Members-Only Conservators’ Choice Lecture

Patricia Miller

Patricia Miller joined the Preservation Society of Newport County in 2015. Trained as a sculpture and building conservator, she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a Master of Science from Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Preservation and Planning. Prior to joining the Preservation Society in 2015, Patricia worked for several private conservation firms specializing in architecture, object, and monument conservation for clients including Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, and the National Park Service.

Carola Schueller

Carola Schueller trained as a cabinet maker and conservator in Germany and graduated from the University of Applied Arts and Sciences in Hildesheim in 2006 with a focus on the conservation of furniture and wooden artifacts. After graduation she completed a fellowship at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She was previously employed as a furniture conservator at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, a frame shop technician in Boston and crate builder in Cambridge. She has worked as a conservator in private practice for collectors, New England conservation colleagues and many museums. Carola joined the Preservation Society in 2017 as Objects Conservator focusing on the care, study and conservation treatment of wooden artifacts. Her current area of interest and research evolve around the luxury furniture market and furniture manufacturing techniques of the American Gilded Age.

Katy W. O’Donnell

Katy W. O’Donnell is a museum professional with over 25 years of experience, including eight years focused on textile conservation. She earned a Master of Arts in Anthropology from the University of Oklahoma and a Master of Science in Historical Textiles from University of Rhode Island before opening a private practice in 2021. She is a member of the American Institute for Conservation, the New England Conservation Association, and the American Quilt Studies Group, and her research interests include metallic threads and early quilting practices.

Dagan Farancz

Dagan Farancz is responsible for managing individual projects as well as assisting both the conservation and collections staff with the care and conservation of the museum buildings, interior decorative surfaces, and collections objects. He is the primary conservation staff member responsible for Rosecliff exhibitions establishing object treatment schedules, providing safe handling and transport, mount making and installation, and working closely with curatorial and collections staff to balance exhibition goals with long-term preservation. He received a Master of Science in Historic Preservation from the School of the Art institute of Chicago. Before coming to the Preservation Society in 2017, Dagan worked as a contractor on both studio and in situ conservation and archeological projects within the US and abroad.