Polarized Light Microscopy 2026
Includes a Live In-Person Event on 07/27/2026 at 9:00 AM (EDT)
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Register
- Non-member - $912
- Member - $760
This workshop required an application to participate and only selected applicants should register!
July 27-31, 2026, SUNY Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
Instructors: Kirsten Moffitt, Aaron Shugar
This workshop will provide participants with an intensive hands-on re-introduction to the theory and practice of Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM), focusing on historic pigments found in heritage objects. PLM is an important tool for the study of cultural heritage objects, but its effective use is dependent on the skill and experience of the user. During this workshop, attendees will be reacquainted with the polarizing light microscope and refresh their microscopy knowledge and skills through lectures and hands-on exercises to recognize key optical and morphological properties of pigments, such as relative refractive index, pleochroism, and anisotropy. Participants will move beyond pigment references and work through unknowns collected from actual artifacts to reflect ‘real world’ applications encountered in conservation practice. Participants will collect samples from heritage objects, prepare those samples for microscopic examination, identify unknowns, and learn how best to document their results. Case-study lectures will explore actual projects in which PLM played a pivotal role. The limitations of PLM and the application of supplementary analytical techniques will also be discussed.
Participants will receive a small slide reference set for use during class, printed and digital reference materials, as well as a packet of self-teaching worksheets designed for future use. During the workshop, attendees will have the opportunity to prepare a pigment reference set to take home. This workshop is designed to be a safe space for conservation professionals to refresh their microscopy skills, re-train their eye, and better articulate their findings. Participants will come away with a refreshed understanding of PLM, its relevance to the study of art materials, and the confidence to apply this critical technique to their own work.
Interested individuals must apply. The registration fee is $760 for AIC members, $912 for non-members. Free registration and a $1,000 travel stipend will be provided to a limited number of participants upon request in their application.
Funding for this program comes from a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Foundation for Advancement in Conservation (FAIC) Endowment for Professional Development, which was created by a grant from the Mellon Foundation and is supported by donations from members of the American Institute for Conservation (AIC) and its friends. Workshops are made possible with the assistance of many AIC members, but no AIC membership dues were used to create or present this workshop.
Additional funding was provided by the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training (NCPTT).
Interested individuals must complete an application. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis based on space. Each applicant will be asked to describe their experience with objects containing historic pigments and how they would use and share the knowledge gained from this workshop.
Submit an application by clicking the "Apply" button below. Applications are submitted through our online application portal. When you enter the portal, you will be prompted to login to the system using a login ID and password. Please note that this system is not connected to your F/AIC profile on our general website.
Criteria for Review
- Experience and current interactions with the topic
- Need for the content (current challenges around the topic)
- Plan for dissemination of information gained
- The program seeks to support a diverse set of participants and will consider geographic location, place of employment type, and profession.
Kirsten Moffitt
Conservator & Materials Analyst
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Kirsten Travers Moffitt is the Senior Conservator & Materials Analyst at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation in Williamsburg, Virginia. She holds an M.S. from the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, where she focused on the conservation and analysis of painted surfaces. Moffitt specializes in the microscopic analysis of historic paints and pigments, and her work contributed to the development of Benjamin Moore’s Williamsburg commercial paint line in 2013.
She co-edited Micro to Macro: Examining Architectural Finishes (Archetype, 2018), which features her paper, “Limewashed Island: Architectural Finishes in Early Bermuda,” co-authored with Ed Chappell. Other recent lectures and publications include “Hugh Orr’s Orpiment Hue: Paint Analysis Discoveries at the George Reid House” (Traditional Paint Journal, August 2021); “Orpiment in Colonial Williamsburg: Challenges in the Analysis of Yellow Arsenic Sulfides in Historic Housepaints” (Microscopy & Microanalysis 2021 Conference); “Scheele’s Green: The Original Arsenical Green” (2022 Inaugural Bibliotoxicology Working Group Symposium); “Chrome Yellow: American Mineral, American Fancy” (2023 Colour Matters Conference, Oxford University); “Early American Graining: A Technical Survey” (2023 American Institute for Conservation Annual Meeting); and “Verdigris in Colonial Williamsburg: History, Analysis & Interpretation” (2024 Architectural Finishes Research Conference, Amsterdam).
Moffitt is also a regular lecturer for Atlas Obscura and Colonial Williamsburg’s Teacher Institute, where she explores the use of architectural paint analysis as a building investigation tool. She leads microscopy workshops for conservation professionals and in 2023, she taught the pre-conference PLM refresher workshop with Aaron Shugar at the AIC Annual Meeting in Jacksonville, Florida. For the past ten years, she has led cross-section and polarized light microscopy workshops to graduate students at the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, where she serves as affiliated faculty.
Aaron Shugar
Professor and Bader Chair in Art Conservation
Queen's University
Aaron Shugar received his honours H.B.A. in Anthropology and Law & Society from York University and his M.S. in Archaeological Materials from The University of Sheffield. Aaron received his Ph.D. in Archaeometallurgy from University College London. He co-directed the Archaeometallurgy Laboratory at Lehigh University, was a guest scientist at NIST, and a research associate at the Smithsonian Institution. He serves on the Scientific Vetting Committee for TEFAF and as a forensic materials export for the Court of Arbitration for Art. Aaron was the Mellon Foundation Professor in Conservation Science at Buffalo State University, and he is currently a Professor and Bader Chair in Art Conservation at Queen’s University.
Aaron’s research interests include the analysis of inorganic materials, archaeometallurgy of the Near East and Mesoamerica, developing non-invasive instrumentation for the use of art analysis, investigating the degradation phenomena of various pigments, as well as characterizing now defunct pigments including Indian yellow and zinc orange. He has published widely on these topics in conservation and scientific journals and presented his research worldwide. He has co-edited a volume of Materials Issues in Art and Archaeology, Handheld XRF for Art and Archaeology, and Archaeometallurgy in Mesoamerica: Current Approaches and New Perspectives.
Aaron has conducted scientific analysis on archaeology material as well as works of art in museums and academic settings for over 20 years and taught in archeological, materials science and art conservation programs over that time, including teaching polarized light microscopy for 18 years while at Buffalo State University.
