about

Cooper Hewitt’s permanent collection includes more than 215,000 objects, which span thirty centuries and a wide variety of materials. The Conservation Department cares for and studies these pieces to ensure their preservation for today and into the future. Conservators provide expertise in the conservation of works on paper, textiles, and three-dimensional objects made of media ranging from brittle glass to pliable plastic. Sarah Barack, Head of Conservation and Senior Objects Conservator, offers a further introduction to the department.

Explore below the department’s work related to the museum’s collection and exhibitions and follow Cooper Hewitt’s Conservation Department on Instagram @cooperhewittconservation.

Evolving Digital Collections and Their Stewardship: Stamen’s Watercolor Maps
A curator, a conservator, and a designer discuss the continual maintenance of Watercolor Maps, a born-digital mapping tool in Cooper Hewitt's digital collection.
Read Time
7 minutes
Posted By
Jessica Walthew
Date
October 4, 2023
Synthetic Material Identification in Dorothy Liebes Textile Samples
In preparation for the exhibition "A Dark, A Light, A Bright: The Designs of Dorothy Liebes," textile conservators analyzed textile samples to better understand and care for the objects.
Read Time
5 minutes
Posted By
Kira Eng-Wilmot
Date
July 7, 2023
Four transparent, colorless glass vessels of different shapes but relatively similar sizes.
Year of Glass: Reflections of People & Cultures
As the 2022 International Year of Glass concludes, study of the medium prompts questions about human history and culture.
Read Time
3 minutes
Posted By
Sarah Barack
Date
December 21, 2022
Two glass vessels lit from above causing dramatic and intricate patterns of light and shadow to be cast around them.
Year of Glass: 3D-Printed Glass
Neri Oxman's 3D-printed GLASS series may contain answers for the future of the medium and its use.
Read Time
5 minutes
Posted By
Jessica Walthew
Date
December 9, 2022
Close-up view of the back of a wooden chair, a rectangular shape with concave edges and, embedded into it on deer hide, glass beads in white, brown, blue, red, green, and orange forming graphic abstract shapes.
Year of Glass: Contemporary Native American Beadwork
Teri Greeves embellishes traditional woodwork with glass beads to celebrate her Kiowa culture and ancestry.
Read Time
5 minutes
Posted By
Cynthia Trope
Date
November 30, 2022
Glass table formed by a circular top on tripod base composed of three angled, oval legs. Glass iridizes and changes color depending on angle of view.
Year of Glass: Specialty Glasses with Special Effects
Laminated glasses have many practical and aesthetic uses, and, when combined with modern applications of ancient technologies, can have dazzling effects.
Read Time
6 minutes
Posted By
Jessica Walthew
Date
October 27, 2022
A sleek table consisting of a slender arc joining two legs and a table top. The table is deep red in color and from the table top descends a column of 32 stylized black feathers.
Year of Glass: Feathers from Volcanic Glass
Gloria Cortina creates stylized feathers from black obsidian in contemporary homage to Mexico's past and present cultures.
Read Time
5 minutes
Posted By
Jessica Walthew
Date
September 30, 2022
Eyeglass-like frame with a simple band on the left earpiece and on the right earpiece a glass prism and plastic housing for a camera and other technical elements.
Year of Glass: Google Glass
In Google Glasses, glass interfaces with digital technology to augment the world around us.
Read Time
4 minutes
Posted By
Sarah Barack
Date
August 31, 2022
A round-cornered gray television screen suspended on a rounded brass bracket. The bracket is centered on a beige, rectangular platform.
Year of Glass: Picture in a Tube
Once a ubiquitous staple of home entertainment, CRT televisions were a technical marvel. Learn about the physics and engineering that made the transmitted moving image possible with the help of glass.
Read Time
4 minutes
Posted By
Sarah Barack
Date
July 29, 2022