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Surface cleaning of plastic materials of historical value can be challenging due to the high risk of inducing detrimental effects and visual alterations. As a result, recent studies have focused on researching new approaches that might reduce the associated hazards and, at the same time, minimize the environmental impact by employing biodegradable and green materials. In this context, the present work investigates the effects and potential suitability of dense carbon dioxide (CO2) as an alternative and green solvent for cleaning plastic materials of historical value. The results of extensive trials with CO2 in different phases (supercritical, liquid, and vapor) and under various conditions (pressure, temperature, exposure, and depressurization time) are reported for new, transparent, thick poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) samples. The impact of CO2 on the weight, the appearance of the samples (dimensions, color, gloss, and surface texture), and modifications to their physicochemical and mechanical properties were monitored via a multi-analytical approach that included optical microscopy, Raman and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopies, and micro-indentation (Vickers hardness). Results showed that CO2 induced undesirable and irreversible changes in PMMA samples (i.e., formation of fractures and stress-induced cracking, drastic decrease in the surface hardness of the samples), independent of the conditions used (i.e., temperature, pressure, CO2 phase, and exposure time).

Green contemporary art conservation cleaning methods are explored as sustainable museum practices, ensuring the conservator’s health and reducing the environmental impact. The performance of selected biodegradable cleaning agents, namely deionised (DI) water, a chelate based on trisodium salt of methylglycinediacetic acid (MGDA), Trilon® M, a non-ionic surfactant based on alkoxylated fatty alcohols (Plurafac® LF900), and two solvents, limonene and ethyl lactate, was evaluated for the surface cleaning of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polylactic acid (PLA), polypropylene (PP), and plasticized polyvinyl chloride (pPVC). Plastic mockups were used untreated or artificially soiled, simulating particulate matter or sebum stains produced by handling. Furthermore, the efficacy of ink removal from the plastic’s surface was evaluated. Surface examination was carried out using optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM), while μ-Raman and gloss measurements complemented the cleaning assessment methodology. The cleaning agents’ potency depends on the type of plastic, precluding a general cleaning protocol. However, their cleaning efficacy is very promising, enriching the available choices for the cleaning of plastics, using sustainable materials and practices. This study offers valuable information to the conservation field regarding the effects of the selected biodegradable cleaning agents on each type of plastic, their application method, and their cleaning efficacy for the removal of different types of soil and ink.

The article presents the first scholarly study of a silver ark preserved in the “Dudian” Museum of the Armenian Diocese of Romania, Bucharest. The object is examined through an interdisciplinary art-historical approach that integrates typological, iconographic, stylistic, and symbolic analysis. The donative inscription links the ark to pilgrimage practices, identifying it as a memorial commissioned in Constantinople in 1799 by Mahtesi Asfatur from the city of Focșani. Stylistically, the ark exemplifies the “Constantinople style”, reflecting a synthesis of Eastern and Western artistic traditions. Its church-shaped form and iconography are interpreted as a symbolic representation of the Heavenly Jerusalem.

Today, a building is not just a “body” or a “machine” as defined by modern architecture, but rather an immaterial entity immersed in a digital world where not only its components but also the information associated with it are accounted for. In recent decades, building information modelling (BIM) has made it possible to move from 2D CAD drawings to 3D models capable of supporting different processes and interacting with different disciplines in the AEC industry for storing, documenting and sharing heterogeneous content. It has thus become possible to direct these techniques towards built heritage to investigate new forms of communication and share heritage building information modelling (HBIM) models. This research investigates this evolution in both generative terms (scan-to-BIM process) and cultural and historical terms in order to orient BIM uses towards novel forms of interactivity and immersion between users and models. The author proposes the use of a digital process and the development of VR and AR environments based on a visual programming language (VPL) to improve access to a deeper knowledge of HBIM models and the artefacts and information contained therein.

The first synthetic polymers were introduced as constituents of everyday life, design objects, and artworks at the end of the 19th century. Since then, the history of design has been strictly connected with the 20th century evolution of plastic materials. Objects of design from the 20th century are today a precious part of the cultural heritage. They raise specific conservation issues due to the degradation processes affecting synthetic polymer-based plastics. Museums and collections dealing with the conservation of design objects and modern materials need to base their conservation strategies on compositional data that reveal the formulations of historical plastics and their decay processes. Specific and specifically optimized analytical tools are thus needed. We employed flash analytical pyrolysis coupled with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and evolved gas analysis coupled with mass spectrometry (EGA-MS) to characterize “historic polymeric materials” (HIPOMS) and heritage plastics at the molecular level with high chemical detail. This approach complements non-invasive spectroscopic diagnosis whenever it fails to obtain significant or complete information on the nature and the state of preservation of the materials under study. We determined the composition of several 20th century design objects (1954–1994) from the Triennale Design Museum of Milan (Triennale Milano - Museo del Design Italiano), which for different morphological, chemical, or physical reasons were unsuitable for characterization by non-invasive spectroscopy. EGA-MS proved capable for the study of the different fractions constituting heterogeneous micro-samples and for gaining an insight into their degradation processes from the contextual interpretation of thermal and mass-spectrometric data.

