Season 2:Episode 14: Not So Secret Agents…Know your 10 Agents of Deterioration and safeguard the future of your collection

Many of our spaces are closed down for the foreseeable future and those of us still involved in collections are maintaining and caretaking for our facilities. It is a good time to remind ourselves of the 10 Agents of Deterioration, and how they can inform our planning and prioritizing.  The last time I worked for an institution that had to shut down for a long time was after a natural disaster, and I was an intern.  Through those nine months of closure, I learned how important it is to utilize this list.  It categorizes the subjects and focuses that will cause irreparable damage if not managed correctly.  Safeguarding against these agents is the only way to responsibly manage our collections.  Also, in this time of devastating layoffs, institutional knowledge is irreversibly lost to those art pros left to take on the work.  Make sure to listen through to #10 which, in my opinion, is one of the most important ways we can help build a stronger legacy for future art pros.