Attachment H.6 Guidelines for Reports and Photos 2018.pdf

SENATE COMMISSION ON ART

GUIDELINES FOR CONSERVATION REPORTS AND PHOTO DOCUMENTATION

Updated: May 2018

At the conclusion of conservation treatment performed under contract with the Senate Commission on Art, the conservator must submit a detailed written conservation and restoration report with photo documentation in both hard copy and digital forms. Any separate reports prepared by subcontractors hired by the conservator under the contract shall follow the same guidelines and shall be incorporated into the conservator’s report. All reports shall be consistent with the letter and spirit of the American Institute for Conservation (AIC) Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice. Specific requirements are enumerated below.

Content Requirements Introduction

• Identification of object (name, attribution, catalogue number, accurate measurements in inches, date, if known).

• Brief summary of the treatment goals.

Body (it may be advantageous to organize according to major components of the object)

• Treatment summary, including the condition problems addressed, all materials and procedures used, the purpose for which they were used, and the specific areas where they were used.

• Reports of any sample analysis and cleaning test results.

• Description of what has been learned about the original technique and materials, and about previous treatments.

• Photographs, diagrams, and text documenting initial condition, problem areas (such as areas of instability or loss of original material), and treatment (such as areas consolidated and areas of inpainting or repatination).

• Systematic photographs of overall areas and significant details at all relevant stages, including pre-treatment; during testing and cleaning or surface preparation; before inpainting, repatination, or other reintegration; and after treatment. Also document alterations, markings, and repairs that are physical evidence of the object’s history.

Conclusion

• Recommendations for future protection and maintenance, including how frequently maintenance or treatment should be performed, and what skills and materials are needed.

Technical Requirements

• For the conservation report, text and supporting photographs may be printed in a unified layout or delivered separately (with photographic prints, graphics, and other objects sleeved apart from printed text).

• Care should be given to exposure and color balancing of images.

• For the post treatment overall photograph, use a neutral gray background and include a color bar, scale/ruler, date, catalogue number and photographer’s name. Provide these images as TIFFs or JPEGs with a minimum of 8”x10” at 300 DPI. They will potentially be used for publications.

• Each printed photo should be 3 ½” x 5” or larger and captioned with the stage of treatment (BT, DT, PT (post treatment)) description, and date taken.

• The hard copy conservation report and photo documentation should be printed on archival-quality paper and housed in polypropylene or polyester sleeves with three-ring binder holes (pages can be inserted on both the front and back side of the sleeve), ready for insertion in a three-ring folder or binder.

Attachment H.6, RFP-2026-002, Office of Senate Curator 1819 Senate Chamber Chair, U.S. Senate Collection, 65.00106.000

• The digital copy of the conservation report should be submitted in an approved electronic format (PDF or Microsoft Word).

• All digital image files for the photographs used in the report and all additional useful photo documentation made during the course of the project are required as a separate items.

• Digital files should be labeled within the following guidelines:

-File names should begin with the object number.

i.e.: 32_00014 or 65_00014_007 -Dashes and underscores are the only approved punctuation. Dashes are reserved for noting the date.

-Dates follow the object number in the format: YYYY-MM-DD.

i.e.: 32_00014_2018-05-25 -Each file should indicate the stage of treatment: BT (before treatment), DT (during treatment), PT (post treatment) i.e.: 32_00014_2018-05-25_DT -Each file should have direction descriptions: U (upper), B (bottom), C (center), L (left), R (right), N (north), S (south), E (east), W (west) i.e.: 32_00014_2018-05-25_DT_UL -If needed, include a descriptor of the view. Descriptors are used if the file focuses on specific damage, an aspect of the overall condition or details part of the object.

i.e.: 32_00014_2018-05-25_DT_UL_Frame_Front or 32_00014_2018-05-

25_DT_UL_Canvas_Rip -If there are multiple files of a view then use numbers at the end of the file name to differentiate.

Only use enough digits to encompass the maximum number.

2003-04_Move_to_Corridor_Back_profile_1 (if under 10) 2003-04_Move_to_Corridor_NW_corner_01 (if over 10, under 100) 2003-04_Move_to_Corridor_001 (if over 100, under 1000)

Note: All photographic documentation taken for the project will be considered work-for-hire and is the property of the Senate Commission on Art. The conservator may retain copies for company archives and for use in professional resumes but may not use them for promotional purposes. Approval must be obtained from the Senate Commission on Art for presentation and publications about the conservation project.