This month’s #HangoutWithAPOYOnline is with APOYOnline volunteer Leah Bright:
1) We believe that a person so consolidated and with so much knowledge in the field of preservation as you do not need presentations, but please, comment briefly about you and your trajectory from your own vision and experience:
I grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska, and my childhood revolved around arts and crafts and learning how things were made. I was lucky to discover the field of conservation after I graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in art history and Spanish, so I returned to school to take chemistry and art classes in preparation for graduate school in conservation. I graduated from the Winterthur/University of Delaware with a speciality in objects and a minor in preventive conservation in 2017. After a wonderful fellowship at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), I was lucky to find a permanent job at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM), where I work today! I started volunteering with APOYOnline in January 2017 during my last year of graduate school. It has been a privilege to get to know so many colleagues from across the world, and my experiences with APOYOnline have taught me a lot about conservation and preservation. Cross-cultural exchange and conversation can teach us so much about ourselves and professions!
2) How would you define the current moment of the Latin preservation field in a nutshell?
As someone who is not in Latin America or from there, I can’t speak accurately about it, but in the USA, the current moment of heritage preservation is in flux! I think the field is in an important and exciting moment of evolution, with developments occurring in education, priorities shifting, and younger generations questioning the status quo.
3) What do you expect for the Latin preservation field in the next 30 years?
I think preventive conservation, including emergency preparedness and response, will continue to become more and more central to the field as climate change threatens so much of our heritage. I hope that we can continue to collaborate and exchange information across countries and continents to build capacity in the US as well as in Latin America.
4) Could you indicate three publications that guided your career in the field of preservation?
I have always loved basketry and organic materials in general that bridge humans and the natural world. Florian’s “The Conservation of Artifacts Made From Plant Materials” was one of the first conservation books I delved into; I always have a copy on my desk! A more recent one, Jane Henderson’s 2020 article “Beyond lifetimes: who do we exclude when we keep things for the future?” resonated strongly with my personal conservation perspective and articulates how heritage preservation is inherently political. Another publication that comes to mind is a 2012 article co-authored by the artist Nora Naranjo Morse, NMAI conservator Kelly McHugh and collections manager Gail Joice and is called “Always Becoming.” It represents a powerful collaboration between artists, collections, and conservators.
5) What message for young people working in the field of preservation would you like to leave?
My biggest piece of advice would be to be true to yourself and don’t try to be anyone else! Just be yourself and be able to articulate why cultural heritage preservation is important to you and you will find your niche in the field.
