Step away from the polish . . .
JUST when you think no Renaissance men are left, you hear about Don Williams: scholar, craftsman, scientist, tinkerer, collector, author, inventor. And that’s just a partial list.
Williams’ title -- senior furniture conservator at the Smithsonian Institution’s Center for Materials Research and Education -- can’t convey his broad interests, almost all of which revolve around the history and preservation of anything ever made for human use, whether that be early wood airplanes or boulle, the delicate metal and tortoiseshell inlays used in 17th century furniture.
Williams also knows all about preserving the simple things many of us value most: snapshots, the kids’ artwork, souvenirs collected on trips, and the furniture and fabrics we live with every day.
“Saving Stuff,” the title of Williams’ 2005 book on how to preserve almost anything, is also the subject of a free public lecture he’ll give next week at the Getty, where he’ll discuss preserving cherished possessions whose value may be monetary or merely sentimental.
“There are a few simple rules for preventing damage to what you own, and they all work together,” Williams says by phone from Virginia, where his wife and daughters share space with his massive collection of rare tools and books and 24 varieties of shellac.
He says the biggest threat is moisture. All organic materials can be damaged by it. Too much or too little humidity, or too many swings between high and low, can cause deterioration not just to wood, but to books, documents, photographs, fabrics, leather and almost everything else organic. Only metal and stone are not affected.
“Humidity can actually desiccate the emulsion of a photograph or cause wood veneers to become detached,” Williams says. “The only way to prevent that is to put your possessions in an environment where the humidity doesn’t change.”
He suggests that homeowners research the average relative humidity for where they live and try to keep their homes at that level all year long. A heating and air conditioning contractor can help, he says.
Light poses another threat, fading the finishes on wood and fabrics, natural or synthetic. The fix is a no-brainer, Williams says. Use shutters, drapes, shades or window film, and lower the wattage of bulbs.
Heat also can cause chemical deterioration of furniture.
“The warmer the air, the faster the reaction,” he says. Every time the indoor temperature rises 18 degrees, the deterioration rate doubles, meaning your house’s contents deteriorate twice as fast at 88 degrees as they do at 70 degrees.
“The ideal temperature for the artifacts in any home is 35 degrees,” he says with a laugh. “It wouldn’t be easy to live there, but the practical rule is to keep your house cooler rather than warmer.”
Contamination is the most surprising of Williams’ damage-prevention categories.
“Don’t ever, ever use furniture polish,” he says. “As a general rule, they’re all bad. The only question is to what degree they are bad. They impregnate a surface with oils, many times with caustic or acidic cleansers. That causes discoloration of the surface and deterioration of the coating.
“Just remember, furniture is dead. It does not need to be fed and watered.”
For routine dusting, cleaning and maintenance, use a gallon of distilled water with a teaspoon of liquid dishwashing soap that’s free of skin conditioners. Dampen a cloth slightly with that mixture, and rub the wood gently to pick up dust.
Most people overuse dust cloths, Williams says. He prefers hypoallergenic, non-premoistened facial cleansing pads. You can throw away each pad as it gets soiled, and it’s better to clean small areas at a time.
For cleaning greasy, grimy buildup on wood furniture, use odorless mineral spirits (not mineral oil) sold at hardware stores. And again, clean small areas at a time. To restore shine on ordinary wood furniture, he suggests only paste wax with no silicone oil or toluene.
To preserve textiles -- be it your wedding dress or your great-grandmother’s silk paisley shawl -- just get them clean and keep them clean. “And pad them out, to eliminate any creases,” Williams says. “Creases are where most damage occurs in clothing and accessories. Keep them in a healthy environment, like an acid-free box or a high-quality plastic tub with an activated charcoal buffer to absorb any contaminants that might leach out of the plastic. The container needn’t be airtight.”
Yes, but what if you want to drape that shawl over your piano, or on the arm of a sofa?
No problem, he says.
“Just understand that the more you use and display your treasures, the faster they’ll go away. It’s an immutable law of the universe.”
To protect a child’s artwork, he uses the same strategy he’d use for a Picasso.
“If it’s valuable to you, don’t put it on the fridge,” he says. Have it framed with acid-free matting under glass, and display it in low light. Or store it in a dark, acid-free folder. Children’s art made of clay or wood should be displayed in a shadow box with wood sides and a glass front.
Priceless snapshots you hope to pass down through generations? “Scan them on your computer. Print the scan out with a color laser printer on acid-free paper,” he says. “The reproduction will last far longer than the original, and viewers won’t be able to tell it from the real thing. Put the original in deep storage.”
Williams has worked on all sorts of furniture and artifacts made from the 16th into the 21st centuries. He has helped to conserve items owned by Susan B. Anthony and Franklin D. Roosevelt. In his office right now, ready for first aid, is the 1841 ceremonial mace used in the U.S. House of Representatives, along with the giant basket from a World War I American reconnaissance balloon. But some of his favorites are from people who attend his lectures seeking advice.
“One of the most beautiful objects I’ve ever seen is a small book, handmade and hand-bound, of vellum,” he says. “It was a 17th century journal from Persia, the diary of a family, with the most magnificent Arabic calligraphy inside it. Successive generations of this family had written in it over decades upon decades.”
Another memorable encounter was with the mother of a child who had drawn lovely pictures right before she died. “She wanted to keep them in good condition,” Williams says, “and I was so glad to be able to help.”
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The little stuff counts
Smithsonian conservator Don Williams will lecture on preserving life’s everyday treasures at 7 p.m. Oct. 18 in the Harold M. Williams Auditorium at the Getty Center, 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles. Admission is free; parking is $7.
Reservations: (310) 440-7300, www.getty.edu (click on “Visit,” then “Event Calendar,” then “Lectures and Conferences”).