The C Word (M4A Feed) The C Word
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- Society & Culture
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We talk about all sorts of things from the perspective of conservation professionals, from museum trends and new technology to the big issues like pay and staying safe at work. In some museums conservation can be a bit of a naughty word but we think it ought to be celebrated!
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S14E05: Using AI
Jenny, Solange and Phedra are joined by Luisa Casella as we talk about AI: how can conservators use these tools and what are their pros and cons? Luisa tells us about CRAIG, a large language model for conservators, while Jenny frets about the climate impact. Also tune in for a review of a recent lecture on AI usage from Solange and Phedra!
01:35 What do we mean by AI?
04:11 Building a LLM for conservators
13:33 Climate impact and ethical concerns
20:28 Sophisticated users needed
24:13 Future impact on conservation
35:25 Best AI uses we’ve seen
37:46 How is CRAIG different from ChatGPT?
39:42 Teaser: Interview with Robert Erdmann
40:18 Review of Dr Nicholas Eastaugh’s recent AI lecture
47:34 Patreon appeal
Show Notes:
- S01E09 Museum Pi: https://thecword.show/2017/06/21/s01e09-museum-pi/
- S06E03 The One with the Arduino: https://thecword.show/2019/10/16/s06e03-the-one-with-the-arduino/
- Follow Luisa and her conservation tips here: https://linktr.ee/conservation_tips
- CRAIG: https://chatgpt.com/g/g-P8SfTCDEO-craig-conservation-restoration-ai-generative-tool
- ChatGPT by OpenAI: https://chatgpt.com/
- BBC article on Sarah Silverman that Jenny mentioned: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-66164228
- AIC conservation wiki: https://www.conservation-wiki.com/wiki/Main_Page
- AI and the Climate Crisis (lecture recording): https://goldsmiths.cloud.panopto.eu/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=609824f6-5e69-4241-9bd4-b13a00d3d05b
- AI’s Growing Carbon Footprint: https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2023/06/09/ais-growing-carbon-footprint/
- More on energy usage of AI: https://www.washington.edu/news/2023/07/27/how-much-energy-does-chatgpt-use/
- BBC article on AI reading ancient burnt scrolls: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68221243
- Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwHBfYsHR0UBAiA_VhMeOIw
- Paintings Group lecture mentioned: https://www.icon.org.uk/events/paintings-group-art-authorship-and-ai-for-good-or-ill.html
Other AI resources:
- Luisa’s Substack article on AI: https://conservationtips.substack.com/p/ai-in-art-conservation
- Heritage Fund briefing on AI: https://www.heritagefund.org.uk/about/insight/research/artificial-intelligence-digital-heritage-leadership-briefing
- Museums Association on AI: https://www.museumsassociation.org/category/ai/
Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword
Hosted by Solange Masher, Jenny Mathiasson, Phedra Komodromou and Luisa Casella.
Intro and outro music by DDmyzik, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license.
A Wooden Dice production, 2024. -
S14E04: Working with Heritage Scientists
Jenny and Liz talk to Dr Marysia Tarnowska about their journey into heritage science from a background in chemistry: from molecular bonds to leather deterioration! Jenny also talks to Dr Josep Grau-Bove from the Icon Heritage Science Group about how we can communicate better as both conservators and scientists. Finally, tune in for a review of ‘Soft Paint and the Care of Paintings’ from Liz!
