Class banners that once hung in Whitaker are now being stored in Rosenstock until they can be assessed for deterioration.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
During the summer, several renovations were being made to Whitaker Campus Commons. One of those renovations included painting all of the railings. In order to access the railings on the second floor, the class banners had to be removed.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When students arrived on campus for the fall semester and did not see the banners, many made the assumption that the banners had been disposed.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was never our intention to inform students about taking down the banners,\u201d said Olivia White, dean of students. \u201cAfter taking a closer look at the banners, we realized that some of the banners were deteriorating, so we decided to store them until we could have a conservationist look at them.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mary Atwell, Hood\u2019s archivist, has been in charge of the restoration process. \u201cI have been researching and collaborating with the Washington Conservation Guild<\/a>,\u201d Atwell said. \u201cThere are three or four banners that are going to need restoration work.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The majority of the work needed on the banners involves patching tears in the canvas and restoring the cracking paint.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Having done research on the preservation of banners Atwell has found that the best way to store the banners is on a flat surface and not folded. \u201cThis past week I transported the banners one-by-one to a small room in Rosenstock and laid them on a flat surface.\u201d It is also important that the banners not be exposed to sun.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Atwell does not have a background in banner preservation; therefore, she is in the process of working with an art conservationist. \u201cIn conjunction with the art conservationist we are trying to see what work can be done in house and what has to be done externally.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Naturally, there are costs associated with hiring someone external to do the work. According to White, where the funding for the restoration comes from has yet to be decided. However, the college will pay the necessary cost.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n