An “exquisite” (The Washington Post) “hauntingly beautiful” (Associated Press) portrait of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and its treasures by a former New Yorker staffer who spent a decade as a museum guard.

Millions of people climb the grand marble staircase to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art every year. But only a select few have unrestricted access to every nook and cranny. They’re the guards who roam unobtrusively in dark blue suits, keeping a watchful eye on the two million square foot treasure house. Caught up in his glamourous fledgling career at The New Yorker, Patrick Bringley never thought that he’d be one of them. Then his older brother was diagnosed with fatal cancer and he found himself needing to escape the mundane clamor of daily life. So he quit The New Yorker and sought solace in the most beautiful place he knew.

To his surprise and your delight, this temporary refuge becomes Bringley’s home away from home for a decade. We follow him as he guards delicate treasures from Egypt to Rome, strolls the labyrinths beneath the galleries, wears out nine pairs of company shoes, and marvels at the beautiful works in his care. Bringley enters the museum as a ghost, silent and almost invisible, but soon finds his voice and his tribe: the artworks and their creators and the lively subculture of museum guards—a gorgeous mosaic of artists, musicians, blue-collar stalwarts, immigrants, cutups, and dreamers. As his bonds with his colleagues and the art grow, he comes to understand how fortunate he is to be walled off in this little world, and how much it resembles the best aspects of the larger world to which he gradually, gratefully returns.

In the tradition of classic workplace memoirs like Lab Girl and Working Stiff, All the Beauty in the World is an “empathic” (The New York Times Book Review), “moving” (NPR), “consoling, and beautiful” (The Guardian) portrait of a great museum, its hidden treasures, and the people who make it tick, by one of its most intimate observers.

The Museum Environment is in two parts; Part I: intended for conservators and museum curators and describes the principles and techniques of controlling the environment so that the potentially damaging effects of light, humidity and air pollution on museum exhibits may be minimised. Part II: the author brings together and summarises information and data, hitherto widely scattered in the literature of diverse fields, which is essential to workers in conservation research.
Since the timely publication of the first two editions of this book in hardback, interest in preventive conservation has continued to grow strongly making publication of this paperback edition all the more welcome. Those whose responsibility it is to care for the valuable and beautiful objects in the world's collections have become increasingly aware that it is better to prevent their deterioration, by ensuring that they are housed and displayed in the best possible environmental conditions, than to wait until restoration and repair are necessary. The changes for the second edition have been mainly concentrated in the sections on electronic hygrometry, new fluorescent lamps, buffered cases, air conditioning systems, data logging, and control within historic buildings. A new appendix, giving a summary of museum specificiations for conservation, provides a useful, quick reference.
* New paperback edition of successful text
* Now at lower price
* Essential reading for conservators and museum curators and scientists

a In late 2019 early 2020 word was coming out of Wuhan, China of a highly infectious virus being detected in the population, which sparked concern for what was about to become a global pandemic. Meanwhile in typically British fashion the general public started stockpiling pasta and toilet rollsa |why I have no idea! But it did prompt me to pick up my drawing pencil and sketch the first Corona cartoon of 2 dinosaurs stockpiling loo rolls while the meteorite plummeted to earth! Since that first toon I have drawn (and am still drawing) an account of a |.all the stupidity, heroics, tragedy, political and medical successes and failures, and the ludicrous nature, at times, of the human conditiona |..and a |.era |.Trump and Boris! A diary, a record, a chronicle, if you like, of what we all went through on our continuing quest to defeat the virus and get back to relative normalitya |a |with shelves full of pasta and toilet rolla |. Sometimes brutal sometimes thought provoking but, I hope, always amusing this is a book to keep and look back ona |. and perhaps to let your children and grandchildren read as one persona s view of life in the times of Covid. It was my way of keeping myself sane and as it turned out it helped many of my friends who in turn supported the daily Facebook toons. Read a The Corona Chroniclesa and think of those who surviveda |.and sadly those who didna ta |a |this book and ita s story belongs to all of us and serves as cautionary tale for the futurea

This accessible and innovative book examines to what extent copyright protects a range of subjects which are engaged in the creation and management of literary and artistic works, and how such subjects use copyright to protect their interests. Offering a complementary analysis, The Subjects of Literary and Artistic Copyright explores how copyright regulates the production and management of literature and art. The book examines the creators of literature and art, as well as market operators such as publishers and "managers" including museums, galleries, and universities. The perspectives offered cover a diverse range of subjects, and confront the regular contradictions and conflicts that occur within literary and artistic copyright interests. The chapters illustrate, via historical and empirical analysis, that established practices and traditional approaches to the management of copyright need to be revisited, in order to be more aligned with current social and technological frameworks. Providing a starting point for future research paths on copyright practices in art and literature, this insightful book will be of interest to legal academics looking to expand their knowledge of literary and artistic copyright. Law professionals with interests in intellectual property and art law will also benefit from its novel approach.

