OUr conservation team

Brian

Brian received a degree from the University of Connecticut in chemistry, art, and art history.  He received his MFA in Art Conservation from the State University of New York College in Buffalo, after 10 years of work in the building and architectural preservation field in New England.

Brian co-founded B.R. Howard & Associates Inc. in 1988 in while also serving as the head of the Commonwealth Conservation Center Objects Laboratory operated by the Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission for 17 years. He is a Professional Associate and served as Treasurer of the AIC’s Board of Directors for two terms. In addition, Brian served two terms on the Board of the Cooperstown Museum Studies Program Alumni Association, and the SUNY Buffalo State College Art Department Alumni Board. He was the instructor for the Mid-Atlantic Association for Museum Collections Care Training Program from 1990-1998, has presented several papers at AIC annual conferences, and lectured on the importance of documentation and preservation of historic vehicles in original condition.

As head conservator at B.R. Howard & Associates, he’s had the privilege of working with educational institutions, museums, and government agencies conserving numerous culturally significant collections and materials. His broad background, training, and years of experience give him a depth of understanding of materials and their properties when working on projects.

Jolene

Co-Founder/President of B. R. Howard & Associates, Inc., Jolene attended Bethel College and University of Connecticut receiving a Fine Arts Degree in Sculpture.  She has worked for many years with her husband Brian in the field of conservation. She provides administrative direction to the business with contracts/financial and time/schedule management. Her past experience in the medical field has allowed her to oversee our employee safety training program and has provided her interpersonal skills to work with clients.

Braeden

Braeden’s formal education was in Business Management. He is the Head Project Manager and an Assistant Conservator for BRH. He has over 15 years of hands on treatment experience in a wide variety of conservation projects. Braeden is a Professional Associate of AIC. He’s also received training and certifications in industrial coatings inspections, Jahn restoration mortars, mold remediation, and has managed large disaster recovery projects.

Collin

Collin serves as a project manager and plays an integral role in all phases of restoration related projects. He has extensive knowledge and experience in welding, fabrication, abrasive blasting techniques, and spray applied coating applications. He holds a Bachelor degree in Science in Restoration Technologies and is a member of AIC.

Scott

Scott is an Objects Conservator for BRH. He has extensive experience working on a broad range of material. Prior to joining our team, Scott worked in the Cultural Resource Management field as an archaeologist which he conducted all methods of site excavation and performed treatment on the Cultural materials that were found. He has a Bachelor's degree in History, a Graduate Diploma in Conservation Studies, and a Master's in Conservation of Historic Objects from the University of Lincoln, England. He completed his Conservation Fellowship at the Ancient Agora Excavation site and the Stoa of Attalos Museum, American School of Classical Studies, Athens, Greece, and is a member of AIC.

Toby

Toby is a true craftsman and serves as a conservation technician for BRH. His skillsets are utilized to assist in many of our projects. He is a gunsmith, has over 20 years of experience in the trades, and is a competent mason. Toby also has a CDL and was a crane operator before joining our team. He performs lifts and rigging on our macro objects during treatment while at our facility.

Carol

Carol serves as textile conservator for BRH. She has a bachelor of Fine Art degree and received her training in textile conservation from the Harpers Ferry Center in West Virginia.  She regularly performs a variety of treatments on rugs, wool, cotton and silk objects, including flags, hats, uniform coats. Many of her treatments include custom fabricated mounts and inserts. Carol has been involved in many collections moves and re-housing projects and is a member of AIC.

Brandon

Brandon is a conservation technician at BRH that specializes in historic finishes, decorative plasters, stone polishing and stabilization methods. His undergraduate was in Divinity/Church History, is also a member of AIC, and has certifications in resurfacing of stone and marble carvings and historic plaster stabilization and restoration techniques.

John

John serves as a Lead Project Manager and Conservator for BRH. He has a vast knowledge of architecture and building material. He plays an essential role in all historic preservation related projects and treatments. John has a Bachelor’s Degree in Science in Urban, Rural & Environmental Planning, a Master’s Degree of Arts in Historic Preservation, and is a member of AIC.

Britta

Britta works as a conservator at BRH. She has over 20 years of conservation and restoration experience. She studied and graduated after 3 years at the Städtische Berufsschule für Farbe und Gestaltung in Munich, Germany. Her training was in a conservation, decorative painting, studying the history of materials, and traditional techniques of decorative and applied arts.  She’s worked on a variety of architectural elements and decorative finishes within churches, castles, historic buildings and assists in the conservation of paintings and sculpture.