About Us
We are passionate about preserving and facilitating access to historical and cultural materials that connect us more closely to our past and to each other.
Whether it be a family photo, a favorite book, or an artwork, document, map, or book with significant cultural or historical significance, we give each item the same high level of professional care with great emphasis on its intended use and purpose.
Our work abides by the American Institute for Conservation Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice, which requires a high standard of knowledge, skill, and care, sensitivity to and respect for the historical and/or cultural nuances of each individual artifact, and be as reversible and minimally invasive as possible.
Who we are.
Kathy Lechuga – Owner and Conservator
Kathy Lechuga earned her Masters of Science in Information Studies and Certificate of Advanced Studies in Conservation from the University of Texas at Austin in 2010. She was formerly the Book Conservator at the Indiana Historical Society in Indianapolis before co-founding Signature Conservation LLC. Before coming to Indianapolis, she was the Conservation Lab Manager at the Preservation Lab, a collaborative lab created between the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County and the University of Cincinnati. Kathy was also the Assistant Conservator for The University of Notre Dame Hesburgh Libraries where she had previously completed her third year conservation training internship.
Kathy specializes in book conservation treatments and has experience working with books ranging from the 15th century to modern day. She has also completed treatments of varying complexity on various paper-based artifacts such as manuscripts and documents, posters, drawings, architectural drawings, and photographs. She has extensive experience with exhibit preparation which includes creating custom mounts for paper and textile artifacts and gallery installation. Throughout her professional career she has collaborated closely with various library departments and has been involved in developing comprehensive preservation and conservation workflows. She has designed and conducted several condition surveys for collection materials and has extensive experience implementing other preservation strategies, such as environmental monitoring, integrated pest management, and collection storage management.
Kathy is a Professional Associate Member of the American Institute for Conservation, a member of the Guild of Bookworkers, and a member of the Midwest Regional Conservation Guild.
Publications and Presentations
Kathy Lechuga
Publications
Thank You, Leigh! IN Perspective. The Indiana Historical Society Press. July/August 2018.
Pre-coated Repair Materials. Post on the Indiana Historical Society Blog. April 25, 2018.
Fun with Fosshape! Post on the Indiana Historical Society Blog. March 23, 2018.
The Conservation of a Civil War Print of Indiana Volunteers at Camp Burgess. IN Perspective. The Indiana Historical Society Press. July/August 2017.
Treatment 305: A Love Story. The Book and Paper Group Annual. Vol. 36. AIC. Washington, DC. 2017. pp. 29-39.
Caring for Books in an Institution. Collections Advisor News. Indiana Historical Society. Issue 22, August 2013.
Aquazol Coated Remoistenable Mending Tissues. Online proceedings of a conference, Symposium 2011.
Adhesives and Consolidants for Conservation: Research and Applications, Ottawa, Canada, October 17-21, 2011; Canadian Conservation Institute, Ottawa, Canada, 2011.
Conservation Intern Enhances Access to Special Collections. Co-authored with Liz Dube. ACCESS: News from the Hesburgh Libraries of Notre Dame (Spring 2010), 6-7.
Aquazol as a Heat Set Adhesive for Textile Conservation Treatments. The Textile Specialty Group Post Prints Vol. 19. AIC. Washington, DC. 2010.
Presentations
Decoding Your Family Document. Co-presented with Stephanie Gowler, virtually. Indiana Historical Society (June 20, 2020)
Preserving Your Family History. Co-authored and co-presented at Midwestern Roots hosted at the Indiana Historical Society, Indianapolis, IN (July 18th, 2019).
A Simple Screen Printing Technique for Loss Compensation on Paper Objects and Bindings. Poster presentation given at the American Institute for Conservation 47th Annual Conference held in Uncasville, CT (May 13-17, 2019)
Strategies for Preserving Comic Collections. Presentation given at Comic CONservation, an Indiana Historical Society program. Indianapolis, IN (March 29, 2018)
Treatment 305: A Love Story. Lecture given at the American Institute for Conservation 45th Annual Conference held in Chicago, IL (May 28 - June 2, 2017)
21st Century Loss Compensation for a 19th Century Binding. Poster presentation given at the American Institute for Conservation 45th Annual Conference held in Chicago, IL (May 28 - June 2, 2017)
Techniques for Mending and Humidification and Flattening for Documents. Presentation given as part of the AASLH Paper Camp workshop at the Indiana Historical Society. Indianapolis, IN (June 23, 2015)
No Plough? No Problem! A Method for Constructing a Low-Budget Bookbinding Plough for Conservators. Poster presentation. American Institute for Conservation 43rd Annual Conference, Miami, FL. (May 13-16, 2015)
Humidification and Flattening Techniques for Documents. Workshop. Ohio Preservation Council at The Preservation Lab. Cincinnati, OH (May 9, 2014)
The Work of a Conservator. Presentation. Preservation Week Road Show at the Indiana Historical Society. Indianapolis, IN (April 26, 2014)
Preservation Program Basics. Presented with Holly Prochaska at the Ohio Connecting to Collections Preservation Boot Camp, Columbus, OH (July 31, 2013)
Aquazol Coated Remoistenable Mending Tissues. Presentation and demonstration given at the Canadian Conservation Institute’s Adhesives and Consolidants for Conservation: Research and Application Symposium, Ottawa, Canada. (October 2011).
Conserving Special Collections: Hesburgh Libraries. Presented with Liz Dube for Preservation Week at the Hesburgh Library. (May 2010)
Basic Resources for Conservation Information. Presentation given at the SHRAB Conference at the Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. (April 2010)
Photo Housing Workshop. Instruction assistant with Susan Rogers at the Monroe County Historical Society, Bloomington, IN. (June 2009)
Aquazol as a Heat Set Adhesive for Textile Conservation Treatments. Poster presented at the American Institute for Conservation 37th Annual Conference held in Los Angeles, CA. (May 2009)
We Hurry to the Rescue: Treatment of an 1857 Silk Flag Using Beva-371 Coated Fabrics. Presentation. Midwest Regional Conservation Guild Conference in Cincinnati, OH. (Oct. 2006)
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