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Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press smithsonian contributions to museum conservation • number 7 Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press AThe Chronology Age of Plastic: of IngenuityMiddle Missouriand Responsibility Plains ProceedingsVillage of the 2012 Sites MCI Symposium By CraigEdited M. byJohnson Odile Madden, A. Elena Charola, Kim Cullen Cobb, Paula T. withDePriest, contributions and Robert byJ. Koestler Stanley A. Ahler, Herbert Haas, and Georges Bonani SERIES PUBLICATIONS OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION Emphasis upon publication as a means of “diffusing knowledge” was expressed by the first Secretary of the Smithsonian. In his formal plan for the Institution, Joseph Henry outlined a program that included the following statement: “It is proposed to publish a series of reports, giving an account of the new discoveries in science, and of the changes made from year to year in all branches of knowledge.” This theme of basic research has been adhered to through the years by thousands of titles issued in series publications under the Smithsonian imprint, commencing with Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge in 1848 and continuing with the following active series: Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropology Smithsonian Contributions to Botany Smithsonian Contributions to History and Technology Smithsonian Contributions to the Marine Sciences Smithsonian Contributions to Museum Conservation Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology In these series, the Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press (SISP) publishes small papers and full-scale monographs that report on research and collections of the Institution’s museums and research centers. The Smithsonian Contributions Series are distributed via exchange mailing lists to libraries, universities, and similar institutions throughout the world. Manuscripts intended for publication in the Contributions Series undergo substantive peer review and evalu- ation by SISP’s Editorial Board, as well as evaluation by SISP for compliance with manuscript preparation guidelines (available at https://scholarlypress.si.edu). For fully searchable PDFs of all open access series and publications of the Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, visit Open SI at http://opensi.si.edu. smithsonian contributions to museum conservation • number 7 The Age of Plastic: Ingenuity and Responsibility Proceedings of the 2012 MCI Symposium Edited by Odile Madden, A. Elena Charola, Kim Cullen Cobb, Paula T. DePriest, and Robert J. Koestler WASHINGTON D.C. 2017 ABSTRACT Madden, Odile, A. Elena Charola, Kim Cullen Cobb, Paula T. DePriest, and Robert J. Koestler. The Age of Plastic: Ingenu- ity and Responsibility, Proceedings of the 2012 MCI Symposium. Smithsonian Contributions to Museum Conservation, number 7, viii + 181 pages, 139 figures, 5 tables, 2017. — This volume brings together papers presented at “The Age of Plastic: Ingenuity + Responsibility,” a Smithsonian symposium hosted by the Museum Conservation Institute on June 7–8, 2012. The event was conceived as a cross- disciplinary exploration of plastic as technological material, cultural phe- nomenon, preservation challenge, and force on the environment. Writers, scientists, conservators, historians, filmmakers, designers, and policy makers offer researched and first- hand accounts from life in the Plastic Age. Papers are organized to highlight the importance and complexity of plastic material culture through juxtaposition of countervailing positive and negative viewpoints. The volume features observations on innovation in plastic with past and contemporary examples of furniture design, failed experiments with proteinaceous fibers before World War II, the transition of celluloid from ivory simulant to unique identity, the space program, and bioplastics in automobiles. Studies of the rise of food packaging further explore how plastic shapes and is shaped by our culture. Preservation challenges that new, often unstable plastic poses for the cultural heritage community are explored through case studies of novel conservation treatments, research into new deterioration phenomena, and knowledge transfer. The relationship between plastic and the environment is probed with perspectives on pollution, advantages of plastic to living zoological collections, and recycling. Intended primarily for the cultural heritage community but also relevant to other fields, this volume demonstrates the importance and challenges of documenting the remarkable ongoing evolution of plastic materials that now are integral to the artifact record as markers of achievement and records of the innovation process. Cover images, from left to right: Detail of Bernat, Figure 