UNESCO International Safeguarding Campaign for the

Hue World Heritage Site

by Dr. Heather Peters UNESCO consultant

in co-operation with Hue Monuments Conservation Centre

UNESCO PRINCIPAL REGIONAL OFFICE FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC BANGKOK 1995

.

.

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS & EXHIBITION Hue, Vietnam

Heather A. Peters, UNESCO Consultant

The workshop will be held three times per week, three hours each session for four weeks. Two times each week the entire class will meet for a lecture. On Friday of each week, the museum group will meet to begin planning on the up-coming exhibi- tion in the recently restored museum. The workshop will begin April 5 and end April 28. The purpose of the workshop is to introduce the staff to the goals and objectives of museums, especially as realized through exhibitions. It will also intro- duce specific techniques used to produce an exhibition. Finally, in the smaller workshop we will discuss the particular situation of the Long An Palace and what is the best way to create an exhibition inside this palace structure. Other buildings within the Hue Monuments Complex will be mentioned.

5 April 1995

7 April 1995

10 April

12 April 1995

14 April 1995

17 April 1995

19 April 1995

21 April 1995

24 April 1995

26 April 1995

April 24, 25, storerooms.

Introduction to Museums and the History of Museums

The Organization and Structure of Museums

Over-all Introduction to Exhibition Planning

Object Selection and Preparation Labels: content and production

Workshop for Museum Group only

Techniques of Display: Display Cases, Choosing a Colour. The Museum Environment

Installation of Objects Handling Lighting

Workshop for Museum Group only

Security and Fire Prevention Role of Guardians

Education and Interpretation in the Museum Who is your visitor and what does he or she expect?

26 6 28 Workshop for Museum group only inside the

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS 6r EXHIBITION

Lecture I 5 April 1995

WHAT IS A MUSEUM?

One of the first questions we want to ask ourselves, is just

what exactly is a museum? It is very fashionable to create a

museum these days, and everyone, everywhere wants to do it.

However, do we really understand what is a museum and what is the .

responsibility of a museum?

Many people have defined museums, and these definitions can

be as simple as "a building or space within a building, signifi-

cant for preservation and/or exhibitions of collections. But

this very simple definition of a museum does not really tell us

about all the things a museum does. A museum is more than a

building with exhibitions of collections. This definition could

also describe a private collection in a person's home. ICOM

(International Council of Museums) defines a museum as any perma-

nent institution which conserves and displays for purposes of

study, education and enjoyment collections of objects of cultur-

al or scientific significance. This definition is much better,

because it emphasizes the-fact that museums are permanent insti-

tutions, and that important functions of museums include conser-

vation of objects and education.

A museum is an institution or building which houses, pre-

serves, exhibits and researches collections of objects. In

America today we believe that the educ_at.i-o-n&f part of museums is

very important. Museums should help us to learn more about

ourselves and other people as well as to learn to appreciate

3

beautiful things that people in the past, or present, created.

For our purposes we will define a museum as a permanent,

public,- educational institution which cares for collections

systematically. This definition requires further explanation.

By saying the museum is permanent, we mean that the existence of

the museum does not depend upon who its employees may be at any

moment. It has a life of its own. By public, we mean that the

museum is not only open to the public, but that it exists for the

public good. This concept was not always part of museums, as we

will see below when we look at the history of museums.

By educational, we mean that the museum exists for the

purpose of providing education, inspiration and aesthetic enrich-

ment for all people. The museum is also a non-profit institution.

This means that its goal is not to create commercial profit for

itself. For the educational use of collections, research is

essential and requires such facilities as a reference library and

a study room. In museums in the United States and in many in

Europe, the library is open to scholars, students and intellectu-

als who are not part of the museum.

Finally, when we say that a museum cares for its collections .

systematically, we mean that the museum provides thorough docu-

mentation of its objects with good and permanent records (regis-

tration and cataloguing): it provides the best possible conserva-

tion and preservation of its collections: and it stores them in a

systematic manner under the best possible conditions.

We might also add, that although most people think of a

museum as being a building of some sort, and in fact, most mu-

seums ar-e inside buildings. However, this is not always the

case. For example, in the United States there is a historic town

called Williamsburg where early Englishmen settled in America.

Today, the entire town is a kind of "living museum" where ar-

chaeological research together with restoration has created a

series of buildings which are fitted with the furniture and

objects used during the time it was built.

Now let us turn to a review of the history of museums which

will help us to understand why museums are the way they are

today.

HISTORY OF MUSEUMS IN THE WEST

Museums basically developed because people all over the

world like to collect things that please or fascinate them. It

was the collections of rich people in the past that eventually

became the foundation of some of the world's most famous museums

today.

