FABRIC SELECTION AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO DIMENSIONAL CHANGES IN SUPPORT SYSTEMS FOR CONSTRAINED MOUNTING DEVICES
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Authors
Collins, Stephen A.
Issue Date
1990
Type
Capstone
Language
en
Keywords
1. Theses (Museum Studies) 2. Textile fabrics--Conservation and restoration.
Alternative Title
Abstract
There has been for many years considerable debate as to how to choose fabric substrates for constrained mounting devices. In textile conservation, constrained mounts are considered a treatment rather than simply a method of display. In concept, these mounts attempt to maintain a constant pressure, or yarn stress, which allows little room for dimensional changes. A support system must provide adequate strength and stiffness, and must be dimensionally stable so that its own physical nature will not cause distortion in the textile being supported. This concept of dimensional stability is generally considered debatable when considering the effects of changing conditions due to relative humidity.
Recent work at the Conservation Analytical Laboratory has shown that relative humidity cycles do result in irreversible changes in some materials. When considering the long term effects of ageing, the inherent ability of certain synthetics to resist the various agents of destruction that cause degradation in natural fiber fabrics is important.
The focus of this research was to determine the fabric least affected by tension loss due to moisture while under constraint. The severity of these losses aids in determining the most appropriate fabric for use in a constrained mounting device.
The main conclusions from this study are that natural and man-made fabrics lose their tension drastically compared to the synthetic fabrics when affected by extremes of relative humidity. However, at constant relative humidity, the tension of the substrates remains fairly constant under constraint regardless of the type of fabric. Even with a loss of tension due to humidity, the construction of the substrates is only slightly affected while under constraint. Problems occur in the assemblies when the substrates are untensioned. Lastly, the ability to maintain a constant tension during the transferring of mounted artifacts from strainer to strainer is questionable.