Join scientists and conservators from the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI) for an overview of the Managing Collection Environments (MCE) Initiative, which aims to inform environmental strategies for the sustainable control and management of collection environments by addressing key research questions and practical issues. Collection environments have typically called for narrow ranges of temperature and relative humidity, but this practice has raised concerns about its environmental and financial sustainability and the need to incorporate updated information on object needs and advances in environmental management.

GCI guest speakers Vincent Laudato Beltran, Michał Łukomski, and Cecilia Winter will share their experiences drawn from various projects, including mechanical testing of artists’ materials, acoustic emission monitoring, preventive conservation assessments, and microfading tester practice.

This presentation builds upon regional sustainability workshops held at the National Gallery of Victoria (August 2023) and the Victoria and Albert Museum (February 2024), as well as the recent GCI publication “Managing Collection Environments: Technical Notes and Guidance.” Additional details on MCE Initiative activities can be found at the GCI website.

Vincent Laudato Beltran is a Scientist at the GCI and part of the Preventive Conservation research team and the MCE Initiative. His research and teaching efforts include assessments of environmental management systems in hot and humid climates, evaluations of packing case performance during transit, and advancing microfading tester practice. He is a coauthor of the GCI publication, “Microfading Tester: Light Sensitivity Assessment and Role in Lighting Policy.”

Michał Łukomski is a Senior Scientist and head of Preventive Conservation research at the GCI. His current area of research focuses on the mechanical characterization of historic materials and their response to changes of environmental parameters, as well as investigations of painted surfaces by advanced optical techniques. He is a coauthor of the GCI publication, “Acoustic Emission Monitoring for Cultural Heritage.”

Cecilia Winter is a Project Specialist in the Collections Department at the GCI. She has worked as a registrar and conservator in Brazil and France, focusing on preventive conservation and collection care, documentation, exhibitions, and loans. She was previously head of the Collection and Conservation department at the Museum of Art of São Paulo and a preventive conservation teacher in the Collection Management MBA at Associação Brasileira de Gestão de Cultural and Candido Mendes University in Rio de Janeiro.

Organised by Lori Wong (Senior Lecturer in Conservation, The Courtauld)