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THE PRESERVATION OF ARCHITECTURAL PLASTICS
Plastics evoke mixed feelings and for a significant group, it has a pejorative word. Yet, if you look closely at many of the mid-twentieth century plastics, you can find the beauty, excitement, and innovation that characterized these items when they were made. Plastics is a term that covers a wide range of materials that that have polymers as the main ingredient. Developed in the the early twentieth century, it was only in the mid-twentieth century that architectural plastics use blossomed. Shortages during World War II had necessitated the development of plastics as substitutes for materials were no longer available and once the war ended, new uses had to be found for these materials. Pent-up postwar demand for consumer goods ensured there was a market for architectural plastics.
How plastics have been used in our buildings has been poorly documented. We know the history of their development, but we do not know how and what types were used architecturally by architects, builders, and building owners. As styles changed and deterioration started, many historic plastic items have been lost. We do not know how to preserve and maintain the plastics we find. This panel is a call to action for moving forward with a better understanding of how we can begin to preserve our architectural plastics.
Speakers:
Odile Madden, PhD is Senior Scientist of the Modern and Contemporary Art Research Initiative at the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI) in Los Angeles and leads their Modern Materials Research Program. Prior to joining the GCI in 2017, she spent eleven years as a research materials scientist at the Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute where she brought together scientists, curators, conservators, artists and other scholars to explore the phenomenon of plastic and its impacts on 19th- to 21st-century life, culture and the environment. She continues this thinking as a Research Associate at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC. Her research expertise includes the use of Raman spectroscopy to characterize natural and synthetic polymers and their degradation, the effects of laser radiation on materials, and the assessment of pesticide hazards on Native American cultural objects.
She has lectured and published widely on the characterization and conservation of artist materials, including plastic, as well as on analytical techniques such as Raman spectroscopy.
Dr. Madden earned a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Arizona with dissertation research into the detection of volatile organic pesticides by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). She holds a Master of Arts degree in the History of Art and Archaeology from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts with an Advanced Certificate in the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works and completed undergraduate studies in Italian and Art History at UCLA.
Chandler McCoy, Senior Project Specialist manages the Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative at the Getty Conservation Institute in Los Angeles whose mission is to advance the practice of conserving modern heritage. This includes developing and delivering educational and training opportunities, such as the Introduction to Conserving Modern Architecture short course offered in 2018, 2019, and in Autumn of 2021. He was an author of the Eames House Conservation Management Plan (GCI 2019) and series editor for the GCI’s Case Studies in Conservation Practice book series and coedited its volume Managing Energy Use in Modern Buildings (Getty Publications) to be published September 2021 and was an author of The Twentieth-Century Historic Thematic Framework: A Tool for Assessing Heritage Places (2021). He is a registered architect and a LEED-accredited professional. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Virginia School of Architecture and his Master of Architecture degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Preservation and Planning in New York City. In 1992 he attended ICCROM’s architectural conservation program in Rome.
Discussion Moderated by Mary Jablonski
Mary Jablonski is a principal of Jablonski Building Conservation, inc. She received her Master of Architecture degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Preservation and Planning in New York City. She comes by her interest in plastics in large part because she grew up in a household and town where plastics was the future. Her father was a polymer scientist at the Dow Chemical Company in Midland, Michigan where he was on the team that invented Styrofoam. Her father made sure plastics were used throughout the mid-century modern house he had built.
Materials Discussions are scheduled for one hour with a presentation and discussion.
Materials Discussions Committee co-chairs:
Kelly Ciociola
Nicole Declet
Evan Kopelson
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