The Gallery Is Having Technical Difficulties
The newly renovated Art Gallery of Hamilton (AGH) opened its doors to the public commencing with a celebrating gala that included the likes of comedian Martin Short and Tony Valeri, L-MP of Hamilton Mountain late last week.
As an art student many years ago, to satisfy my degree I had to go to various art institutes in the U.S. such as the Detroit Institute of Arts, Chicago Institute of Arts, Toledo Museum of Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Since my focus was on the African influence on modern artists of the late twentieth/early twenty-first century, I was in an art historian's heaven among the incredible exhibits these galleries offered.
Why the U.S? Well, anyone of these galleries offered more in the size and quality of their collections to the combined collections of the National Gallery in Ottawa and the Art Gallery of Ontario. Many of those works in the U.S galleries included ancient roman statues and older Renaissance paintings.
As an art student many years ago, to satisfy my degree I had to go to various art institutes in the U.S. such as the Detroit Institute of Arts, Chicago Institute of Arts, Toledo Museum of Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Since my focus was on the African influence on modern artists of the late twentieth/early twenty-first century, I was in an art historian's heaven among the incredible exhibits these galleries offered.
Why the U.S? Well, anyone of these galleries offered more in the size and quality of their collections to the combined collections of the National Gallery in Ottawa and the Art Gallery of Ontario. Many of those works in the U.S galleries included ancient roman statues and older Renaissance paintings.
In such gallery/museums there are some technical designs to observe. The main two - humidity and air temperature have to be kept at certain levels so as not to damage the collection. In each room there is usually a gage to monitor them, which is connected to a main control that can keep the rooms at constant levels.
I learned about these monitoring systems having had some training in architecture and ventilation systems, including a course in museum studies that included explanations from preparators while obtaining my degree. Most art should be kept at low temps - especially older pieces to preserve their condition.
The AGH was designed as museum quality. Having given my 'qualifications' as a preamble I now want to make a critique of the new AGH.
I went there to enjoy the exhibits as I had waited a long time for the construction to finish. I wanted to see if the work of Raphael Caterini a boxer and Hamilton native had been proudly displayed as it was years ago in the AGH. I had known him in art school at the University of Windsor when he was finishing his masters degree and the thought of seeing his work brought back memories of those times - and an opportunity I turned down to be his model.
Snapping back to reality after meandering the spaces not finding Caterini's work - I needed to use the privy. The new gallery 3 days old had seen an overflow of their toilets and staff were busily mopping up water that had flowed out into the hallway. This increase in the humidity levels should have been 'The Test' to see if the gallery's ventilation system was working properly. But these are just minor details.
They weren't. Levels of humidity were very high, uncomfortable and noticeable by members of the public knowing nothing about the construction. The temperature were inconsistent in many of the exhibit rooms throughout the gallery. Some rooms were appropriately cool, some were too cool and some were way too warm. On the whole it was warm enough to parch the mouth but not even the water fountains worked.
I did look for the familiar humidity and temperature boxes that I am accustomed to when in other galleries, I did not see any in the exhibit rooms in the AGH. I did see the security cameras, but no monitoring devices. I give the designers the benefit of the doubt by perhaps not noticing where they actually were or perhaps they were designed to be 'kept out of sight'.
It's a lot of money - millions of dollars of it - to waste on renovations that does not have the proper atmospheric controls working to maintain the quality of the collection, which is quite substantial and beautiful.
Something is wrong with this picture.
I learned about these monitoring systems having had some training in architecture and ventilation systems, including a course in museum studies that included explanations from preparators while obtaining my degree. Most art should be kept at low temps - especially older pieces to preserve their condition.
The AGH was designed as museum quality. Having given my 'qualifications' as a preamble I now want to make a critique of the new AGH.
I went there to enjoy the exhibits as I had waited a long time for the construction to finish. I wanted to see if the work of Raphael Caterini a boxer and Hamilton native had been proudly displayed as it was years ago in the AGH. I had known him in art school at the University of Windsor when he was finishing his masters degree and the thought of seeing his work brought back memories of those times - and an opportunity I turned down to be his model.
Snapping back to reality after meandering the spaces not finding Caterini's work - I needed to use the privy. The new gallery 3 days old had seen an overflow of their toilets and staff were busily mopping up water that had flowed out into the hallway. This increase in the humidity levels should have been 'The Test' to see if the gallery's ventilation system was working properly. But these are just minor details.
They weren't. Levels of humidity were very high, uncomfortable and noticeable by members of the public knowing nothing about the construction. The temperature were inconsistent in many of the exhibit rooms throughout the gallery. Some rooms were appropriately cool, some were too cool and some were way too warm. On the whole it was warm enough to parch the mouth but not even the water fountains worked.
I did look for the familiar humidity and temperature boxes that I am accustomed to when in other galleries, I did not see any in the exhibit rooms in the AGH. I did see the security cameras, but no monitoring devices. I give the designers the benefit of the doubt by perhaps not noticing where they actually were or perhaps they were designed to be 'kept out of sight'.
It's a lot of money - millions of dollars of it - to waste on renovations that does not have the proper atmospheric controls working to maintain the quality of the collection, which is quite substantial and beautiful.
Something is wrong with this picture.
posted by HR at 5/30/2005 08:21:00 a.m.
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