Michael Nightingale Memorial Lecture

Michael Nightingale Memorial Lecture, organised jointly by Brook Rural Museum and the CKHH on Tuesday 23 September 2025 at 7pm (wine reception from 6.30pm) venue tbc

Conserving intangibility: the significance of change in heritage collections

Conservation, by its very nature, is firmly rooted in the preservation of stability in tangible objects. Conservators work to maintain structure, form, aesthetics and frequently function. But what about the conservation of an object’s story of use? Or the meaning that damage, or material change, can add to that story?

This presentation will seek to identify where significance in heritage lies and demonstrate the opportunities for this to be explored and maintained through conservation and preservation interventions. Using a series of case studies, based specifically on the speaker’s specialist area of written heritage, this presentation will demonstrate that meaning can lie beyond the overt or apparent object and be held in evidence of human interaction, including what we have previously seen as damage. It will investigate the way that the changes an object has undergone in production, use or subsequent storage can impact the way heritage objects are interpreted and understood, and the added value and holistic view this can provide. Finally, it will seek to highlight some of the analytical techniques that are available to conservators to gain this information without invasive treatment.

Victoria Stevens MA ACR FIIC
I have worked in heritage collections for over 25 years, mainly as a written heritage conservator and collections care adviser but latterly as a learning and engagement lead, a perfect complement to my overall collections work. As well as being the current Subject Lead for Books and Library Materials at West Dean College of Arts, Design, Crafts and Conservation I am a sessional tutor on the Archives and Records Management course at University College London. Developing the potential of students and providing them with the knowledge and skills they need to thrive in their chosen direction is a huge privilege.

I am very proud to be a strong advocate for the heritage profession: I currently serve not only as a Trustee of the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust but also as an Arts Council Museum accreditation mentor and an Institute of Conservation accreditation assessor. I am a committee member and assessor for the Archive and Records Association’s Archives Training Scheme and sit on the Fabric Advisory Committee of Hereford Cathedral as their conservation adviser.

This is a public lecture. No booking is required.

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