museums, collections, and information

I run the MA in Museum Studies at University College London, as well as working from time to time as a consultant in the areas of museum collections and information. Until 2001 I worked in senior museum management, most recently as Head of Collections Management in the Science Museum and Head of Conservation in the Museum of London. In both museums, I developed and introduced many new ways of managing and planning for collections care and digitisation.

I author articles and books. My latest book is Fragments of the World, which deals with my current main research interest, the uses and usefulness of museum collections not on display. I have also written Managing Conservation in Museums, which was the first book to deal with the management of conservation, and Digital Collections: Museums and the Information Age. Another interest is the effects of information and communications technology on cultural organisations.

I continue to think about the two fields of collections preservation and digitisation, and make use of this for my students and consultancy clients. I am also intrigued by the peculiar ways that organisations work. To keep in touch with the real world I’m a trustee of the Tank Museum, and I'm on the panel for the Conservation Awards of the Institute for Conservation. I have quite a lot to do with the UK Institute for Conservation.

Recent expert advice and policy groups

EPOCH: EC project on information technology for the cultural heritage. Workshop meeting in Rome.

Scandinavian Institute for Conservation, Soro, Denmark. Invited expert speaker at course on conservation and collections storage.

Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI), Ottawa. Keynote speaker at Colloquium discussing museum collections condition surveys. Ottawa, February, 2004.

Natural History Museum (September 2001) Member of Visiting Group to review collections management on behalf of the trustees.

National Museum Directors' Conference. Led working party as member of Editorial Board and edited its successful report to government, A Netful of Jewels: New Museums in the Learning Age (June 1999), on the potential of information and communications technology for museums.

European Commission DGXII / DGX. Working group member: Memorandum of Understanding on museum collections digitisation. Member of the Marketing andCommunications group and representative for Science Museums.

Numerous earlier policy and national groups for the Museums & Galleries Commission, English Heritage, and the United Kindom Institute for Conservation (UKIC).

Some projects

E CultureNet. Led the UK team working on this multi-partner European project, investigating the possibility of establishing a comprehensive network dealing with European culture. Led the UK group.

The Science Museum National Collections Centre project and HLF bid to develop a facility for large scale storage that would be available for national collections at Wroughton Airfield

The Art of Invention: exhibition created by the Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza in Florence. Negotiated terms with the Italian creators and sponsors (together with the Museum's Public Affairs Department), and worked with Italian partners in managing its installation, marketing and operation.

LASSI (Larger Scale Systems Initiative): challenging and successful national project in which a consortium of eight museums undertook the joint specification and procurement of a collections information system.

Qualifications and memberships 

University College London, 1992: PhD.

University College London Institute of Archaeology, 1969: Diploma (Distinction), Materials science and archaeological conservation

The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce (RSA): Fellow 

International Institute for Conservation (IIC): Fellow

Institute for Conservation: Member and Accredited Conservator

International Council on Museums (ICOM): Member

ICOM International Committees: Conservation, Documentation