People interested in taking care of their heirlooms, as well as museum professionals interested in collection management and preserving artifacts can receive training with a new certification program offered through the University of Chicago's Graham School of General Studies.
"Our instructors, drawn from the leading cultural organizations in Chicago, will offer practical and affordable solutions for those at small museums and historical societies, as well as for those who have personal collections," said Daniel Shannon, dean of the Graham School.
The certification program begins with two classes offered in the fall:
- "Basics of Materials: Paper and Book Collections" will run Sept. 22 through Oct. 23 at the Newberry Library, 60 E. Walton St. Giselle Simon, director of conservation services at the Newberry Library, will lead a class in which students will learn how to preserve photographs, old letters and papers.
- “Protecting the Collection: Environmental Factors” will run Sept. 14 through Nov. 20. This course will show museum professionals and others how to protect their items from damage from light, humidity, temperature, pollutants and pests. The class will be held at the Oriental Institute on the campus of the University of Chicago, 1155 E. 59th St. Instructors will be Laura D’Alessandro, head of the Conservation Lab at the Oriental Institute, and Alison Whyte, assistant conservator at the Oriental Institute.
People interested in learning more about the program may attend information sessions on Thursday, Aug. 19, from 6-7 p.m., or on Saturday, Sept. 11 from 10-11 a.m. at the University's Gleacher Center, 450 N. Cityfront Plaza Drive. For more information, call 773-702-2768, e-mail collectioncare@uchicago.edu or visit https://grahamschool.uchicago.edu/artifactcollectioncare.