6R; Moggridge, Figure 5; and detail of Biddle, Figure 1. Published by SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION SCHOLARLY PRESS P.O. Box 37012, MRC 957 Washington, D.C. 20013- 7012 https://scholarlypress .si .edu Compilation copyright © 2017 Smithsonian Institution “Balancing Ingenuity and Responsibility in the Age of Plastic,” “Designing Plasticity,” “Separating Good Plastic from Bad Plastic in Conservation Biology,” “Plastic and Food Culture,” “Conservation of Plastics at the Smithsonian American Art Museum,” “Engineered Self-Disassembly: A Plastic That Turns into Gravel,” and “Debris in the Marine Environment” are in the public domain. The rights to all other text and images in this publication, including cover and interior designs, are owned either by the Smithsonian Institution, by contributing authors, or by third parties. Fair use of materials is permitted for personal, educational, or noncommercial purposes. Users must cite author and source of content, must not alter or modify copyrighted content, and must comply with all other terms or restrictions that may be applicable. Users are respon- sible for securing permission from a rights holder for any other use. Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data Names: Madden, Odile (Odile Marguerite), editor. | Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, publisher. | MCI Symposium (2012 : Washington, D.C.) Title: The Age of Plastic: ingenuity and responsibility : proceedings of the 2012 MCI Symposium / edited by Odile Madden [and four others]. Other titles: Proceedings of the 2012 MCI Symposium | Smithsonian contributions to museum conservation ; no. 7. 1949–2359 Description: Washington, D.C. : Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, 2017. | Series: Smithsonian contributions to museum conservation, ISSN 1949- 2359 ; number 7 | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017013949 Subjects: LCSH: Plastics—History—Congresses. | Plastics—Technological innovations—Congresses. | Plastics— Environmental aspects—Congresses. | Plastics—Conservation—Congresses. | Plastics—Social aspects—Congresses. Classification: LCC TP1116 .A34 2017 | DDC 668.4—dc23 | SUDOC SI 1.57:7 LC record available at https:// lccn .loc .gov /2017013949 ISSN: 1949- 2367 (online); 1949- 2359 (print) Publication date (online): 25 August 2017 c The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48–1992. Contents PREFACE by Odile Madden, A. Elena Charola, and Robert J. Koestler v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS vii Balancing Ingenuity and Responsibility in the Age of Plastic 1 Odile Madden INNOVATION Designing Plasticity 19 Bill Moggridge “Astonish the World with . Your New Fiber Mixture”: Producing, Promoting, and Forgetting Man- Made Protein Fibers 35 Mary M. Brooks Is It Real? Imitation and Originality in Plastics 51 Robert Friedel TRANSFORMATION Advanced Materials Used in Space Suit Construction 61 Bill Ayrey and Linda Hewes Separating Good Plastic from Bad Plastic in Conservation Biology 77 Pierre Comizzoli Plastic and Food Culture 85 Cory Bernat Ford’s Driving Role in the Bio- Based Materials Age 99 Debbie Mielewski, Ellen Lee, Angela Harris, and Cynthia Flanigan RESPONSIBILITY Conservation of Plastics at the Smithsonian American Art Museum 109 Lucian H. Shockey Jr. iv • SMITHSONIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO MUSEUM CONSERVATION Preserving Plastic: Challenges in the Conservation of Modern Art Objects 125 Thea van Oosten Engineered Self- Disassembly: A Plastic That Turns into Gravel 141 Molly McGath and Odile Madden Midway: A Message from the North Pacific Gyre 147 Jan Vozenilek Debris in the Marine Environment 155 Nancy Wallace and Dianna Parker Closing the Loop with Plastics 157 Mike Biddle Falling in and out of Love: Our Troubled Affair with Plastic 165 Susan Freinkel INDEX 173 Preface he papers compiled in this volume are based on the symposium “The Age of Plastic: Ingenuity + Responsibility,” which was hosted by the Museum Conser- vation Institute (MCI) in June 2012. The symposium was conceived to docu- Tment the important relationship between plastic materials and culture from a cross- disciplinary perspective. With previous material ages, the so-called Stone, Bronze, and Iron, robust scholarship links the historical, cultural, and technological develop- ments to the material for which each era is named. In the Age of Plastic, the technological and cultural shifts are ongoing and have been so abrupt that they have yet to be studied through the same lens. Yet plastic has had sufficient impact that we will want to docu- ment it, and our knowledge will be richer if we begin the documentation now while it is happening. The papers compiled here can be considered a set of eyewitness accounts. It is appropriate that this work happen at the Smithsonian, our national museum and arguably