Nunavut presently has no Conservator to assist heritage facilities and organizations with the preservation of their collections, nor to help them bring their storage and display up to national standards. Although some organizations may have a member of staff capable of carrying out basic levels of collections care, and may be aware of the broad parameters of conservation, they lack the tools and expertise required to implement policies, design proper storage guidelines (applicable to their specific situation) and carry out any sort of conservation treatments.

The purpose of this project is to provide ‘fly in’ conservation visits to three facilities (ideally one in each region) that have collections. The Conservator will assess the collection, identify areas where object conservation is at risk and prepare an in-depth report outlining different options (based on costs) to address the areas of the collection most at risk. In addition, samples of conservationally correct materials will be left at each center. This ‘fly in’ approach has been successful in a number of different locations across Canada and this is a piloting of this model to see if it is effective in Nunavut.

Nunavut Facilities To Be Visited

We had applications from three facilities, all of which happened to be in the Baffin Region. Colleen Healey, a professional Conservator originally from Iqaluit, will visit the Pond Inlet Archives and Nattinnak Center in Pond Inlet, the Uqqurmiut Centre for Arts and Crafts in Pangnirtung, and the Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum in Iqaluit. IHT is excited how this project will lead to more awareness around conservation issues in Nunavut and increased levels of care of our precious heritage.

Resources

The Canadian Conservation Institute

Carr McLean, supplier of conservationally correct materials and supplies

Brodart, supplier of conservationally correct materials and supplies