The High Point Museum recently was awarded a $21,694 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to engage expert consultants in a review of the Museum’s preservation environment.
The Museum’s award is part of $29 million in grants to support 215 humanities projects across the country. The Museum’s grant is one of 18 nationwide in the Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections category.
Between October 2019 and January 2021, a conservator and a buildings specialist from the Image Permanence Institute (IPI) at Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY, will monitor and analyze the performance of the HVAC systems in the Museum’s storage and exhibit spaces. IPI has a track record of providing valuable recommendations for improved use of existing equipment, while also considering cost and long-term sustainability. The consultants will make two on-site visits to the Museum, once at the beginning of the project and once at the end.
“We are thrilled that the NEH chose to fund our project,” Corinne Midgett, Museum Registrar, said. “As stewards of High Point’s history, it is vital that we provide appropriate environmental conditions for the large variety of artifacts and materials in our collection. In addition to creating exhibits and programs, we work hard behind-the-scenes to monitor temperature, relative humidity, and light levels in the Museum. This project will allow us to receive expert guidance and recommendations for sustainable and realistic updates to our environmental systems.”
At the first visit, they will install multiple sensors throughout the storage and exhibit areas to track conditions. Over the following year, Museum staff will periodically collect and share data from the sensors with the consultants. Based on IPI’s analysis, adjustments to the HVAC systems may be made during the course of the project so that the changes also can be analyzed. The second on-site visit will allow staff and consultants to discuss results and next steps. Building on this discussion, the consultants will produce a final report detailing their recommendations.
The High Point Museum, a division of the High Point Public Library, shares Greater High Point’s history, provides perspective for current issues, and strengthens the sense of community.
The City of High Point aims to serve as the catalyst for bringing together the community’s human, economic and civic resources for the purpose of creating the single most livable, safe and prosperous community in America. For more information on the City, visit www.highpointnc.gov
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