Bringing together the international mountmaking community
The 9th International Mountmakers Forum was held September 10-12, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts
at the MFA Boston.
Videos of the presentations will be available in the near future on our YouTube channel.
Until then, check out the many great videos available now!
AGENDA
TUESDAY, Day 1
SEPTEMBER 10
8:00 - 9:00 am Check-in & light breakfast reception
9:00 - 9:20 am Welcome & Introduction
Brett Angell (Senior Exhibitions Preparator, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
Remarks by Pierre Terjanian (Chief of Curatorial Affairs and Conservation, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
8:00 - 11:45 am Session 1: BIG CHALLENGES
The Elephant in the Room: Mounting a 19th Century Elephant Armour at the MSMSII Museum, Jaipur
Anjali Jain (freelance objects conservator) and Rajiv Kedia (Joint Managing Director, Techno Centre (India) Pvt. Ltd)
Pre-recorded; virtual Q&A
(6:50 pm in India)
When One Mount Isn’t Enough: Seismically Retrofitting a 2000-Pound Scholar’s Rock in the Bay Area
Vincent Avalos (Mountmaker, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco)
Hang Tight: Using Digital Aids to Mount a Pātaka Whakairo
Allyn Goo (Exhibit Preparator and Mountmaker, Bishop Museum)
Out of Thin Air: Mounting and Installing Tiffany Studios' Hartwell Memorial Window at the Art Institute of Chicago
Andrew Talley (Senior Mountmaker, Art Institute of Chicago)
Rachel Sabino (Director of Objects and Textiles Conservation, Art Institute of Chicago)
The Cordier Challenge: A New Approach to Internal Mounts
BJ Farrar (Senior Mountmaker, J. Paul Getty Museum)
Richard Hards (Senior Mountmaker, J. Paul Getty Museum)
The Reluctant Chicken Farmer: Telescopic Carbon Fiber Mount for a George Segal Plaster Figure
Philip Brutz (Mountmaker, Cleveland
Museum of Art)
Beth Edelstein (Senior Conservator and Head of Objects Conservation, Cleveland Museum of Art)
Remarks by IMF2024 Sponsor Tru Vue, Inc. Erin Anderson (Museum and Conservation Liaison, Americas)
11:45 - 1:00 pm LUNCH
A boxed lunch will be provided at no additional cost as the Museum is closed to the public that day in 465 Restaurant (#266).
Sponsor table and raffle in Riley Seminar Room (#156)
1:00 - 4:00 pm Session 2: LOOKING FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE
Coatings for Exhibition Mounts: A Deep Exploration of a Superficial Process
Shelly Uhlir (Exhibits Specialist, Mountmaker, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian)
Soft Forms and Hard Finishes: An Experimental Approach to Mannequins Representing Real People
Jennifer Nieling (Owner, JLN Costume Mounting LLC)
Laura Mina (Conservator of Textiles, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture)
Pre-recorded by Laura first, then in-person by Jennifer; virtual & in-person Q&A
Making a Model Mannequin – Couture Mounting and Cutaways for NAOMI: In Fashion
Presented by Rachael Lee (Senior Costume Mounting Specialist, Victoria & Albert Museum)
Co-authored with Lilia Prier Tisdall (Senior Costume Mounting Specialist, Victoria & Albert Museum)
2:20 - 2:40 pm COFFEE BREAK
Session 2 continues
Offering It Up – A Project Exploring Object Making and Object Support in Aotearoa New Zealand
Sophia Smolenski (independent contract mountmaker)
Three-Dimensional Mounts for Raven’s Tail and Chilkat Robes
Jackie Manning (Curator of Exhibitions, Alaska State Museum)
Aaron Elmore (Exhibit Specialist, Alaska State Museum)
Pre-recorded; virtual Q&A
(11:00 am in Alaska)
Mag-cups
Timothy Skornia (Senior Mountmaker, J. Paul Getty Museum)
Closing remarks by Brett Angell (Senior Exhibitions Preparator, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
SEPTEMBER 11
WEDNESDAY, Day 2
8:30 - 9:25 am Check-in and light breakfast reception. Sponsor table and silent auction in Riley Seminar Room (#156)
9:25 - 9:30 am Introduction
Brett Angell (Senior Exhibitions Preparator, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
9:30 - 11:40 am Session 3: CAPTURING MOVEMENT
Puppets in Wonderland: Developing Mounts for Alice in Wonderland Marionette Puppets to Create an ‘Animated’ Atmosphere and Showcase the Puppets’ Performative Past
Carmela Lonetti (Objects Conservator, Arts Centre Melbourne)
Mounting Motorcycle Legends
Ania Golębiowska (Textile Conservator, Zenzie Tinker Conservation)
Mike Penwolf (Panotechnia Ltd)
Pre-recorded; virtual Q&A
