Washington, DC—Dr. Anne-Imelda Radice, Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), announced today that 776 museums, libraries, and archives, representing every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam have been selected to receive the IMLS Connecting to Collections Bookshelf. The contents of the bookshelf were selected by a blue ribbon panel of conservation experts; it includes an essential set of books, online resources, and a user’s guide that can profoundly affect the ability of small libraries and museums to care for their collections.
To see the list of recipients, click here
“The Connecting to Collections Bookshelf provides museums, libraries, and archives essential instructions on how to rescue treasures of yesteryear that they hold in trust,” said Radice. “These Bookshelves, once they are all distributed, will touch institutions around the nation.”
The IMLS Bookshelf was made possible by a cooperative agreement with the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) with support from the Getty Foundation, the Henry Luce Foundation, and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation. It is part of Connecting to Collections: A Call to Action, a strategic initiative by IMLS to address the challenges described in A Public Trust at Risk: The Heritage Health Index Report on the State of America’s Collections.
The report concluded that: 190 million objects need conservation treatment, 65 percent of collecting institutions have damaged collections due to improper storage, 80 percent of collecting institutions lack an emergency plan for their collections and trained staff to carry it out, and 40 percent of institutions have no funds allocated in their annual budget for preservation and conservation.
Most recipients have small budgets and staff, and have demonstrated an urgent need for this permanent resource. History museums, historic houses, and academic libraries with special collections are especially well represented among the recipients. Ten zoos, aquaria, botanical gardens, and nature centers are also represented. In addition, ten art museums with Kress Collection items will receive the bookshelf with funding from the Kress Foundation.
Recipients are located in 327 of the nation’s 435 congressional districts.
“Given the Getty's longstanding commitment to the care of museum and archival collections, we are pleased to partner with IMLS and other foundations to provide key conservation resources to the institutions that most need them,” said Getty Foundation Director Deborah Marrow.
“We are delighted to help make this important material reach so many institutions around the country,” said Ellen Holtzman, Program Director for American Art at the Henry Luce Foundation.
“The Kress Foundation is delighted to be working with IMLS to ensure the broadest possible access to this important reference resource,” said Max Marmor, President of the Kress Foundation.
The IMLS Bookshelf focuses on collections typically found in art or history museums and in libraries' special collections, with an added selection of texts for living collections. It addresses topics including the philosophy and ethics of collecting, collections management and planning, emergency preparedness, and culturally specific conservation issues. Among the publications selected were The National Trust Manual of Housekeeping (published by the British National Trust in 2005), the Field Guide to Emergency Response (published by Heritage Preservation in 2006), and Essentials of Conservation Biology (published by Primack in 2006).
Based on the enthusiastic response to the bookshelf, IMLS will offer a third round of competition to distribute an additional 1000 Bookshelves. Applications can be submitted to AASLH between January 5, 2009, and March 9, 2009, at www.aaslh.org/Bookshelf/.
Federally-operated institutions, for-profit institutions, and libraries that do not hold special collections are not eligible to receive the IMLS Bookshelf. For more information, please contact Terry Jackson at jackson@aaslh.org or 615-320-3203.
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