What is the origin of the word museum? It is a Latin word

which comes from the Greek word mouseion. In classical times

(ancient Greek times) it referred to a temple dedicated to the

Muses. The muses were nine young, beautiful goddesses who watched

over the welfare of the epic, music, love, poetry, oratory,

history, tragedy, comedy, dance and astronomy. However, in 290

B.C. a different kind of mouseion was created by Ptolemy I in the

Greek city of Alexandria in Egypt. At this time North Africa and

Egypt were part of the Greek Empire created by Alexander the

Great. Ptolemy I established a center of learning dedicated to

the nine muses. It consisted of a lecture hall, an eating hall,

a court, a cloister, a garden, an astronomical observatory,

5

living quarters, a library and collections of biological and

cultural objects. This center of learning lasted until the 3rd

century A.D. It was primarily a school for philosophers, poets

and mathematicians, a kind of institute for advanced studies for

scholars supported by the state, but its collections probably

embraced all the museum fields we recognize today.

The Greeks and Romans also possessed collections of objects.

The Greeks kept their objects valued for their beauty, historic

or religious significance in their temples. The Romans, however,

displayed their collections, often paintings and sculpture, in

public gardens, the baths, theatres as well as temples. In this

sense, the Greeks and Romans made their collections public.

However, some rich Roman general and politicians and members of

the aristocracy also kept collections of statues and paintings in

their villas. This practice marks the beginning of the private

collection which the collector might show to people upon special

request.

During classical times the people already paid attention to

the conservation and preservation of their collections. The

methods they created were very crude and primitive because the

science of conservation did not yet exist. For example, the

Greeks made attempts to preserve votive shields by coating them

with pitch to prevent rust, and they placed vats of oil at the

feet of some sculptures as an attempt to reduce dryness.

It is interesting to note that in Southeast Asian Theravada

Buddhist countries, for example in Thailand and Laos, temples

also served as repositories for precious objects. In order to

earn merit, people brought objects of value to the temple. In at

6

least one instance, for example Wat PO Veal in Battambang, Cambo-

dia, the collection became an actual museum which opened to the

public during the 1960's. The temple belonging to the king in

Laos also housed a large collection of Buddha images donated by

the faithful. This temple in Vientiane is also now open to the

public as a museum.

In the west, after the Age of the Greeks and Romans, the

museum idea basically disappeared. Only in some important

churches and abbeys do we find some objects being collected and

preserved.

It was only with the Renaissance (beginning in the 15th

century) in Europe that people began to once again patronize the

arts and to appreciate objects from the past. During the 17th

and 18th centuries private collections of art and curiosities of

art and nature became widespread among the rich, and it is these

collections which lay the foundations for the development of

museums in the late 18th and 19th centuries. These collections

were kept locked up by their owners and only a few people were

given the privilege to see them.

Consequently, the idea of a "public" museum was rather late.

The first was a university museum in 1671 at Oxford University.

Then, during the 18th century some,of the world's great museums

opened their doors, for example, the British Museum in 1753 and

the Palace of the Louvre in 1793.

But these were still not true public museums. Initially the

public was selected from a small group of people. At the British

Museum, for example, people who wanted to see the museum had to .

apply for permission many weeks in advance. Only 30 people each

7

day were permitted to visit the museum, and they did so in groups

of 15. They were only allowed to stay two hours for each visit

and they had to stay together as a group. As late as 1800,

persons desiring to visit the British Museum had to present their

credentials to the office; if accepted, they then had to wait a

further two weeks for an admission ticket. It was only during

the 19th century that museums began to become more democratic.

In this regard, American museums led the way in opening their

doors to a larger group of people and stressing the importance of

the educational function they museum. Museums started later in

America. However, unlike European museums which catered to the

scholarly tastes of the educated elite, American museums focused

on educating the broader public. By 1900 American museums were

becoming centers of education and public enlightenment, and they

continue to be so today.

There are many different kinds of museums today, for exam-

ple, art museums, history museums, natural history museums, and

science museums. Among these, the art museum and the natural

history museum are two of the oldest types and both have their

origins in the private collections of the rich.

Art Museums

THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF MUSEUMS

The collector was the force that made art museums possible.

Usually a prince, nobleman, high clergyman, rich merchant, or

banker, he purchased or commissioned paintings, sculptures, and

other beautiful objects. These collections, which began in

Italy, France, England and Germany during the 15th and 16th

centuries reflect the universal love of beauty by mankind.

The Renaissance made Italy the center of the art world. The

businessmen and bankers who lived in Florence and Venice support-

ed painters and sculptors. They also collected ancient sculp-

tures from Greece and Rome and other objects from the past. In

Rome, the pope competed with the rich merchants elsewhere in

Italy to collect a vast array of art and antiquities.

During the 17th century Charles I of England amassed an

astonishingly rich collection of paintings. Around the same

time, the French royal family, as well as high ranking church

officials, began its own collection of art. And in the 18th

century, Catherine the Great of Russia, collected huge quantities

of art which she housed in a special building she constructed,

the Hermitage, one of the world's great museums today.

During the 17th and 18th centuries these private collections

developed slowly into museums. Initially, if you wanted to see

the works collected by a particular individual, you had to pay

money to the servants of these rich people in order to get per-

mission to see the collections.

The Palace of the Louvre in Paris, opened to the public

during the French Revolution in 1793, may be regarded as the

first great national art museum. Its collections, before the

French Revolution, belonged to the royal family. Afterward, it

was considered art of the nation which belonged to the all the

people.

