George Boston (1942 – 2020)

It is with sadness that we share news of the passing in UK of George Boston, on 9th December 2020. We send our sincere condolences to his loved ones and colleagues.

It is important to highlight George Boston's many contributions to sound and audiovisual archives and his longstanding support of the IASA community, having joined IASA in 1985. He was a boon to sound and audiovisual archiving and his commitment to the work of this community was outstanding. He played critical roles over the years with UNESCO initiatives, building bridges with IASA, as well as with CCAAA partners FIAF and FIAT/IFTA. He was Chair of UNESCO’s Technical Co-ordination Committee (TCC) when it was founded and he represented IASA many times at conferences and as part of various initiatives. His work navigating the transition to the digital age was important and his leadership necessary. In 1995 George conducted a Survey of Endangered Audiovisual Carriers on behalf of IASA’s Technical Committee for UNESCO. This research affirmed that the deterioration of materials in the carriers and the obsolescence of the recording and reproduction technology are the common causes of this loss.

To read more about George:

In 2011, he received the IASA Award of Recognition for his many contributions and achievements.

Also read the statement issued by UNESCO’s Memory of the World Preservation Sub-Committee.

George asked good questions and was eager to seek meaningful answers. He will be missed by the IASA community and the field of sound and audiovisual archiving.

Rest well, sir.

Tre Berney
IASA President