CCI Launches a New Web Site

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CCI Newsletter, No. 29, June 2002

CCI Launches a New Web Site

by Carol MacIvor, Senior Communications Advisor, Information Services and Marketing

CCI has a new Web site! "Preserving my Heritage" (www.preservation.gc.ca) was launched on May 17, 2002, to coincide with International Museum Day the next day. I spoke with Bill Peters (CCI's Director General and Chief Executive Officer) and Raymond Lafontaine (Director of Information Services and Marketing) about the new site.

Q: What is the purpose of the new Web site?
R. Lafontaine: "Preserving my Heritage" is a unique site aimed at helping Canadians find out what they can do to preserve and conserve the things they own or have inherited. We also hope to raise public awareness about the importance of conservation of collections and to inform people about what CCI is doing. We decided to call it "Preserving my Heritage" rather than "Preserving our Heritage" to underline the importance of individual responsibility. One's personal treasures amount to personal heritage.

B. Peters: When individuals preserve their heritage, they are also preserving the nation's heritage so there is a collective and inclusive national aspect to it as well.

Q: What is the difference between the new site and CCI's existing one?
R. Lafontaine: The CCI main site is designed for professional conservators, and it contains a lot of technical information. The new site distills the technical information so that it is more relevant to the needs of the general public. Visitors will learn what can be done at home to care for and preserve their family heirlooms.

Q: Is this approach — reaching out to the general public — a departure for CCI from its more traditional activities?
B. Peters: This public outreach adds to our traditional work in treatment, research, training, and the dissemination of information. So, yes, it is a bit of a departure from the kinds of activities we have engaged in for the last 30 years.

We see this outreach happening in other countries and other organizations involved with conservation. It stems from a growing realization in the profession about the need to open up the boundaries in order to encourage a wider involvement of people in preserving heritage. International organizations, such as the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), realize that the participation and support of the general public is needed in order to obtain adequate resources to ensure long-term preservation of our cultural heritage. Through this Web site, CCI will be providing information and tools to encourage people to become engaged in protecting items in their homes and communities.

We are making use of the latest Internet technology on this site to let people see what is going on at CCI. In designing and developing the site, we were conscious of trying to capture the unique nature of our activities. Anyone who visits the Institute walks away captivated by the magic that takes place in the labs. It is not possible to bring large numbers of people to CCI, but we can use the reach of the World Wide Web to allow them to share in the experience.

Q: What is on the "Preserving my Heritage" Web site?
R. Lafontaine: There is definitely an element of fun to it. Although conservation is a serious business, we wanted to attract younger people to the profession. The main focus of the site is how to care for a wide range of articles — everything from textiles and furniture to clocks and musical instruments. But we have tried to provide the educational information in an entertaining manner. Our hope is that when people visit the site, they will be attracted by a "wow" factor and then rush out to tell their friends.

The heart of the site is the How to Care for... section which opens with a 3-D image of a house. By taking the 3-D tour, visitors can view a variety of objects found in a typical home while navigating from room to room. Information on caring for a particular object can be obtained by clicking on it. As navigating in this manner requires Flash technology (and some visitors may have computers that do not support this), the section also includes text links to all care sheets.

After reading up on a number of objects, visitors can test their knowledge with Preservation Quest! — an exciting online game that is part of the Fun Zone. Preservation Quest! makes use of the same 3-D house image, but this time clicking on an object brings up a question concerning its care along with four possible answers. At the end of the game players receive a score, a ranking for their preservation savvy, and a certificate of completion.

Still in the Fun Zone, visitors can use an interactive camera to learn about some of the photographic methods commonly used in conservation, take a virtual tour of CCI's laboratories, create and send free e-Postcards to tell friends about the site, and download two screensavers.

The Before and After Gallery contains images of a variety of objects before and after treatment, along with information about the treatment process. It is often amazing to see the transformation that occurs from the time an artifact arrives at CCI until it leaves.

Other features of the site include a section on Amazing Facts that shows how equipment and tools used in other professions have been adapted for use in conservation treatments, and links to a variety of other preservation-related sites.

And finally, because we hope to spark interest in young visitors about a career in this relatively new field (conservation professions have evolved in a really meaningful way in Canada only within the last 35-40 years), the site also provides information on how to become a conservator or conservation scientist — including what kind of training is required and where it is available.

Many CCI staff members have contributed to this new site, and we hope that all readers of the CCI Newsletter will take a few minutes to visit it. And let us know what you think! Your feedback will help us direct the continuing growth and development of "Preserving my Heritage."