Description: 100 years ago in August of 1914, the Panama Canal opened to commercial shipping. Smithsonian scientists knew the canal would create major environmental changes and have spent the last 100 years documenting them.
Description: A selection of posters from programs and exhibitions at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (formerly National Collection of Fine Arts and National Museum of American Art) and Renwick Gallery.
Description: Behind the archivists, technicians, and specialists of the museum field are an abundance of organizations that network ideas, connect professionals, and present new strategies to broaden the impact of museums (American Alliance of Museums, Society of American Archivists, etc.). Many associations focus on specific aspects of this dynamic field and help to push museum practice
Description: The Smithsonian’s Field Book Project is a continuous fount of work for both our digitization crew here at the Archives and for me as the conservator in charge of the project’s physical needs. Over the past several weeks I have worked on a variety of field books with different structures and treatment requirements, and will share a few of the most common features I’ve seen in
Description: Despite another year of telework and limited physical access to our collections, the Smithsonian Institution Archives has continued to serve our researchers and share more of our collections with the public.
Description: Nighthawks by Edward Hopper, recreated in miniature with office supplies. [via Colossal]A new project, Great 78, seeks to preserve 78rpm records. [via Internet Archive]Nice! NYPL card holders can now stream movies from the Criterion Collection. [via Gothamist] A floating museum makes its debut this month in Chicago! [via Timeout]Sound maps of protest from the last 26 years.
Description: Tomorrow, to mark Archives Month, we will be on Twitter for #AskAnArchivist! We will answer any questions you may have about archives, from preserving your photos to favorites in our collection. Get your questions ready for this amazing line-up!William Bennett – Conservation Specialist, Smithsonian Institution Archives, attends to the physical needs of our archival collections
Description: As we teased earlier this spring in our Facebook Live event, last week Senior Conservator Nora Lockshin and I traveled to Houston, Texas, to share our work with conservation colleagues at the 46th annual meeting of the American Institute of Conservation (AIC). Our contributions centered around work with the Field Book Project, as did our Facebook Live.Another successful
Description: [caption id="" align="alignright" width="168" caption="Canna indica L., identified by P.J.M. Maas & H. Maas, Cusco, Peru, National Museum of Natural History, Botany Department, Catalog Number: 1998001."][/caption] The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History Botany Department just added over 1,300 images to the Smithsonian Collection Search Center! Some gorgeous
Description: Shireen L. Dodson worked as Comptroller for the Smithsonian Institution (1986–1992), Associate Director for Administration and Planning at the National African-American Museum Project (1992–1995), and Associate Director for Administration at the Anacostia Museum and Center for African American History and Culture (1995–2000). #Groundbreaker