In My Life: Lessons Learned and Futures Imagined in the Preservation of Photographs

This event requires a reservation; see further details below.

From the daguerreotype to the digital print, we are surrounded by images that connect and celebrate humanity. As nations struggle with increasingly catastrophic environmental disasters, armed conflict, health emergencies, social injustice, and other crises, the need to preserve our world’s heritage, including photographs, is heightened. Through collaboration and community engagement, the practice of photograph preservation has the capacity to cross boundaries, build trust, and bridge divides.

During this presentation (which includes a little music), professor Debra Hess Norris, from the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, will share information on the characterization and preservation of photographic materials. She’ll offer lessons she learned as a conservator, educator, fundraiser, and advocate, from Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., to the TEDx public stage.

This lecture is presented in conjunction with the Association of North American Graduate Programs in Conservation Annual 2023 Conference (ANAGPIC).

Speaker:
Debra Hess Norris, Chair, Department of Art Conservation; Director of the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation; and Professor of Photograph Conservation, University of Delaware

Free admission, but seating is limited and reservations are required. Reservations may be arranged by clicking on the event on this form, beginning Saturday, April 15, after 10am.

The lecture will take place in Menschel Hall, Lower Level. Doors will open for seating at 5pm.

Please see the museum visit page to learn about our general policies for visiting the museum.

Support for the program is dually provided by the M. Victor Leventritt Fund and the Angelica Zander Rudenstine Annual Lecture Fund through the Association of North American Graduate Programs in Conservation. The M. Victor Leventritt Fund was established through the generosity of the wife, children, and friends of the late M. Victor Leventritt, Harvard Class of 1935. The purpose of the fund is to present outstanding scholars of the history and theory of art to the Harvard and Greater Boston communities.

The Harvard Art Museums are committed to accessibility for all visitors. For anyone requiring accessibility accommodations for our programs, please contact us at am_register@harvard.edu at least 48 hours in advance.