Events run by and for Art Bio Matter members. Participate in open conversations, seminars and round tables. COMMUNITY Projects Publications Member Events Members MEMBER EVENTS Member events are specially organized by Art Bio Matters member and volunteers. They are intended to strengthen connections between members and help them find new colleagues to discuss research questions and concerns. Depending on the format, members will present current research projects, share open questions, and lead exchanges of information where the main goal is to improve the ways in which we understand biological materials in material heritage culture. The following are members-only events. Registration links will be sent directly to ABM members through Slack and Email. SEMINAR SERIES Join us for monthly informal presentations on topics in biological material studies integrating science with conservation, history, culture, and/or other human sciences. Seminars take place every third Thursday and feature a 20-minute presentation by the speaker(s), followed by lively discussion with ABM community members. This platform allows you to share your area of interest, ongoing project, or seek collaboration outside your field. Submissions are reviewed continuously. Can't attend live? Recordings are available for one month to ABM members. Clothomics as a new approach to the study of archaeological textiles and animal skins To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Laura Cristina Viñas Caron Over the past decades, the range of scientific methods that contribute to the study of ancient cloth materials has expanded dramatically. The emerging field of uses biomolecular techniques such as proteomics and genomics to study the raw materials used in cloth production. These analyses not only identify the animal species behind textiles, leather or fur, but also reveal new insights into the domestication, management, and refinement of animals used in textile production, such as sheep. In doing so, clothomics helps us better understand past identities, animal economies, manufacturing processes, trade networks, or landscape use. This presentation will introduce the exciting world of clothomics, offer practical guidance on how to apply genomic and proteomic techniques to ancient cloth, and share a series of case studies that highlight what these methods can reveal about our shared past. Thursday, October 23, 2025, 11:00 am ET Learn more ROUND TABLE Q&A round tables offer a unique opportunity to tap into the expertise within our diverse community. A small group of ABM members will each share current or on-going questions related to the biological materials of an object(s) in a brief (5-minute) description or presentation. This is followed by dynamic discussions with attendees, fostering knowledge exchange, brain storming, and opportunities for collaboration. Perceptions of Human Remains - Continued To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Robin Fleming, Annelize Kotze, and Trish Biers Following the overwhelming response to our March 27th session. We are pleased to announce an upcoming online Roundtable discussion on the topic of human remains in museums, cultural centers, and religious spaces. This session will offer an opportunity to examine the ongoing ethical and practical challenges surrounding the display, handling, storage, treatment, and scientific analysis of human remains. It will also provide a space to share diverse institutional experiences and foster thoughtful dialogue across disciplines. 
Our goal is to generate actionable insights that can support professionals navigating these responsibilities, and to encourage a respectful, informed approach to working with human remains in varied contexts. We welcome participants from across the field to join us for what promises to be a meaningful and necessary conversation. Thursday, April 24, 2025, 11:00 am ET ABM MEMBER CONVERSATIONS These informal conversations will explore the cross-disciplinary collaboration and research opportunities that define ABM. They aim to enhance our understanding of the diverse roles held by ABM members, spur collaborations, try out ideas, and explore new areas of study. Each conversation features two members, each from a different specialty (e.g., a curator and a scientist), who have not collaborated but have overlapping but not identical research interests. They will engage in a conversation based on three questions for each other, followed by audience discussion and questions. ABM Member Conversations - March 2025 To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Kat McFarlin & Cynthia Hahn In this conservation event, Kat McFarlin and Cynthia Hahn will engage in discussion about how practices around interacting with bodily remains vary across cultures and time periods. Cynthia Hahn is Distinguished Professor of Art History at Hunter College and the Graduate Center of CUNY. She has published extensively on reliquaries (including those of other cultures, but primarily Western medieval). Katherine "Kat" McFarlin is a cultural heritage conservator at the American Museum of Natural History, primarily supporting the Musem's Human Remains Collection Care Program. Thursday, March 27th, 2025 11:00 am ET OTHER WAYS TO PARTICIPATE ABM members get to participate in a variety of ways. Don't miss your chance to network! Why join the Art Bio Matters community? Members of the ABM community enjoy many benefits, regardless of their area of interest. Our website and Slack workspace have something for everyone: Communicate through the ABM Slack workspace Connect with colleagues, discuss research questions, and network in the ABM Slack community. Visit our Join the Community tab for more information. Join the Community Participate in an ABM meeting ABM has biennial conferences sharing ongoing research through a dynamic forum of exchange. Visit the ABM Meetings tab for more information. ABM Meetings Build the ABM website We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested to do any of the following: Share a project Provide a link to your publications, projects, or Opportunities to share with potential partners. Educate and reach out Provide a link to a case study or video that applies to our Materials, Instrumentation, Ethics, and Sampling pages. Anchor 1 Why join the Art Bio Matters community? Members of the ABM community enjoy many benefits, regardless of their area of interest. Our website and Slack workspace have something for everyone: Access ABM 2018, 2021, and 2023 conference recordings and background materials. Join us and become a part of the ABM c ommunity

