West Virginia University - News and Information Services
WVU hosts textile preservationist Tuesday
West Virginia University is hosting textile preservationist Fonda Ghiardi Thomsen at 3 p.m. Tuesday (March 13).
Thomsen, who is director of Textile Preservation Associates, Inc., will be speaking on her 30 years of experience in textile preservation in Room 110 White Hall. The presentation is part of Larry Sypolt’s museum and archival management classes in WVU’s Department of History in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences. Space is limited for the public.
Thomsen’s exhibition and preservation experiences range from Revolutionary War artifacts to Lincoln assassination garments, Civil War flags and contemporary residences.
She has evaluated, treated and exhibited historical flags of Alabama, Missouri, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland and West Virginia, and consulted on projects at Fort Sumter and the National Museum of American History’s exhibit on the Star Spangled Banner.
In addition, she has furnished exhibits at Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson’s and Dwight D. Eisenhower’s farms, as well as Ford’s Theater, Gettysburg and Fredericksburg National Military Parks. Other projects have included Sagamore Hill, Thomas Edison’s and Carl Sandberg’s homes, and George Washington’s sleeping and dining marquees in Yorktown, Va.
Thomsen has served as conservator of Organic Materials for the Smithsonian Institution, and conservator and chief of conservation for the National Park Service in Harpers Ferry.
For more information, contact Sypolt at 304-293-3704 or Larry.Sypolt@mail.wvu.edu.