(3:00pm in England)
On Mounting a Robot
Elijah Williams (Digital Technology Specialist, New York Institute of Technology School of Architecture and Design Fabrication Lab)
Transforming the National Air and Space Museum's Mannequins
Beth Knight (Textile Conservator, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum)
Handy Holders: Mounting with Magnets for Flexible Display and Study Options
Becky Doonan (Textile Conservator, Becky Doonan Conservation)
Live virtually; virtual Q&A
(4:50 pm in Maastricht)
A New Approach to Mountmaking for Library Material: Modular and Re-usable Book Cradles for More Sustainable Exhibits
Alessandro Scola (Senior Book Conservator, Johns Hopkins University)
Live virtually; virtual Q&A
Making Mounts Without the Objects: Using 3D Scanning, Modeling & Printing Technologies
Mike Lai (Head Museum Mountmaker, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco)
11:40 - 1:00 pm LUNCH
No lunch provided (there are dining options open at the Museum and guests can also go out to nearby restaurants on their own)
Sponsor table and silent auction in Riley Seminar Room (#156)
1:00 - 4:00 Session 4: COLLABORATION
Mount Storage – Mo’ Mounts, Mo’ Problems
Kimberley McParland (Exhibitions Preparator, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
Fosshé: An Innovative Method for Building Flexible, Rigid, Interior Supports
Melissa Huddleston (Assistant Conservator, Getty Research Institute) and BJ Farrar (Senior Mountmaker, J. Paul Getty Museum)
Pre-recorded by Melissa first, then in-person by BJ.
Virtual and in-person Q&A
(10:10am in California)
From Permanent to Portable: A Chinese Stele's Journey from a Garden in Maine to the MFA
Presented by Pamela Hatchfield (Head of Objects Conservation Emerita, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston); co-authored with Adeline Lutts (formerly Conservation Engineer), Evelyn Mayberger (Assistant Conservator), Matthew Siegal (Chair Emeritus, Conservation and Collections Management), and Dante Vallance (formerly Senior Collections Engineer) from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
A Three Body Problem: Mountmaking and Contemporary Art
Pierre-Luc Brouillette (Mountmaker, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec) Bernard Lamarche (Curator of Contemporary Art, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec)
2:10 - 2:50 pm COFFEE BREAK
Sponsor table and silent auction in Riley Seminar Room (#156)
Roundtable Discussion
Moderators:
Shelly Uhlir (Exhibits Specialist, Mountmaker, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian)
Laura McClure (Exhibits Specialist, Mountmaker, Smithsonian National Museum of American History)
Panelists:
Pierre-Luc Brouillette (Mountmaker, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec)
Matt Gay (Founder and Head Mount Maker, Montani Mountmaking LLC)
Jacob Goble (Conservation Preparator, The Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Jamie Hascall (Craftsman, Trainer, Consultant, MountMaking Focus)
Kimberley McParland (Exhibitions Preparator, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
Jen Simons (Founding Partner and Mountmaker, Brigid Mountmaking)
Closing remarks by Brett Angell (Senior Exhibitions Preparator, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
5:30 - 8:00 pm Charles River Boat Tour Reception departing from Rowes Wharf
(prior registration required)
SEPTEMBER 12
THURSDAY, Day 3
9:30 - 9:45 am Check-in (for those touring the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
9:45 - 11:45 am Tour of MFA mount shops, exhibition preparation facilities, and conservation labs (prior registration required)
Afternoon visit to Harvard Art Museums (HAM) and/or either North Bennet Street School (NBSS) or Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: registered participants visit the Art Study Center at HAM, and are also randomly assigned to guided tours of mountmaking shops at HAM, facilities at NBSS, or the Gardner Museum.
Schedule/assignments previously sent to each participant. (prior registration required)
POSTERS
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All proceeds of shirt sales go to the
North Bennet Street School.
Their mission is to train students for careers in traditional trades that use hand skills in concert with evolving technology, to preserve and advance craft traditions, and to promote greater appreciation of craftsmanship.