As negentienjarige ryloper in Spanje beland Frank Westerman toevallig in die dorpie Banyoles, waar ’n opgestopte “Kalahari-Boesman”, slegs bekend as El Negro, uitgestal word. Sy indrukke bly hom by – en wanneer hy dekades later weer van El Negro lees, die keer in ’n Franse koerant, is dit die begin van ’n ondersoeksreis wat belangrike vrae oor rasopvattings en die Westerse beskawing na vore bring. Wie was hierdie naamlose man? Wat se sy opgestopte “museumteenwoordigheid” oor Europese denke oor slawerny, rassisme en kolonialisme – en bied hy slegs ’n spieel op ’n vergange tyd, of ook op die hede?

In the early 1650s Ferdinand Bol produced a series of wall-covering paintings. This 'painted chamber' is a unique example of a branch of the art of painting which was extremely popular in the seventeenth century, although hardly any of it now remains. Bol's ensemble has always been surrounded by mysteries. Who was the initial owner, what was the reason for its commission and how were the ceiling-high canvases originally placed? Through a combination of material-technical research and archival, stylistic, iconographic and cultural-historical investigation these questions have for the first time been given convincing answers. This book, with Bol's unique ensemble in the lead role, is the account of an exciting (art) historical quest. The journey begins with apparently insignificant damage to the canvases and small remnants of old paint and varnish, passing via Biblical, classical and contemporary history to its eventual destination in the remarkable life of a particularly ambitious Utrecht widow. The reader becomes familiar with the religious beliefs, ideals and social ambitions of a remarkable woman, and sees close-up how, through Bol's paintings, she was able to give literal expression to her endeavours in the turbulent Utrecht in the middle of the Golden Age.

Site-specific installations are created for specific locations and are usually intended as temporary artworks. The Perpetuation of Site-Specific Installation Artworks in Museums: Staging Contemporary Art shows that these artworks consist of more than a singular manifestation and that their lifespan is often extended. In this book, Tatja Scholte offers an in-depth account of the artistic production of the last forty years. With a wealth of case studies the author illuminates the diversity of site-specific art in both form and content, as well as in the conservation strategies applied. A conceptual framework is provided for scholars and museum professionals to better understand how site-specific installations gain new meanings during successive stages of their biographies and may become agents for change in professional routines.

Anyone writing about a work of art needs to establish at the outset how much it has changed since it was first made. This simple, informative and pracrical book, full of fascinating and revelatory photography, will take the reader through both the techniques and media of art and the techniques and media of its investigation and restoration.

Performative methods are playing an increasingly prominent role in research into historical production processes, materials, bodily knowledge and sensory skills, and in forms of education and public engagement in classrooms and museums. This book offers, for the first time, sustained, interdisciplinary reflections on performative methods, variously known as Reconstruction, Replication and Re-enactment (RRR) practices across the fields of history of science, archaeology, art history, conservation, musicology and anthropology. Each of these fields has distinct histories, approaches, tools and research questions. Researchers in the historical disciplines have used reconstructions to learn about the materials and practices of the past, while anthropologists and ethnographers have more often studied the re-enactments themselves, participating in these performances as engaged observers. In this book, authors bring their experiences of RRR practices within their discipline into conversation with RRR practices in other disciplines, providing a basis for interdisciplinary cross-fertilization.

The effective use of technology offers numerous benefits in protecting cultural heritage. With the proper implementation of these tools, the management and conservation of artifacts and knowledge are better attained. Digital Curation: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice is a critical source of academic knowledge on the preservation, selection, collection, maintenance, and archiving of digital materials. Highlighting a range of pertinent topics such as electronic resource management, digital preservation, and virtual restoration, this publication is an ideal reference source for digital curators, technology developers, IT professionals, academicians, researchers, and graduate-level students interested in the curation and preservation of digital resources.

