Vanessa Applebaum is an accredited objects conservator, specializing in modern materials and contemporary production methods. Her research interests include the preservation of ephemeral materials and performance, additive manufacturing, and risk-based approaches to conservation practice and collections access.

Vanessa is a graduate of the University of Virginia and completed postgraduate degrees in the history of Byzantine art and in objects conservation at the Courtauld Institute of Art and University College London, respectively. She is the founder of the Institute of Conservation's Modern Materials Network and is an associate member of the American Institute for Conservation.