PDNedu: Please describe what a collection manager does and where this type of position is available?
Scott Propeack: My position is responsible for the maintenance of records relating to the objects in a museum collection. My responsibilities include the location of works, visual documentation of the objects, insurance of collections, the tracking and use of works, the environmental conditions in which they are kept, fielding questions from researchers and the loan of objects to other institutions. A well-managed collection should be accessible to scholars, researchers, students and others. Digitization will help us make that possible.
 
PDNedu: How has your position evolved given the rise of digital and the Internet?
SP: A museum’s ability to thrive is a direct result of sharing its cultural resources with the public, so digitization has had a radical impact. Most museums recognize that, as stewards of the public’s cultural wealth, we now need to provide this content to the public via the Internet. This shift has given great importance to the use of digital images and metadata available through online searchable databases. This is especially significant on a campus like Buffalo State College, which graduates many students in fine arts, museum studies, art conservation and art education.
 
PDNedu: What kind of technical photography setup did you establish to archive the museum’s collections?
SP: Archival-quality images are essential for both museum documentation and future promotional uses. The industry standard is to photograph at a file size of at least 10 MBs. This allows for reduced-sized images to be made for Web applications but still allows for large-scale images to be produced for research and marketing. Previous to digitizing our collection, we had always used Nikon cameras because of their reputation for quality, so it was natural for us to choose their products when moving into digital imaging.

PDNedu: What is the best route for students to take in order to pursue this type of job?
SP: Students can enter into museum work from so many avenues. My background is actually in computers and data management. There are many people currently entering into the museum job market who have earned degrees in museum studies (a growing option for students that was previously available at only a very few institutions), but students studying fine arts, design, and information management would also all be well suited to this work.
 
PDNedu: Your institution will be the first green art museum in New York State. Please talk about the significance of this.  
SP: Museums in general are responsible for maintaining the objects in their collections and archives in perpetuity. The Burchfield Penney Art Center has always been concerned with issues of sustainability, at least in that sense. Also, as the museum for Western New York art, it is in our mission to celebrate the cultural heritage of our region and to ensure that it is preserved and accessible to future generations.  

The art of Charles Burchfield, our namesake, was a meditation on nature. He painted ecstatic visions of season transition and an homage to American chestnut trees. He created a symbolic language that expresses the sounds and smells of nature. His vision is at the core of the museum’s mission, and the new building fits that vision well.    
 
PDNedu: What kinds of efforts have been made at your museum to embrace green technologies and/or reduce the carbon footprint?
SP: In order to best preserve artwork, museums frequently create a good deal of plastic and paper waste. This comes about through extensive use of wrapping materials (e.g., bubble wrap), cardboard, wood and foam products. In the lead-up to moving large amounts of our collection, we identified recycling programs that were set up by Buffalo State College. The campus group EVERGREEN, which advocates and works for a more sustainable campus community, has helped us recycle over 2,000 yards of bubble wrap. We also looked to see how much could be reused. Recognizing that reuse is frequently an even better solution than recycling, we also created situations to safely handle artwork, with the incorporation of more durable, long-term solutions like packing blankets, acid-free containers and Solander boxes.

TECH BOX

Cameras Nikon D80 Nikon D50’s Lenses AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 18–55mm f/3.5–5.6 G ED II lens AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 18–135mm f/3.5–5.6 G ED IF-ED lens Lighting set up Halogen strobe lamps and a soft box Scanner Nikon Coolscan IV slide scanner Computers Primarily Dell PCs, with a few Mac workstations for particular jobs Software Adobe Creative Suite, primarily Photoshop