Preservation and restoration techniques are essential in maintaining the integrity of historic artifacts, including textiles, and specifically, the materials of the textile industry in Egypt. The technologies, methods, and advancements in preserving these ancient artifacts are growing areas of research and important factors in increasing knowledge of the conservation process. By offering and increasing the knowledge field with practical applications of preservation and restoration techniques both old and new, the industry will continue to advance. Preservation and Restoration Techniques for Ancient Egyptian Textiles provides critical research on the history, technology, and materials of the textile industry in Egypt through the ages. It includes the integration of scientific examinations and digital precise documentation in the preservation of Ancient Egyptian textiles, the deterioration aspects and their effect on historical textiles and novelty preservation methods, and the preventive conservation of historical textiles in museums. The book deals with the restoration methods of historical textiles such as documentation; various cleaning processes; fixing, supporting, display, and storage methods; as well as incorporating modern science techniques such as nanoscience, enzymes, plasma, lasers, and more. It is essential for historians and archeologists, conservators, specialists in art history, museum specialists, restoration professionals, practitioners, researchers, academicians, and students interested in the latest conservation and restoration techniques specifically focused on ancient Egyptian textiles.

This book is an undertaking of a pioneering work of uniting three vast fields of interfacial phenomena, rheology and fluid mechanics within the framework of solid-liquid two phase flow. No wonder, much finer books will be written in the future as the visionary aims of many nations in combining molecular chemistry, biology, transport and interfacial phenomena for the fundamental understanding of processes and capabilities of new materials will be achieved. Solid-liquid systems where solid particles with a wide range of physical properties, sizes ranging from nano- to macro- scale and concentrations varying from very dilute to highly concentrated, are suspended in liquids of different rheological behavior flowing in various regimes are taken up in this book. Interactions among solid particles in molecular scale are extended to aggregations in the macro scale and related to settling, flow and rheological behavior of the suspensions in a coherent, sequential manner. The classical concept of solid particles is extended to include nanoparticles, colloids, microorganisms and cellular materials. The flow of these systems is investigated under pressure, electrical, magnetic and chemical driving forces in channels ranging from macro-scale pipes to micro channels. Complementary separation and mixing processes are also taken under consideration with micro- and macro-scale counterparts.
- Up-to-date including emerging technologies
- Coherent, sequential approach
- Wide scope: microorganisms, nanoparticles, polymer solutions, minerals, wastewater sludge, etc
- All flow conditions, settling and non-settling particles, non-Newtonian flow, etc
- Processes accompanying conveying in channels, such as sedimentation, separation, mixing

10,000 Years of Art is a compact guide to world art, offering a fresh perspective on the whole of art history from 8,000 BC to the present day. Organized in chronological order, the 500 works of art presented here cover all cultures (not just western) and represent the finest examples of fine and decorative art from 10,000 years of human history. Each work is illustrated in colour and accompanied by a concise, informative text. A companion title to Phaidon's groundbreaking 30,000 Years of Art, this convenient pocket-sized volume is an indispensable resource for any art enthusiast.

Collecting and Conserving Net Art explores the qualities and characteristics of net art and its influence on conservation practices. By addressing and answering some of the challenges facing net art and providing an exploration of its intersection with conservation, the book casts a new light on net art, conservation, curating and museum studies. Viewing net art as a process rather than as a fixed object, the book considers how this is influenced by and executed through other systems and users. Arguing that these processes and networks are imbued with ambiguity, the book suggests that this is strategically used to create suspense, obfuscate existing systems and disrupt power structures. The rapid obsolescence of hard and software, the existence of many net artworks within restricted platforms and the fact that artworks often act as assemblages that change or mutate, make net art a challenging case for conservation. Taking the performative and interpretive roles conservators play into account, the book demonstrates how practitioners can make more informed decisions when responding to, critically analysing or working with net art, particularly software-based processes. Collecting and Conserving Net Art is intended for researchers, academics and postgraduate students, especially those engaged in the study of museum studies, conservation and heritage studies, curatorial studies, digital art and art history. The book should also be interesting to professionals who are involved in the conservation and curation of digital arts, performance, media and software.