MEMBERS Reset Filters Filter by surname A B C D E F G H I J K L M N P R S T V W Y Laura Allen Member Information Participant 2021 Cecil Krarup Andersen Member Information Team Presenter 2021 Lauren Audi Member Information Participant 2023, Poster Presenter 2021 Beatrice Behlen Member Information Team Presenter 2023 Seminar Series Presenter 2023 Aniko Bezur Member Information Team Presenter 2021 Ilaria Bonaduce Member Information Participant 2018, 2021 Nylah Byrd Member Information Community Coordinator 2023 Ellen Carrlee Member Information Team Presenter 2021 Yueh-Ting Chiu Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Lauren Clark Member Information Participant 2023 Matthew Collins Member Information Team Presenter 2021 Annamaria Cucina Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Lauren Dalecky Member Information Team Presenter 2023 Sofie Dierickx Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Kate Duffy Member Information Participant 2021 Sarah Fiddyment Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Cecilia Flocco Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Niv Allon Member Information Participant 2021 Ruth Ann Armitage Member Information Participant 2023 Lyudmyla Babadzhanova Member Information Participant 2023, Admin Coordinator 2023-2025 Daniella Berman Member Information Participant 2023 Trish Biers Member Information Speaker April 2025 Roundtable Caroline Bouvier Member Information Participant 2021 Sheila Canby Member Information Participant 2018 Laura Cartechini Member Information Speaker 2018 Sue Ann Chui Member Information Steering Committee 2018 Elizabeth Cleland Member Information Participant 2021 Laura Courto Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Matt Cushman Member Information Participant 2018 Jan Dekker Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Patrick Dietemann Member Information Team Presenter 2021 Margaret Holben Ellis Member Information Co-organizer 2018, 2021 Eugenia Geddes Da Filicaia Member Information Participant 2021 Manu Frederickx Member Information Participant 2021 Alba Alvarez Member Information Participant 2021 Julie Arslanoglu Member Information Co-organizer 2018-2023 Camilla Jul Bastholm Member Information Seminar Series Presenter 2024 Barbara Berrie Member Information Steering Committee 2018 Kyna Biggs Member Information Participant 2023 Lisa Bruno Member Information Participant 2021 Anthony Caragiulo Member Information Participant 2021 Oi Yan Michelle Chan Member Information Team Presenter 2023 Tami Lasseter Clare Member Information Team Presenter 2021 Timothy Cleland Member Information Speaker 2018 Ashley Coutu Member Information Poster Presenter 2021 Elke Cwiertnia Member Information Participant 2021 Adam DiBattista Member Information Participant 2023 Seminar Series Presenter 2022 Laurence Douny Member Information Member Conversations Presenter 2024 Steering Committee 2023 Jean Evans Member Information Participant 2018 Robin Fleming Member Information Speaker April 2025 Roundtable Jessica French Member Information Seminar Series Presenter 2024 First Prev 1 2 3 4 1 ... 1 2 3 4 ... 4 Next Last

Cultural heritage is the material culture of mankind and its study requires the inclusion and partnership of its creators as well as careful deliberation as to its analysis. If you have ethics to post, please email info@artbiomatters.org. EDUCATION Materials Materials Ethics Ethics Analytical Techniques Analytical Techniques Sampling Topics Sampling Topics ETHICS Cultural heritage is the material culture of mankind and its study requires the inclusion and partnership of its creators as well as careful deliberation as to its analysis. If you have ethics to post, please email info@artbiomatters.org . Coming Soon Coming Soon

A wide variety of varnishes and coatings exist, generally with the purpose as acting as a protective coating or adding a specific sheen to an object. Composition Conservation Historical Use Case Studies Varnishes/Coatings A wide variety of varnishes and coatings exist, generally with the purpose as acting as a protective coating or adding a specific sheen to an object. Previous Next Back to Materials Coming Soon We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested in building the ABM website.

