Unit 4 Outcome 3 — Conservation: Presentation & Care Study Notes

Roles & Responsibilities in Displaying Artworks

• CURATOR

  • Determines exhibition theme & curatorial rationale (the guiding “story” or argument)

  • Chooses artworks; develops check-lists; negotiates loans

  • Writes labels, wall panels, catalogue essays → educates public

  • VAMPIRE acronym often used to remember duties:

  • Vision = intention, story, connection

  • Acquire = gather, collect, own, borrow

  • Maintain = care for, look after

  • Present = show, layout, display

  • Relationship = ideas, connection, feel

  • Educate = inform, teach, explain

• EXHIBITION DESIGNER

  • Converts curatorial concept into 3-D plan

  • Considers: themes, artist intention, colour palette, scale, lighting, sight-lines, audience flow, health & safety, accessibility, branding/marketing

  • Decides precise placement of didactics & labels

  • Collaborates closely with conservators to ensure environmental safety

• CONSERVATOR

  • Preservation (preventive conservation) & restoration (interventive treatment)

  • Writes condition reports; oversees handling, storage, transport

  • Monitors exhibition conditions (temperature, humidity, light) & pest management

  • Provides specialist advice to all staff

Conservation as a Profession

• NGV facts

  • 33 people in NGV Conservation Department

  • Collection ≈ 80 000 objects; 40 000 are works on paper

  • Specialist divisions: Objects, Fashion & Textiles, Furniture, Paper & Photography, Painting (includes pigment analysis)

• Qualification pathway

  • University of Melbourne: Master of Cultural Materials Conservation (course code MC-CULMC)

  • Taught at the Grimwade Centre – state-of-the-art lab, links to 30 Uni collections

  • Research partners in Australia, China, East Timor, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, UK, USA

Key Terminology

• Conservator – trained professional maintaining & restoring artworks

• Conservation – all actions that minimise deterioration OR repair damage

• Preservation – preventive actions to keep artworks safe (often used interchangeably with conservation)

• Presentation – the visible installation: hanging, framing, lighting

• Preventive Conservation – control environment, storage, pests etc. to stop damage before it occurs

• Restorative Conservation – interventive treatment that returns object closer to original appearance while retaining as much original material as possible

Why Conservation & Care Matter

• Protects cultural memory & monetary value

• Honors artists’ original choices & techniques (e.g.
  pigment composition studies at NGV)

• Ensures safe loans; maintains reputation of lending institutions

• Ethical guideline: treatments should be reversible wherever possible to allow future conservators to retreat with better methods

• Balance between appearance & material integrity must be carefully weighed; no hasty decisions

Material Categories & Sensitivity

• Organic (animal/plant): wood, cloth, paper, leather, skin → highly reactive to environment

• Inorganic: stone, glass, metal, clay → more stable but can still corrode or crack

• Composite: mix of both; treat according to most sensitive component first

Practical Example – Student Oil on MDF Board

• Risks

  • MDF is porous; can warp with fluctuating RH; edges chip easily

  • Oil paint layer can crack or embrittle if substrate moves

• Preventive actions

  • Work only in controlled indoor temp; avoid direct sun & water

  • Store upright in racks; support board when moving

  • Maintain environment 18-20^{\circ}\text{C} & 45-55\% RH

  • Use proper brushes, clean palettes to minimise paint waste & keep colours pure

Environmental Standards (International / Australian Museums)

Temperature

• Recommended set-point 20\pm2^{\circ}\text{C}

• Excess heat (e.g. 40 °C) → organic expansion, wax softening (Rebecca Stevenson Sweet Shell example), embrittlement

• Low temp → contraction; water expansion if frozen → cracking

• Large institutions use BAS (Building Automated System) / digital data-loggers; smaller galleries may rely on portable thermohygrographs

Relative Humidity (RH)

• Standard 50\%\pm5\%

• >65 %: mould, fungi, metal corrosion, adhesives re-activate

• <35 %: desiccation, brittleness, splitting of organics

• Display cases or microclimates reduce RH fluctuations (e.g. Dorothy Cross Finger Crab in sealed vitrine)

Lighting

• Damage is cumulative & irreversible (fading, embrittlement, yellowing)

• Light types measured:

