The Textile Department conserves fine art, ethnographic, sentimental, and domestic textiles. This department aims to preserve each item to ensure its long-term stability.
The Textile Department at The Conservation Center specializes in the preservation of a wide range of fabric and fiber-based items, which include tapestries, embroideries, flags, samplers, costumes, quilts, and weavings.
Most damage to textiles is age-related; over time, antique fabrics and textile artworks may discolor, fade, darken, and deteriorate, causing splits and losses in the material. The textile conservator stabilizes the textiles using delicate stitching and conservation mounting, where applicable. In addition to stabilizing works, the conservator cleans textiles using appropriate methods and materials for the medium.
Following treatment, custom vitrines and displays can be designed by the Custom Framing and Display Department to provide an attractive, proper museum-quality display of newly conserved textiles. Items can also be boxed for long-term storage using conservation techniques and archival materials.
