By Bryn Kelley, second year student, MPhil Textile Conservation. One of the first lessons I learned regarding wet cleaning in textile conservation is the importance of considering the fibres present. This came to the fore in my second semester object this year; a 1930s-40s dress with cotton warp and viscose rayon weft from the collection… Continue reading
Bright blue December skies bought the sun to Glasgow to celebrate the graduation of students from the MPhil Textile Conservation Programme (2022-2023). It is a fabulous opportunity to share the successes, the culmination of two years of hard work and commitment, with the students and their families. The Gothic revival building, the prestigious Bute Hall… Continue reading
by Gracile Roxas, 2nd year student, MPhil Textile Conservation. I was given the amazing opportunity of joining the Coated Fabrics Collection Care Symposium in Antwerp, Belgium on the 25th and 26th of May 2023. The symposium, hosted by the Fashion Museum Antwerp (MoMu), aimed to shed light on polymer coatings commonly found in fashion and… Continue reading
by Scarlet Faro, 2nd year student, MPhil Textile Conservation. In my second year on the MPhil Textile Conservation, one of the objects I worked on was a hand-made cotton cutwork lace jabot, part of the collection at Dumfries Museum and Camera Obscura. A jabot is a decorative neckwear accessory, worn to conceal the front opening… Continue reading
By Tabby Gibbs, Second Year Student, MPhil Textile Conservation An important part of the textile conservation planning process is testing, testing…and more testing! Before any decisions can be made about how to treat any object, we need to fully understand the materials and degradation products that are present. A great way of carrying out initial… Continue reading
Huge congratulations to Sarah Almeida, Sebastian Blue Pin, Erinn Dunlea, Camille Lafrance, Katica Laza and Kirstin Ingram on their graduation! Graduation for the class of 2020-2022 took place in the late afternoon of a chilly December Glasgow Friday. And although there was definitely a nip in the air, there was something quite magical about the… Continue reading
by Lauren Van Dessel, 2nd yr student, MPhil Textile Conservation As part of the MPhil Textile Conservation programme, students complete their first year by undertaking a summer placement in a conservation lab. This summer, I was lucky enough to fulfil my placement at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF). One of the reasons… Continue reading
by Beth Gillions, Textile Conservator, People’s History Museum. ‘How long have you been there now? 18 months? 2 years? No, it must be longer than that!’ My friend’s disbelief mirrors mine exactly. It seems only two weeks and yet also a lifetime ago, that I left Glasgow and my studies just over a year ago… Continue reading
by Joanne Hackett, Lecturer, MPhil Textile Conservation. I find myself rather startled to note that I have been at the University of Glasgow for over a year and that another academic year is about to begin. When I told people that I was leaving the museum field to start teaching, one of my old V&A… Continue reading
This time of year affords many opportunities for reflection. For staff it is time to consider the academic year past, both in a practical way through the revision of handbooks and development of teaching material, and in a more holistic way taking stock of the many highlights and successes of the year. For students it… Continue reading