Art Bio Matters is a cross-disciplinary hub for biological materials research in cultural heritage. Welcome to ABM A Cross-Disciplinary Hub for Biological Materials Research in Cultural Heritage About ABM Education Community Meetings Resources Members Opportunities MISSION STATEMENT ART BIO MATTERS (ABM) provides a stimulating forum in which to explore current and new directions in the study of biological materials found in cultural heritage collections. Communication and partnerships are facilitated by a robust website, dedicated Slack channel, and interactive Art Bio Matters Meetings. While the core disciplines of ABM are science, curatorial/cultural history, and conservation, ABM welcomes other stakeholders involved in cultural heritage studies. A key aspect of the forum is the opportunity to discuss research at any stage of completion among a balanced community of experts in a format designed to promote collegial dialogue and debate. Read more about ABM ONSITE EVENT ABM 2023 ABM 2023 was an in-person meeting in NYC, continuing as a platform for open dialogue and debate between specialists interested in biological materials investigations of cultural heritage. Meetings EXPLORE ABM Projects Discover projects from the ABM community Explore Opportunities Explore opportunities for education, professional development, employment, funding, and more. Show more Events Stay connected to the most recent events with bimonthly ABM virtual presentations by ABM Members and other events of interest. Show more Join us and become a part of the ABM c ommunity

A binder is a substance that adheres the paint's pigment particles to the surface of the support (canvas, wood). Historically, proteins such as milk, egg, and animal glue served as the original binder. Composition Conservation Historical Use Case Studies Paint Binders A binder is a substance that adheres the paint's pigment particles to the surface of the support (canvas, wood). Historically, proteins such as milk, egg, and animal glue served as the original binder. Previous Next Back to Materials Coming Soon We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested in building the ABM website.

Feathers, horn, hair, nails, scales, and hooves, all found in vertebrates, are made from a family of structural proteins called keratins. Composition Conservation Historical Use Case Studies Feathers/horn/hair/nails Feathers, horn, hair, nails, scales, and hooves, all found in vertebrates, are made from a family of structural proteins called keratins. Previous Next Back to Materials Coming Soon We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested in building the ABM website.

A photograph is an image which is captured using light, either electronically or on a photosensitive surface. Composition Conservation Historical Use Case Studies Photographs A photograph is an image which is captured using light, either electronically or on a photosensitive surface. Previous Next Back to Materials Coming Soon We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested in building the ABM website.

Used to glue or bind things together, biomolecule-based adhesives are incredibly wide ranging from proteins (hide or bone glues, egg, casein) to polysachharides (rice or wheat paste, plant gums) to lipids (beeswax) and more. Composition Conservation Historical Use Case Studies Adhesives Used to glue or bind things together, biomolecule-based adhesives are incredibly wide ranging from proteins (hide or bone glues, egg, casein) to polysachharides (rice or wheat paste, plant gums) to lipids (beeswax) and more. Previous Next Back to Materials Coming Soon We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested in building the ABM website.

Cellulose fibers, most commonly from wood or plants, are processed to produce the thin sheets of material known as paper. Processing can involve both mechanical or chemical modification of the raw material to create a pulp, followed by pressing, and drying. Composition Conservation Historical Use Case Studies Paper Cellulose fibers, most commonly from wood or plants, are processed to produce the thin sheets of material known as paper. Processing can involve both mechanical or chemical modification of the raw material to create a pulp, followed by pressing, and drying. Previous Next Back to Materials Coming Soon We need you to develop new content for the ABM website. Please email info@artbiomatters.org or message in Slack if you are interested in building the ABM website.