00:01:10 From chemistry to museum adventures
00:07:35 A project is born
00:14:53 Scientific papers are an endurance sport
00:17:23 Ways into heritage science
00:19:08 Communicating with conservators
00:24:02 Reaching scientists early on
00:34:28 Museums doing research
00:40:53 Getting involved with scientists
00:43:42 University is where it’s at
00:47:13 Don’t forget about the Marsh Awards
00:48:00 Patreon shout-out
00:48:37 Interview with Dr Josep Grau-Bove
01:03:11 Review: Soft Paint and the Care of Paintings
Show Notes:
- Find Marysia on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marysia-tarnowska/
- Follow Marysia on Twitter: https://twitter.com/supra_marysia
- Blog entry by Lucia Burgio at the V&A: https://www.vam.ac.uk/blog/caring-for-our-collections/a-week-in-the-life-of-a-va-heritage-scientist-intro
- Red rot (Wikipedia): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_rot
- Museum of Leathercraft: https://museumofleathercraft.org/
- Leather Conservation Centre: https://leatherconservation.org/
- Institute for Creative Leather Technologies: https://www.northampton.ac.uk/research/research-institutes-and-centres/institute-for-creative-leather-technologies/
- S09E06 Leather: https://thecword.show/2021/06/02/s09e06-leather/
- ICPMS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inductively_coupled_plasma_mass_spectrometry
- /r/ArtConservation: https://www.reddit.com/r/ArtConservation/
- Icon Heritage Science Group: https://www.icon.org.uk/groups-and-networks/heritage-science.html
- European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science (E-RIHS): https://www.e-rihs.eu/
- MoLab: https://www.iperionhs.eu/molab/
- AHRC (Arts and Humanities Research Council): https://www.ukri.org/councils/ahrc/
- Research at Amgueddfa Cymru: https://museum.wales/research/
- Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands: https://english.cultureelerfgoed.nl/
- Marsh Conservation Awards 2024: https://www.icon.org.uk/impact/the-marsh-conservation-awards.html
- Dr Josep Grau-Bove at UCL: https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/33855-josep-graubove
- UCL Institute for Sustainable Heritage: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/heritage/ucl-institute-sustainable-heritage
- Dr Katherine Curran at UCL: https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/34356-katherine-curran/
- Soft Paint and the Care of Paintings book: https://archetype.co.uk/our-titles/soft-paint-and-the-care-of-paintings/?id=450
Previous ‘Working With’ episodes:
- S07E04 Working With Techs: https://thecword.show/2020/05/27/s07e04-working-with-techs/
- S09E01 Working With Front of House: https://thecword.show/2021/03/24/s09e01-working-with-front-of-house/
- S10E02 Working With Curators: https://thecword.show/2021/09/29/s10e02-working-with-curators/
- S11E03 Working With Learning: https://thecword.show/2022/04/20/s11e03-working-with-learning/
- S13E04 Working With Adult Learning: https://thecword.show/2023/05/03/s13e04-working-with-adult-learning/
Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword
Hosted by Liz Hébert, Jenny Mathiasson, and Dr Marysia Tarnowska.
Intro and outro music by DDmyzik, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license.
A Wooden Dice production, 2024. -
S14E03: Historic Houses
Join Jenny, Kloe and Liz as they explore historic houses across the world, their unique charms, and quirky challenges. Phedra whisks us away to a sun-soaked historic house museum in Cyprus, while Liz delves into the meticulous conservation efforts at Sir John Soane's Museum with Jane Wilkinson. Finally, Kloe has a chat with Helen Antrobus about what it’s like working in the National Trust.
00:00:28 What’s a historic house?
00:03:18 Are all of them posh?
00:07:03 Nature and heritage in harmony
00:09:30 Our favourites
00:16:30 Jenny feels like an alien
00:23:14 Mitigating damage
00:24:56 Houses still in use
00:31:12 Challenges and temptations
00:37:21 What era are we interpreting or preserving?
