RESTORE: An Overview

The two core components of RESTORE'S educational programs are:

• The RESTORE Two-Semester Course on Masonry Conservation is taught in New York City and meets one evening a week, from October through March. During April and May, students participate in laboratory and field workshop sessions. RESTORE students learn how to analyze and resolve complex conservation, restoration and maintenance problems they encounter daily. RESTORE takes a materials science approach to preservation maintenance. The information presented on materials and treatments is not only pertinent to the preservation and of existing structures, but is also important to the design, construction and maintenance of new structures.

• RESTORE Workshops on Architectural Conservation Techniques offer an in-depth examination of specific issues relating to the latest conservation materials and methods. The workshops are designed to travel to various parts of the country and include the Series of Intensive Workshops that cover all aspects of masonry conservation. RESTORE Workshops last from two to three days and can be tailored to the needs of any organization. The portable laboratory enables RESTORE participants to gain hands-on experience in the identification and basic analysis of materials and preservation treatments.

RESTORE Workshops are sponsored by architectural groups, government agencies, industry groups, labor unions and preservation organizations. Workshop topics include: the technology of cleaning masonry structures, the formulation of composite repair materials and mortar matching, the correct use of coatings and consolidants, the conservation of architectural terra cotta and the health and the environmental hazards inherent in restoration materials and processes.

All RESTORE curricula have been reviewed by the Professional Development Committee of the American Institute of Architects and RESTORE courses and workshops are eligible for AIA Continuing Education Learning Units. RESTORE is a not-for-profit educational corporation licensed by the Board of Regents of the University of New York State.

For its contribution to the field of preservation education, RESTORE has received awards from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Association for Preservation Technology International, the New York City Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, and the New York State Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

Additional components of RESTORE's educational programs include:

The RESTORE Video Series on Architectural Conservation Techniques – The three videos each run approximately thirty minutes. The series serves as an invaluable teaching tool and an excellent resource for any architectural library. The following preservation procedures are addressed in this series of professionally produced videos:

1. Architectural Replacement Materials: Cast Stone and Terra Cotta explains procedures involved in documenting existing architectural elements, discusses properties of replacement materials, demonstrates replication processes and installation techniques.
   

2. Cleaning Masonry Structures and Guidelines for the Use of Consolidants and Coatings illustrates techniques for removal of paints, coatings, stains, and other soiling from masonry materials. The complex issues related to the use of coatings and chemical consolidants are also addressed.
   

3. Mortar Matching Techniques and Composite Repairs for Stone demonstrates methods for conducting mortar analyses, formulating replication mortars, and composite repair compounds.

RESTORE Technical Field Guides Series is currently being developed. The Technical Field Guides will provide current field-tested research on critical preservation problems and will serve as an important resource both to the craftworker on the scaffold and to the design professional writing specifications.

The first Field Guide in the Series, is the RESTORE Technical Field Guide on the Health and Environmental Hazards Inherent in Architectural Restoration Materials and Processes. This Field Guide is a comprehensive twenty-six page manual that addresses the most important aspects of environmental, health and safety regulations relating to building preservation. The goal of this Field Guide is to bring craftworkers, contractors and design professionals up to speed with the safe use of materials and processes that technological advances have made available. This is the first publication on this fundamental topic that has been compiled specifically for the building preservation industry. The Field Guide will be a critical resource not only for architectural conservators and preservationists, but for everyone working in the building industry. This RESTORE Technical Field Guide was funded in part by the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training of the National Park Service, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers and the Getty Grant Program.

The author of this RESTORE Technical Field Guide is Monona Rossol. Ms. Rossol is a leading authority on health and environmental hazards inherent in the arts and architectural conservation. She has degrees in chemistry and fine arts and is an industrial hygienist. Ms. Rossol founded and is the President of ACTS, the leading organization in this field. Ms Rossol serves as a consultant to a number of major cultural institutions. She is a member of a working group of six scientists that has written guidelines to address the toxicity issues at Ground Zero in New York City. Ms. Rossol has taught and lectured throughout North America as well as abroad, and is a noted, award-winning author on this complex subject.

The subject of the second Technical Field Guide will be Understanding the Properties of Masonry Materials. Essential to the decision-making strategies for the preservation of masonry structures is an understanding of the properties of the masonry materials. This Field Guide will provide basic information on the chemical and physical properties of masonry materials including natural stone and architectural ceramics - brick and terra cotta. Further, the Field Guide will equip the reader to analyze and understand deterioration processes by explaining the relationship between these physical properties and how masonry materials weather and decay. Topics of future Technical Field Guides will include: Technology of Cleaning Masonry Structures, Formulation of Mortar Mixes for Pointing and Composite Repair for Masonry and Conservation of Architectural Terra Cotta.

To purchase the RESTORE Video Series on Architectural Conservation Techniques ($200 for the complete set -- individual tapes are not available for sale) or the RESTORE Technical Field Guide on the Health and Environmental Hazards ($25), please contact RESTORE at (212) 749-1800 or email mike@RESTOREtraining.org or jckanderson@RESTOREtraining.org.