The Ford Conservation Center's staff offers a wide variety of professional services to historical, cultural, educational, private, and corporate clients in Nebraska and the surrounding region.
Educational Activities and Training
The Ford Center provides lectures and workshops on a variety of topics for many audiences. Lectures and clinics are available to the public, workshops and programs are offered for the museum and collecting community, and specialized sessions are available for conservation professionals. We welcome prearranged visits by school groups of all ages.
Objects requiring varying levels of technical study and evaluation will be accepted for examination. Examination may be requested as a prelude to conservation treatment or as an effort to better understand the client's object. The staff conservators can assist in recommending and facilitating scientific testing and can interpret technical data generated during analysis.
Treatment services are available for a wide range of object types including works of art on paper, archival collections, photographs, ceramics, glass, metals, leather, organic materials, textiles, and other composite objects. Contractual work for the treatment of other types of objects can be arranged through the center as needed. Treatment services vary from simple preventive stabilization to complete treatment and cosmetic reintegration.
Consultation
Conservators at the Ford Center are available to consult on a wide variety of issues related to collection care and conservation. Advice is available on topics such as storage techniques, exhibition materials, and object housings.
Collection Management Consultations
Assistance is available for those faced with making decisions about all aspects of collection management including crate construction, mount design, material selection, storage techniques, housing materials, framing, matting, and many other issues relating to collection use and care. The Ford Center conservators can provide up-to-date technical information for collectors and museum professionals.
Assessments
Conservation assessments of institutional and private collections are available. Conservators will provide a written overview of the institution, or collection, and its efforts in collection preservation that includes an evaluation of storage areas, exhibition techniques, pest control methods, housekeeping, and many other factors affecting the long-term survival of objects.
Surveys
Surveys to document the condition and treatment needs of individual objects in a collection can be conducted by Ford Center staff. A specific report detailing the condition, treatment priority, and conservation needs for each object can be prepared with an overall review provided as a planning tool for the long-term conservation of a collection.
The Ford Center staff can assist organizations and institutions with the preparation of emergency preparedness plans, training, and drills. The staff is available in the event of an emergency, and can provide on-site response, as well as long-term collection treatment.
Services Brochure (260k PDF)
About Ford Conservation Center
