Learning the Art of Conservation with the Johnson Publishing Company Archive

Last summer a group of students from historically Black colleges and universities around the country headed to Chicago for a hands-on conservation workshop with materials from the Johnson Publishing Company archive.

During the five-day workshop, they got an introduction to the field of conservation, learning some of the techniques and philosophies of conserving historically relevant materials. The workshop, which aimed to raise awareness about the field of conservation, was an inspiring experience for many students.

The students, who are majoring in everything from fashion to environmental science, had a chance to clean, repair tears, and remove staples and tape from photographic materials in the original Johnson Publishing Company archive. This experience, many said, will impact how they approach their future careers.

The workshop began with an introduction to photography conservation, before breaking down the intricacies of the work with practical demonstrations. Participants viewed Johnson Publishing Company archive materials, created documentation for the archive, rehoused slides, and cleaned and repaired photographs.

Here’s what participants had to say about the experience.

Qiana Thornton

Qiana Thornton, a biochemistry major at Chicago State University, said before attending the workshop “I knew chemicals were used to develop photography, but I didn’t realize how much chemistry was a part of it.”

Thornton’s advisor recommended the workshop as a way to explore science in a field they may not have previously considered.

“I just wanted to come and put my hands on something at first, and to help it exist.” Thornton said. “To have this experience, it made the average person’s photos more important, more necessary. A photo’s not just something that’s nice to look at, but it’s necessary for the people after you to remember who they are, and where they’re going, and why you are doing things.”

One of the photos in the archive that resonated with Thornton was of Mahalia Jackson singing at a podium for a crowd of protesters during a Civil Rights march to free Angela Davis.

“She’s representing people that had to march and to fight.” Thornton said, “Because that picture exists, it keeps that feeling alive.”

Tyler Walker

Tyler Walker, who majored in business management and environmental science at Hampton University and is now starting his own portrait photography business, said he could find many similarities between conserving the environment, and conserving photography.

“If you don’t treat the land well, how could you learn from it? And if you don’t treat these photographs of this history well, what can you learn from it?” Walker said.

Walker said that while working with the archive he gained a deeper understanding of the historical importance of positive Black representation in magazines like Jet and Ebony.

“I’m moving through this world that people before me have fought so hard to try and allow me to have,” Walker said. “Conservation, preservation. I know both practically entail just a greater appreciation of what was…You want to hold that positive aesthetic and representation and you want people to recognize it, moving forward like ‘This was here before you were here.’”

Matthew Patterson

Matthew Patterson studies photography at Norfolk State University. He's been thinking about his career path after graduation, and wants to get as much experience in as many fields as possible. When a professor told him about this workshop he knew he wanted to attend.

“I’m still learning. I’m learning from my grandparents and my great-grandparents. There's so much out there to learn in your lifetime, and just knowing your culture is very important for families and communities. If you don’t know your culture, can you really say you know who you are?”

Patterson said he can use the knowledge gained at the workshop in his own life.

“The older members of my family have but so much time left, and one of these days a lot of those photo albums are going to get passed down to me. I think with the information that I’m learning now, I’m going to be able to make sure that they’re able to be passed down for generations after mine.”

Keturah Bowles

Keturah Bowles studies 2D studio art at Chicago State University. She said that repairing tears in the photographs would help for her own art practice. “When a photograph is ripped, [you can see] how all those fibers are intertwined. And so if I’m wet felting wool or something, that’s the same idea. It’s all fibers.”

Bowles said the images that struck her the most during the workshop were the original mockups and airbrushed images of Aretha Franklin for the cover of Jet. “It just resonates because even though so much time has passed, women are still airbrushing their figures.”

Nette Davis

Nette Davis, a fashion and photography student at Norfolk State University, said that looking at the original magazine covers for Jet and Ebony gave them more insight into the work and creativity that went into designing these magazines, and surfaced both history and technique.

“So many of them are the first African-Americans or first Black people to be in these positions, so [it’s] a real eyeopener,” they said.

As a photographer, Davis said the workshop gave them a deeper understanding of the background of photography processes. “I would definitely recommend this to other people in the photography field. I feel like we need to know this stuff and have a chance to experience it.”