00:40:57 Pests and damp patches
00:44:28 Patreon shout out
00:45:00 Interview with Jane Wilkinson
00:56:00 Phedra’s visit to Lefkara
01:07:17 Interview with Helen Antrobus
Show Notes:
- National Trust: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/
- NT annual report Jenny quoted: https://documents.nationaltrust.org.uk/story/annual-report-2023/page/1
- Historic Houses (UK): https://www.historichouses.org/
- Rembrandt House, Amsterdam: https://www.rembrandthuis.nl/en/
- Kettles Yard, Cambridge: https://www.kettlesyard.cam.ac.uk/history-of-kettles-yard/
- Pollok House, Glasgow: https://www.nts.org.uk/stories/pollok-house-major-refurbishment
- FAI or the National Trust for Italy: https://fai-international.org/
- Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: https://www.gardnermuseum.org/
- Gawthorpe Hall, Ightenhill: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/liverpool-lancashire/gawthorpe-hall
- Chatsworth, Bakewell: https://www.chatsworth.org/
- Yin Yu Tang at Peabody Essex Museum: https://www.pem.org/yin-yu-tang-a-chinese-home
- St Fagans National Museum of History in Wales: https://museum.wales/stfagans/
- Beamish, the Living Museum of the North, in England: https://www.beamish.org.uk/
- Museo Horne: https://www.museohorne.it/en/
- Holker Hall in Cumbria: https://www.holker.co.uk/
- West Dean College: https://www.westdean.ac.uk/
- Barnes foundation move in Philadelphia: https://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/14/arts/design/judge-rules-the-barnes-can-move-to-philadelphia.html
- S10E04 Halloween special with haunted properties: https://thecword.show/2021/10/28/s10e04-halloween-special/
- Old World Wisconsin: https://oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org/
- Sir John Soane's Museum: https://www.soane.org/
- The book mentioned by Liz: https://shop.soane.org/collections/books-and-maps/products/a-complete-description-of-sir-john-soanes-museum-24
- The Local Museum of Traditional Embroidery and Silversmith-work, Lefkara (for the virtual tour!): https://larnakaregion.com/directory/product/local-museum-traditional-embroidery-and-silversmith-work-lefkara
- S10E02 Working with Curators: https://thecword.show/2021/09/29/s10e02-working-with-curators/
- Visiting the National Trust conservation studios: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/search?type=place&query=conservation
- Hidden Treasures of the National Trust on the BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001lttx
Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword
Hosted by Liz Hébert, Kloe Rumsey, and Jenny Mathiasson.
Intro and outro music by DDmyzik, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license.
A Wooden Dice production, 2024. -
S14E02: Getting a Foot in the Door
Liz and Phedra join forces with freelance paintings conservator Alexis Drapanas as they tackle an ECP special! Phedra also interviews conservator Kerith Koss Schrager and intern Adrienne Gendron about health and safety for emerging professionals. And don’t forget to tune in for a Dear Jane about getting into some more unusual specialisms!
00:00:45 Introducing our ECP hosts
00:08:02 Straight from university to private practice
00:09:15 What does ‘emerging’ mean to you?
00:16:01 Let’s talk money!
00:24:37 Paperwork in real life
00:29:22 Job searching across Europe
00:37:44 How to break down the door
00:45:45 Patreon teaser
00:46:00 Interview with Kerith Koss Schrager and Adrienne Gendron
01:00:57 Phedra’s recommended listening
01:03:19 Dear Jane
Show Notes:
- Alexis’ website: https://www.drapanas.com/
- Follow Phedra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phedrakom/
- Cardiff University: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/course/conservation-of-objects-in-museums-and-archaeology-bsc
- Lorenzo de Medici Institute: https://ldminstitute.com/department/restoration/
- Follow Liz on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lizhebertxcvi
- Follow Liz on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizhebertxcvi/
- Conversation Conservation on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conversationconservation/
- AIC Health and Safety Wiki: https://www.conservation-wiki.com/wiki/Category:Health_%26_Safety
- Health and safety beginner's guide: https://www.conservation-wiki.com/w/images/1/1d/H%26S_BeginnerGuide.pdf
- Hazards in collections eTool: https://hazardsincollections.org.uk/
- 6 session C2C Course - Health and Safety in Collections Care: https://learning.culturalheritage.org/products/c2c-care-course-health-and-safety-in-collections-care
Phedra’s recommended listening:
- S01E05 Emerging Professionals: https://thecword.show/2017/04/26/s01e05-emerging-professionals/
- S02E04 Emerging Professionals 2: https://thecword.show/2017/10/04/s02e04-emerging-professionals-2/
- S13E02 Accreditation Part 1: https://thecword.show/2023/04/05/s13e02-accreditation-part-1/
- S12E06 Time Management: https://thecword.show/2022/11/23/s12e06-time-management/
- S12E01 Job Interviews: https://thecword.show/2022/09/14/s12e01-job-interviews/
- S11E04 Building a Business: https://thecword.show/2022/05/04/s11e04-building-a-business/
- S10E05 Aches and Pains: https://thecword.show/2021/11/10/s10e05-aches-and-pains/
- S05E05 Portfolio Extravaganza: https://thecword.show/2019/05/15/s05e05-portfolio-extravaganza/
- S04E02 Parenthood: https://thecword.show/2018/10/03/s04e02-parenthood/
Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword
Hosted by Liz Hébert, Phedra Komodromou, and Alexis Drapanas.
