Conservation Center
Staff Profiles
Conservation Center Staff Profiles
Vonnda Shaw
Conservation Center ManagerAs the manager of the Ford Center, Vonnda supervises the daily operations of the center, managing a team of skilled conservators and support staff, meeting with clients, performing condition assessments, treating artifacts, and writing reports.
Prior to joining the Ford Center, Vonnda gained experience at institutions across the Midwest, including the Toledo Museum of Art, DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge’s Steamboat Bertrand collection of archaeological artifacts, the Sheldon Art Museum, the Durham Museum, the University of Nebraska State Museum, and carried out excavation work at the Roman Kourion – Amathus Gate Cemetery in Cyprus. She received her MA in Museum Studies from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and a BA in Art History and Archaeology from the University of Missouri, Columbia.
Rebecca Cashman
Objects ConservatorAs Objects Conservator, Rebecca works to conserve all types of materials ranging from ancient ceramics to modern plastics. She especially enjoys the range of objects she has been able to conserve at the Ford Center, and learning the stories that are part of each object’s history.
Rebecca has a BFA in Fine Arts and a BA in Art History from the Massachusetts College of Art in Boston. She came to the Ford Conservation Center in 2007, after completing her MA with a focus in Objects Conservation at Buffalo State College. Before coming to the Ford Center, she gained experience in conservation by working on an archaeological dig at Tel Ahmar in Syria, and at institutions such as the Williamstown Art Conservation Center, the Maryland Archaeological Conservation Lab, the Smithsonian’s Cultural Resources Center, the Field Museum, the Autry Museum of the American West, and the Southwest Museum of the American Indian. She is a member of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) and Midwest Regional Conservation Guild.
Hilary LeFevere
Paper ConservatorAs the Paper Conservator, Hilary meets with clients, assesses condition and treatment needs, and conserves paper-based materials including documents, art on paper, books, and photographs.
She previously worked as a paper conservator at a private conservation studio in New York, treating modern and contemporary prints and original works on paper. She has worked in the Wallace Preservation Lab at Michigan State University and interned at the Department of Preservation and Conservation at the University of Michigan Libraries. She holds a MA in Conservation of Fine Art on Paper from Northumbria University in the United Kingdom, an MSc in Art History from the University of Edinburgh, and a BA in Art History from Arizona State University.
Laura Kraegel
Conservation TechnicianAs the Conservation Technician, Laura works with the conservators to meet clients, perform condition assessments, and treat artifacts. She also assists with written and photo documentation and implements the Ford Center’s Integrated Pest Management system.
Before joining the Ford Center, Laura studied hand bookbinding and book repair at North Bennet Street School and interned at Haverford College’s library conservation lab. She holds a Diploma in Bookbinding from North Bennet, a BA in the Program of Liberal Studies from the University of Notre Dame, and an MA in journalism from Arizona State University.
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