On January 3, 2017, the Gates Conservation Laboratory welcomed its first conservation graduate student intern, Nora Bloch from West Dean College. As part of her course of study, Nora must complete a 6-week work placement assignment. And lucky for us, Nora chose to spend her six weeks in New Haven with YUL’s Conservation & Exhibition Services!
We packed Nora’s schedule with as many different experiences as we could. She helped to install exhibits, assisted with a condition survey, learned techniques for humidifying and flattening parchment. She measured levels of arsenic in silked documents using XRF, sat in on conservation reviews and curator meetings, and participated in a Traveling Scriptorium session for New Haven high school students. Oh, and she even had some time to work on a couple of treatment projects!
Nora is no stranger to books and libraries. She earned a MLIS from the Department of Information Studies at UCLA in 2012. She also served as the Project Manager for the California Rare Book School (CalRBS) and taught letterpress courses.
February 10th was the last day of Nora’s internship. We thank her for her hard work and enthusiasm for all things library and conservation. We wish her well as she finishes her studies (and thesis) and embarks on her career as a professional conservator!
YUL Conservation and Exhibition Services 