Museums are increasingly embracing new methods and technologies to enhance the visitor experience. Virtual Reality (VR) provides the opportunity to experience objects and situations that are not readily available or don’t otherwise exist making it well suited to museum applications. Museum visitors represent an ultra-diverse cohort with technology experience levels ranging from first-time users through to experts, and typically needing to interact with the exhibit with little to no induction and training, and in many instances as a once off encounter. To support such users, this paper evaluates the impact of passive physical everyday tools to provide passive haptic feedback and enhance user interaction with desk-top sized museum objects. Museums face challenges in exhibiting larger objects and in this work the cargo area of a utility vehicle (i.e. ute) was selected as contextually suitable larger object. Three different interaction techniques are used with and without everyday physical tools and experiments undertaken to investigate the impact of the physical tools on the usability and user experience with free-hand interaction techniques. A comparison between using the passive physical tool for the interaction technique and without showed improved efficiency for two of the techniques and positive impact on the user experience with the mechanically more complex of the interaction techniques. These insights may prove useful in the design of interaction techniques for enhanced free-hand interaction with museum objects in VR.

Empirical studies of material artifacts in practice continue to be a rich source of theoretical concepts for CSCW. This paper explores the foundational concept of boundary objects and questions the conception that all objects that move between communities of practice are boundary objects. This research presents the results of a year-long ethnographic study of collaborative work, specifically the multidisciplinary collaborative design of a museum exhibition. I suggest that artifacts can serve to establish and destabilize protocols themselves and that artifacts can be used to push boundaries rather than merely sailing across them. Artifacts used for collaboration do not necessarily exist within a web of standardized processes and disorderly processes should not be treated as “special cases”.

The high-fidelity 3D digitization of small, detailed cultural heritage objects, such as Oracle Bones, presents significant challenges for which existing reconstruction workflows are often inadequate. Methods based on Structure-from-Motion (SfM) often lack the geometric density required to capture fine inscription details, while Light Detection and Ranging and RGB-Depth approaches may introduce high data overhead and unstable color mapping. Recent specialized studies have utilized multi-shading-based techniques to extract such hidden surface textures, yet integrating these results into a cohesive mesh remains difficult. To address these limitations, we propose a digitization framework specifically designed for object-level archaeological artifacts. Our method combines semi-automatic alignment with ICP-based refinement for robust camera pose estimation, reducing misalignment issues associated with feature-only registration. Furthermore, we employ an efficient mesh-based representation with vertex-level coloring, enabling detailed geometry and consistent texturing while maintaining compact storage requirements. Our contributions include: (1) a high-quality mesh reconstruction framework that preserves fine inscription geometry; (2) a hybrid camera pose estimation strategy that improves alignment robustness; and (3) an integrated hardware-assisted workflow tailored for digitizing small archaeological artifacts under controlled acquisition conditions. Experimental results on physical Oracle Bone artifacts demonstrate that the proposed method achieves a mean geometric reconstruction error of approximately 0.075 mm with a Hausdorff distance of 1 mm. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed workflow for digitization of oracle bone artifacts.

In this article, we present methods for the use of eye-tracking in interviews in order to reflect on visual perception and practices of looking as part of an ethnography of the senses. The methods are based on two multi-year ethnographic studies involving eye trackers. In the first one, researchers used mobile eye trackers to study how art museum visitors approach digital image technologies. In the other, they relied on stationary eye trackers to investigate practices on digital image platforms. We discuss how video recordings of participants' eye movements were made and describe the process of conducting ethnographic interviews based on the videos. The eye-tracking interviews can be used 1. to make participants aware of and think about practices of looking; 2. to verbalize in dialogue sensory and interpretative processes regarding museum objects and digital image technologies; and 3. to surface individuals' aesthetic preferences and incorporated knowledge.

This article proposes to look at how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the valuation of the world of material culture, and how the subject itself can become an inspiration to describe this particular time. Naive anthropomorphism, and thus criticism of the view of the superior role of human, although present for many years, has taken on a new meaning at this particular time. As a theoretical framework for presenting the proposed issues, I adopt the reference to the interpretation of the concept of an “object” present in the social sciences and humanities, as well as the role of designers and the explication of design in the literature. The picture will be complemented by a reference to the Pandemic Objects project, implemented in 2020 by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, United Kingdom.