October 26, 2022
IPI is thrilled to announce that Dr. Marvin Cummings will join the team as Research Scientist in November 2022. Marvin brings extensive research experience from the technology sector, with a solid interdisciplinary background across the physical sciences, engineering, and archeometry. Prior to his appointment at IPI, he held positions as Program Manager at the New York Academy of Sciences, as a Researcher at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, and a Product Engineer at Texas Instruments. Marvin was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Getty Conservation Institute, J. Paul Getty Museum and Foundation between 2011-2012, where he studied the chemistry and microstructure of 6th to 4th century B.C. black- and red-figure ceramics from ancient Greece, using an array of microscopy and x-ray techniques. This interdisciplinary Fellowship initiated his interest in the application of data science principles for the advancement of conservation and preservation, which he will draw from in his new role at IPI.
As Marvin prepares to join IPI, he shared the following: “I am very excited to be joining such a dedicated team of conservation professionals, and look forward to continuing a great legacy of research in heritage preservation, established at the Image Permanence Institute.”
In 2004, IPI released ClimateNotebook, the first desktop software designed specifically for libraries, archives, and museums to graph environmental data and generate reports with preservation analysis. In 2012, eClimateNotebook (eCNB) was launched. A web application that synthesized the strengths of ClimateNotebook, and IPI’s other preservation management tools (MyClimateData and PEMdata) into a single, unified platform.
The Image Permanence Institute has been awarded $315,854 from the National Endowment for the Humanities Research & Development grant program to support a three-year research project titled, Evaluating the Mechanical Stability of 3D Printed Materials to Inform Collections Care Decision Making for Preservation and Access.
IPI is looking for a new team member in a redefined Sustainable Preservation Specialist role. The Sustainable Preservation Specialist supports professionals working in collecting institutions with environmental monitoring and sustainable preservation practices. They assist collecting institutions with basic environmental monitoring and data analysis, advise on logger placement in collection storage and exhibition spaces, and provide instruction on the use of IPI’s data management and analysis software, eClimateNotebook.
Xinxin Li is IPI’s new 3D Design Assistant working under the supervision of Meredith Noyes, Research Scientist, as part of the IMLS-funded project Foundational Research to Inform Preservation Guidelines for the Creation, Collection, and Consumption of 3D Printed Objects in Museums. Xinxin is a MFA candidate in Industrial Design at RIT and comes to IPI after receiving her BFA in Industrial Design from Savannah College of Art and Design.