency” – two poles of a useful continuum
that might assist in the still-not-quite-settled debate on the Tauranga Museum
project. The Mauri-ometer, of course,
introduces a few other factors.
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| Friends of the Museum newsletter front page |
For a very long time now, the Tauranga Heritage
Collection has had only very limited exposure on the cultural and community fronts. Kept in strictly regulated storage
conditions, conservation efforts limited to gentle cleaning with de-ionised
water and cotton swabs (and only on some items), reliant on conservation
assessments by trained professionals in selecting and preparing objects for
eventual exhibition, challenges await these artifacts. Mostly they are best preserved by being left
cold and in the dark. Hardly conducive
to a joyous, special encounter in a carefully chosen quality of light.
 |
| Silk top hat and cotton lace collar from Brain Watkins House |
Like the one-time Edwin Fox Society , (and, since 2023, the
Marlborough District Council ) the Tauranga Historical
Society has its own large, composite object to care for. Brain Watkins House is both beloved and
unique, and complex and expensive to maintain.
(It might be fun to assess it against the Mauri-ometer.) Even the two very small objects pictured
above carry their own mauri. The collar,
showing few signs of wear, will now never be put to its purpose of adorning a
blouse for a special occasion. The silk hat
undoubtedly went on the imposing head of the respected shipbuilder and
stoneworker Joseph Brain, but will never be worn again. As a result of the NZCCM conference, I am
left to ponder whether, even though they are cherished as collection items, the
joy has left them.
