Museums & Archive

Conservation Awards Ireland (Objects-based)

Following the positive findings of a consultancy report, The Potential and Scope for an All-Ireland Conservator's Award Scheme, the Heritage Council is happy to announce the development of a Conservation Award to promote fuller recognition of the skills base of Irish conservators (objects-based).

On 25 September 2008, a meeting of representatives within the Conservation sector — the Museums and Archives Committee of the Heritage Council, Business To Arts, and Conservation Letterfrack — announced that it hopes to have the criteria for the Conservation Award in place to coincide with the 43rd Irish Antique Dealers’ Fair, 24-28 September 2008. Details will be available on request and on this website.

With one overall award, candidates can self-nominate, or may be nominated by institutions or individuals. In keeping with the standards implicit in ICHAWI’s Accreditation Processes, the Conservation Award will be assessed on the overall conservation excellence of a project. This will include documentation, ethical research, consideration of original usage, the consideration of treatment options, and best practice.

Judging will involve a two-tier process. The initial selection phase will be carried out by a panel of judges selected by the Heritage Council and its associates from within the Council of National Cultural Institutions (CNCI) and professional organisations. The second phase will involve a panel of international experts. Results will be announced in Autumn 2009.

Read The Potential and Scope for an All-Ireland Conservator's Award Scheme
Conservators_Report [PDF XXMB]

Conservation Awards Judges

Biography:  Katy Lithgow

Katy Lithgow joined the National Trust in 1991, having taken a BA Hons in Archaeology, Anthropology and History of Art in Cambridge, and obtained the Postgraduate Diploma in Wall Paintings Conservation from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London, where she taught following an internship at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. As an Area Conservator and then Assistant to the Housekeeper she specialized in storage and protection of collections during building works. In 1995 she became the Trust’s Wall Painting Conservation Adviser and in 2002 Conservation Advisers Manager, co-ordinating the advice provided by the Trust’s staff and freelance conservation advisers, before being appointed Head Conservator in 2005. She has published and lectured on wall painting conservation, preventive conservation, conservation management, science in collections conservation and green museums. Katy is an Accredited Conservator-Restorer (ACR) in both preventive and wall paintings conservation, and member of the Accreditation Committee. Address: The National Trust, Heelis, Kemble Drive, Swindon, SN2 2NA, UK. Email: katy.lithgow@nationaltrust.org.uk

Biography:  Brenda Keneghan

Brenda Keneghan took her primary degree in Chemistry and her PhD in Materials Science and worked for several years in academic research before joining the Conservation Department of the Victoria & Albert Museum in 1993.  She has undertaken extensive condition surveys of plastic objects among the various collections of the museum and published the results. Her research interests include the degradation mechanisms of synthetic polymers, cleaning and the use of inhibitors in storage. She also undertakes instrumental analysis and advises conservators on issues associated with display, treatment & storage of objects made from polymeric materials. She is a partner in the EU funded project – ‘PopArt’ dealing with the preservation of plastic objects in collections.  As part of PopArt she is re-surveying part of the V&A collection and investigating cleaning methods for plastics.  She is also involved in a conservation project on the natural polymer urushi (oriental lacquer), leading the investigation into scientific aspects of the ageing of lacquer and the scientific assessment of conservation treatments. She has lectured extensively on plastics in heritage and organized the 2007 conference: Plastics – Looking at the Future & Learning from the Past.
She represents the Royal Society of Chemistry on the European Association for Chemical and Molecular Sciences (EUCheMS) working group on Chemistry for Cultural heritage. 

Biography:  Maighread McParland.

A science graduate of U.C.D., she worked in industry before studying conservation/restoration at the Istituto di Patologia del Libro, Rome. She attended the Istituto Centrale di Restauro as an observer, and participated in the rescue operation in the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale Florence after the disastrous floods of 1966.

She worked as a conservator of works of art on paper in the National Gallery from 1971 until 1999.  She was appointed to the board of the National Gallery in 1993.

She worked with the Heritage Council in the formulation of the ‘Caring for Collections’ template for its Standards and Accreditation scheme. 

A fellow of the Institute of Chemistry of Ireland, and of the International Institute of Conservation, she is a founder member of the Irish Professional Conservators’ and Restorers’ Association and of the Institute for the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works in Ireland. She has contributed to several publications.