Storage Techniques

Instructor: Gretchen Anderson
Course Date: 2nd Half 2025
Cost: $400
Enroll and Pay
Is your collection at risk due to poor storage methods? Good storage mounts are essential for preserving museum collections. Building on the related course, Materials for Exhibit, Moving, & Storage, in this 4 week online course, you will learn about the materials, tools, ideas and techniques needed to create quality storage mounts. In Storage Techniques you will design and build a storage mount for an object of your choosing and plan a storage improvement project for a collection of objects using archival materials and techniques.

 

Course Goals

You should complete this course with a general understanding of how to make storage mounts and plan a storage project. In four weeks we can not possibly cover everything that one could encounter in storing collections, but we hope to give you the tools and resources to figure out issues that arise. The main goal of this course then is to introduce you to the most essential methodology and resources.

Participant Outcomes
Participants will:

  • Learn concepts and techniques of making storage mounts
  • Learn best materials for storage
  • Discover tools for building storage mounts
  • Apply the knowledge you gain to build a box
  • Apply the knowledge you gain to build a mount
  • Plan a larger storage project

 

Storage Techniques compliments our Materials for Exhibit, Moving, & Storage course as well as our Moving Museum Collections course.


  • Box for mortar and pestle

    Fig. 1 – cavities carved into seat cushion foam

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  • Box for mortar and pestle

    Fig. 2 – Unbleached Muslin barrier over foam cavity mount

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  • Box for mortar and pestle

    Fig. 3 – Muslin-covered cavity mount with objects in place

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  • Box for mortar and pestle

    Fig. 4 – 3D objects inside storage box on cavity mount

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  • Box for mortar and pestle

    Fig. 5 – completed 3D object storage box exterior

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This mount was constructed by Robin Hazen as part of the assignment to build a box and mount for a 3-D object.

Even more impressive than the great box and mount was that she did it during stay-at-home with materials and tools she had on hand.


Too learn more about taking an online professional development course with Museum Study visit What is involved in taking a Museum Study course?

Storage Techniques addresses the American Association for State and Local History's Stewardship of Collections Standard 2, The Institution legally, ethically, and effectively manages, documents, cares for, and uses the collections.

  • Does the institution use methods and materials for storing and exhibiting artifact and archive collections that promote their preservation?


Comments from participants:

Thank you! I learned SOO much!


That was a great course!!