  • Visible (lux) – lux-meter

  • UV radiation (µW/lm) – UV monitor

Recommended maxima in AUS public galleries

• Mitigation: UV-filter film on windows, curtains, LED or fibre-optic lighting, time-switches, rotation system 1 : 3 (e.g. 1 month display → 3 months rest; works on paper max 6 months on display)

Storage & Handling

• Paintings: slide-out wire racks

• Works on paper: Solander boxes (acid-free, light-proof)

• Sculpture/objects: custom crates with inert foams; birds-eye view example of NGV decorative art storage box

• Shelving & crating must allow air-flow, support weight evenly

Condition Reports

• Concise but comprehensive record at every stage (arrival, display, departure)

• Notes: dimensions, materials, techniques, previous restorations, current damage, photographs, diagrams

• Used by lenders, insurers, conservators, curators to make decisions

Instruments & Tech

• Thermohygrograph / hydrothermograph – paper-chart recorder for temp & RH (MGA example)

• BAS sensors – networked white boxes (NGV)

• Lux-meters; UV monitors

• Microscopes, X-ray, FTIR, SEM for pigment/binder analysis

Gallery Types & Conservation Commitment

• PUBLIC (e.g. NGV, MAPh)

  • Mission: protect for future generations → highest standards, follow international guidelines (ICOM)

• COMMERCIAL

  • Short-term display for sale → moderate standards, budget constraints

• ALTERNATIVE ART SPACES

  • Pop-up, artist-run → minimal budgets; focus on presentation over long-term preservation, but still apply basic measures

Ethical / Philosophical Considerations

• Conservation decisions involve stakeholders: artist (if living), community, owners

• Must document all interventions; prefer minimal intervention

• Strive for balance between aesthetic legibility & retaining historical evidence of age/use

Real-World Engagement & Continuing Learning

• NGV YouTube “Conservation Stories & Perspectives” playlist: frame conservation, KAWS – Gone, colonial paintings, The Field Revisited, Modigliani exhibition

• Encourages students to observe real treatments & hear conservators’ viewpoints

Quick Reference Numerical Summary

• Collection under NGV care: ≈80 000 objects (half on paper)

• Staff in NGV Conservation: 33

• International standards

  • T = 20\pm2^{\circ}\text{C}

  • RH = 50\%\pm5\%

  • Lux limits: 50 / 250 / 300 depending on material

  • UV limits: 30 µW/lm (sensitive) / 75 µW/lm (less sensitive)

• Rotation ratio: 1 : 3

Study Tips & Connections

• Link these principles to Unit 3 presentation requirements (lighting calculations, mounting methods)

• Compare preventive vs restorative case studies to cement understanding

• Use VAMPIRE acronym to memorise curator duties for essay questions

• Practise writing a brief condition report for a household object to internalise format

Pest control

• Good housekeeping in galleries

• meaning No food, No beverage in gallery spaces

• an Integrated Pest management (IPM) ensures that the presence of pests is regularly monitored and recorded

• This proactive approach minimizes the risk of infestations and promotes a healthy environment for both artworks and visitors.

• If NGV is exhibiting wood works they will usually freeze them as it kills any insects that live in the wood.

• pest treatment are generally undertaken on site for new artworks as of the bio-security obligations under the quarantine act 1908

• the conservation department uses low temps freezing temps for..

• Humans have hair, dust oil and threads from clothing can cause small abrasions to the work

• layered filtration system to control pollution

• Thus, it's essential to handle all artworks with care, utilising gloves and appropriate transport methods to minimize contact. Additionally, regular monitoring and preventive measures should be implemented to ensure the longevity and integrity of the collection.

Transport and handling

• a dolly is used to transport

• gloves are always acid free

• tasks handling an artwork is restricted such as technicians, curators, and conservators

• appropriate packing system are specially designed for each artwork

• galleries aim to have the bet condition for the artwork in transit including temp, humidity, light, pollution and pest control

Mounting & framing photographs

• poor quality mounting and framing materials is the no.1 cause of damage on photographs

• acidic wood pulp mounts and animal glue used to mount photographs to top discolouration

• mounting materials acid free, smooth, free from lignin, sulphur and peroxides

• photographs should be attached to a backboard using mylar corners and acryllic adhesive to ensure they remain secure without causing further damage.