Intro and outro music by DDmyzik, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license.
A Wooden Dice production, 2024. -
S14E01: Meet the Team (or A Few of Our Favourite Things)
Meet the dream team! It’s a crowded recording session today: Jenny and Kloe ask their new colleagues Liz, Phedra, and Solange about their new roles and their favourite objects, tools, and adhesives. What ARE a few of our favourite things? Also tune in for a review of ‘Conservation of Books’ from Solange!
00:02:16 Who’s Liz?
00:04:22 And who’s Phedra?
00:07:00 Aaand who’s Solange?
00:09:38 Experimentation ahead
00:14:10 Favourite Instagram accounts
00:17:08 Favourite objects
00:25:31 Least favourite objects!
00:34:02 Can you have a favourite pest…?
00:37:33 Favourite adhesive
00:53:38 Favourite tools
01:04:17 Review: Conservation of Books
Show Notes:
- Follow Liz on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lizhebertxcvi
- Follow Liz on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizhebertxcvi/
- Liz’s website: https://readymag.website/u1771381592/4680039/
- The EC Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/35cVChweygfrY8A7o4LLiw or https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ecpodcast/id1507272772
- Future Conservator Podcast: https://soundcloud.com/user-979095571
- Follow Phedra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phedrakom/
- Follow Solange on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liber.conservation
- Solange’s business: https://liberconservation.co.uk/
- You should definitely support us on Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/thecword
- Squeaky Conservator on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@squeakyconserves
- Our new Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_c_word_podcast
- International Mount Makers Forum: https://www.instagram.com/internationalmountmakersforum/
- Classical Studies Memes for Hellenistic Teens: https://www.instagram.com/csmfht/
- Fun Conservators: https://www.instagram.com/fun_conservators/
- Reversible Zine: https://www.instagram.com/reversiblezine/
- The Lady Art Handler: https://www.instagram.com/theladyarthandler/
- Conservation in Focus: https://www.instagram.com/conservationinfocus/
- Bridget Mitchell: https://www.instagram.com/bridget.mitchell_/
- Ki Culture: https://www.kiculture.org/
- S10E05 Aches and Pains: https://thecword.show/2021/11/10/s10e05-aches-and-pains/
- CAC-ACCR Conference (Keeping it Real: Conservation in Practice): https://www.cac-accr.ca/our-conferences/
- Conservation of Books (edited by Abigail Bainbridge): https://www.routledge.com/Conservation-of-Books/Bainbridge/p/book/9780367754907
Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword
Hosted by Jenny Mathiasson, Kloe Rumsey, Solange Masher, Liz Hébert, and Phedra Komodromou.
Intro and outro music by DDmyzik, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license.
A Wooden Dice production, 2024. -
Bonus Episode: The Announcement
In this special bonus episode we make a couple of overdue announcements, take you with us to an award ceremony in Cardiff, and profess our undying love for our listeners. Would you like to join us on The C Word team? Get in touch!
00:57 We’re having a break - and we’re recruiting!
07:31 We’ve got an award
09:21 Recording from The 30(ish) Awards
17:50 Dear Jane teaser
18:51 Patreon shout out
Show Notes:
- Recruitment page: https://thecword.show/recruitment/
- The 30(ish) Awards winners: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/alumni/features/30ish-awards-2023
- Dear Jane cotton bud video: https://youtu.be/lZg8hNajdQg
Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword
Hosted by Jenny Mathiasson and Kloe Rumsey.
Intro and outro music by DDmyzik, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license.
A Wooden Dice production, 2023.
Customer Reviews
Great for conservators
Love to listen to the different topics when driving to work. Inspiring and useful information!