Current Unpaid Interns at CCI
Jessica Keister
As a third-year graduate student in the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (a cooperative effort between the University of Delaware and the Winterthur Museum & Country Estate), I am excited to be spending a six-month curriculum internship at CCI. Working under the supervision of photographs conservator Greg Hill, I will have the opportunity to participate in all routine lab activities as well as initiate, plan, and carry out the treatment of a very significant artifact — the “Medicine Hat Panorama”.
This black-and-white silver gelatin panoramic photograph of Medicine Hat, Alberta, measures approximately 49 cm x 370 cm. It was taken by L.C. Barton of Chicago in July 1912, likely as some form of promotional material for the city. At that time (the early 20th century), Medicine Hat was known as “the Pittsburgh of the West”. It was a rapidly growing community with extensive natural resources and thriving industries. This panorama displays the entirety of the young city — the hotels, schools, hospitals, and factories that grew into the industrialized Medicine Hat of the present day. By the time the photograph was donated to its current owners (the Medicine Hat Museum and Art Gallery, now part of the Esplanade Arts & Heritage Centre) in 1962, it was likely in less-than-optimal condition.
On arrival at CCI for treatment, the photograph was attached to a sheet of plywood and had been roughly torn into three segments. There were also numerous other cracks and losses and the surface was covered in a heavy layer of dirt and grime. Past attempts to repair the damage and reduce the surface soiling had left behind areas of heavy abrasion, extensive disfiguring retouching, and multiple damaging adhesive residues.
In developing a treatment protocol, CCI conservators have been working with CCI conservation scientists to gain a greater understanding of the photograph’s condition and material components. Though its size and current condition pose conservation challenges, the resources at CCI will allow the treatment to be carried out with minimal risk of further damage. The conserved panorama should be back in Medicine Hat and available for study by scholars and the public by the fall of 2009.
