Wednesday, December 16, 2009 Last night I attended a reception for the grand opening of the African American Museum of Iowa’s permanent exhibit “Endless Possibilities” which traces the journey of Iowa’s African Americans. This event was also a farewell to curator Susan Kuecker who is moving to Pittsburgh. Susan and I have crossed paths manyContinue reading “Endless Possibilities Grand Opening”
Author Archives: Nancy E. Kraft
OLLI Students Create Post-Bound Photo Albums
Monday, November 2, 2009 Osher Lifelong Learning Institute students spent two Mondays making a post-bound photo album in the University of Iowa Libraries conservation lab guided by preservation assistant Bill Voss and two Mondays with preservation librarian Nancy E Kraft learning about digital photo layout. Although most of the material was pre-cut, there was stillContinue reading “OLLI Students Create Post-Bound Photo Albums”
Learning How to Use Our New Water System
Tuesday, September 22, 2009 In 2007, the first person we contacted for assistance with designing our new conservation water system was UI water engineer David McClain. He took us on a field trip to view other UI installations and assisted in specifying a new system. Once we had a contract in place, he coordinated allContinue reading “Learning How to Use Our New Water System”
A New Conservation Lab Sink at Last
Friday, September 11, 2009 Finally, all the pieces are in place and fully functional! I thought it would be good to reflect back on the old system on the left and ponder the new system on the right. The stainless steel sink is 48” x 72” x 4” allowing for work on large and smallContinue reading “A New Conservation Lab Sink at Last”
Mock Disaster Recovery Drill at the Iowa State Fair
Sunday, August 23, 2009 Today the University of Iowa Collections Coalition http://www.uiowa.edu/collect/ went to the Iowa State Fair. We staged mock disaster recovery drills from 9AM until 3PM. Our message was that there is a strong likelihood that you can save your stuff even if it’s all grimy and wet. We invited people to participate.Continue reading “Mock Disaster Recovery Drill at the Iowa State Fair”
Marriage Certificate Repaired
Thursday, July 23, 2009 This Marriage Certificate arrived at the Conservation Lab tightly rolled in a tube. It was in two torn halves, somewhat soiled and quite tattered along the edges with some degree of loss particularly along the right margin. The treatment that followed included a gentle humidification and flattening, followed by dry cleaningContinue reading “Marriage Certificate Repaired”
Stuck Pages
Thursday, June 18, 2009 This week when Susan Hansen and I reviewed the work for the Art Library, she pointed out a book that had a block of pages stuck together. It felt like a brick. We were convinced that the book was beyond repair. However, before declaring the book a loss, we forwarded theContinue reading “Stuck Pages”
Commemorating Flood of 2008
Monday, June 15, 2009 We were invited to participate in the university’s special event, “Remember, Reimagine, Rebuild,” at the Old Capitol Museum commemorating the one-year anniversary of last year’s historic flood. The Old Capitol was open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the free event, which included displays of flood-related photographs and research, audioContinue reading “Commemorating Flood of 2008”
It’s A Clover Mite!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009 The “bug guy” stopped by this morning. It is, indeed, a clover mite. Had we just consulted our marking/binding supervisor, Deb, we could have skipped consulting with our pest control contractor. When I told her about the clover mite, she said, “oh, yeah, my grandkids love them. They like to squishContinue reading “It’s A Clover Mite!”
It Might Be a Mite
Tuesday, June 9, 2009 We had a little bit of excitement this afternoon. A student worker had a small red mite fall out of a book he was processing. We called the “bug” guy who will visit us tomorrow. We’re hoping it’s a clover mite. Apparently, they are plentiful this year. The clover mite doesContinue reading “It Might Be a Mite”