Velox Photos
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Hello everyone,
Our local newspaper ran a county remembered series for 30 or so years where they would print historic photographs of the town and people that were submitted to the paper from the public. Our small institution was honored to be given this collection from the newspaper but I am not sure how to preserve it.
The collection is a combination of newspaper clippings and the velox with the photograph glued to the page and text which was used to create the newspaper image. Some of the photos are originals, most are copies of originals. I have attached a photograph of what this looks like.
Should I separate the photos from the velox and how do I keep the text with it as well? When the photo and backing come apart, the adhesive is still there and is still tacky. Any help would be much appreciated!
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Yes, a picture would certainly be helpful.
Velox generally refers to a photographic paper made by Kodak from the 1890s until late in the 20th century. It was a black and white paper or gelatin silver print in modern museum lingo.
Generally speaking, storing gelatin silver prints separately from newspaper materials, or at least with some interleaving between them is good practice. However, separating photographs from their original context can also be problematic.
But I’m happy to discuss further once you have successfully posted an image.
best,
Gawain Weaver -
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Hi Jessie– It looks like the photograph (a Velox print according to your description) is mounted to a pre-printed layout page and then clippings from the newspapers are sometimes in contact with the image.
Removing the photographs from the pages would be damaging to their context and I also couldn’t give advice about how to remove without testing the adhesives, etc.
My advice is to place a sheet of buffered interleaving tissue on top of any photographs that are otherwise in direct contact with newspaper, but only if this can be done without causing any additional problems. By preventing direct contact between the lignins-filled newspaper and the photographic print, the print is spared most of the evil effects of the newspaper.
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Jessie,
Thank you for the photo. I think there are two issues here: keeping information together which clearly belongs together, and problems with adhesive and its interaction with photographic materials and paper over time.
One, expensive way, of dealing with this is to hire a conservator to remove and re-mount the photos and paper slips onto archival mounts. This may be overkill, so I would suggest following Gawain’s instructions with buffered tissue, or creating paper folders for each page with mounted material. You may be able to release the newsprint in the corner where it is mounted, then place buffered tissue between the photo and the newspaper and place the grouping into an acid-free, lignin-free paper folder. This will create some bulk in your collection, but would protect the photograph and keep the items together which belong together. You may also leave a note or indicate somehow that you released the newspaper from the upper right corner for preservation reasons.
Poor quality adhesives may cause damage to any substrate over time, so you may also consider making a good quality Xerox of the groupings.
Your original question was about releasing the Velox from its backing and I would not suggest that unless you hired a conservator to do so. If in releasing the corner of the newspaper there is a sticky spot of adhesive, you could either consult a conservator in your area about its removal, or simply place a small piece of tissue over that spot to prevent another item from getting stuck to it. It is always best to remove adhesive, but it may not always be practical.
I hope this information helps you,
April Smith
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