The 19th century is considered by a golden age for art

museums. Not only did the Louvre continue to grow and expand,

but England opened the National Gallery in 1824 and Germany

9

opened up scores of museums in Berlin and Munich. The National

Gallery in England is unique in that it is one of the only Euro-

pean museums not to have grown from a.collection of royal art.

It began with 38 paintings purchased by the nation upon the death

of a private collector.

In the United States, several major museums also developed

during the 19th century. There the first major museum was the

Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City which opened in 1870

followed by the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston in the same year.

In the 19th century as well, directors and curators in art

museums began to display their works of art in a logical manner.

Paintings were arranged chronologically and according to artist.

In the earlier museums, this kind of display was not always used.

In one early European museum, paintings were arranged according

to size!

Today art museums are sometimes criticized because they do

not have the strong educational message found in other kinds of

museums. They certainly tell us something about history, but

their main purpose is not to educate about history, but to show

people the beautiful things that man has created. However, in

many art museums today this criticism has been met. Many art

museums offer educational programs both for the public and spe-

cialized scholars. For example, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

sponsors programs for visiting school children such as special

story hours on Saturday mornings as well as a radio program for

handicapped children. Some museums offer courses in art train-

ing. As early as the 19th century the Louvre began a series of

public lectures sponsored by a patron of the arts. These lec-

10

.

tures have evolved into a university called the Ecole de Louvre

which trains students in art history. They continue to hold

public lectures.

Natural History Museums

These museums grew out of medieval and renaissance

(12th-16th centuries) collections of curiosities, i.e. odd things

that people collected from different parts of the world as well

as strange objects which they found where they lived. They

believed that many of these things had magical or medicinal

powers.

With the development of natural science, i.e. zoology,

botany, and geology, the content and function of these collec-

tions began to change. People now collected samples of ancient

and modern rocks, plants, animals in order to learn more about

the world in which they lived,

By the 19th century natural science was a very popular

subject in Europe and these collections, much like private art

collections, developed into museums open to the public; they were

also places where scientists did research. Because these museums

were interested in the world around us, some of the collections

also included things which told us about man both in the present

and the past.

The first natural history museum opened it doors at Oxford

University in 1683. This is the Ashmolean Museum. Today the

original collections of preserved birds, animals, fish, insects,

minerals and a mixture of paintings, weapons, costumes, coins,

etc. has been dispersed into other departments at Oxford. The

11

current Ashmolean Museum which you can see today in Oxford was

founded in 1894 and is a museum of art and archaeology.

The British Museum, one of the great museums of the world ,

founded in 1753, combined a national library with a museum. It's

initial collection based upon natural history gradually expanded

to contain antiquities and ethnographic objects as well.

Some of the greatest natural history museums are in America.

One of the first was the Smithsonian in Washington D-C., founded

in 1835 by a gift from James Smithson, an Englishmen who was

keenly interested in science, but who had never visited the

United States. For some reason he left a request for money to be

sent to the United States government at his death to create,

under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment

for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men. In 1835 a

surprised US congress received a shipment of 110 bags of gold.

After discussion as to how best to meet Mr. Smithson's request,

in 1846 the US congress created the Smithsonian Institution which

began as a museum which housed science materials, a chemical

laboratory,library, art gallery and lecture rooms. Today the

Smithsonian Institution is a vast complex of different kinds of

museums and research labs. It contains more than 65 million

objects, about 80% of which are in the National Museum of Natural

History.

Other natural history museums in America created at this

time are the American Museum of Natural History founded in New

York in 1869 and the Field Museum of Natural History in 1893.

All three of these natural history museums had and still have

very active field research programs.

12

Natural history museums emphasize research. Their collec-

tions were formed from the many expeditions the museums sponsored

to many parts of the world in order to collect scientific samples

of plants, animals, rocks and fossils. They also collected

ethnographic artifacts as well as sponsored archaeological exca-

vations. Most of the people who work in natural history museums

research the materials brought back by these expeditions. The

displays in natural history museum were originally arranged by

scientific classification. This approach was directed at the

scientist and not at the general public.

Anthropology Mus.eum

This is a special kind of natural history museum which

emphasizes the history of man, in the past and in the present.

Anthropology is a Greek word meaning the study of man (anthro=man

and pology=study). American Anthropology is divided into four

fields of study: Physical Anthropology which is the study of the

evolution of man: Archaeology which is the study of man in the

past using the remains of his material culture found by excava-

tion; and Cultural Anthropology which is the study of the culture

and societies of man all over the world; and Linguistics which is

the study of language. The information is obtained by using a

research methodology called ethnography.

Ethnographic and archaeological objects are often found in

natural history museums and sometimes in art museums, but there

are some museums which are devoted to these materials, for exam-

ple: The University Museum: The Musee de 1'Homme in Paris; The

13

National Museum of Ethnography in Leiden. The museum which is my

base in the United States, The University Museum, is an anthropo-

logical museum.

All anthropological museums carry out expeditions to re-

search man, either contemporary man or past man. These museums

exhibit the objects brought back from either the ethnographic or

archaeological fieldwork. They are displayed in such a way as to

show the museum viewer in the cultural context of the objects.

This display method is different from the art museum. In the art

museum the objects are exhibited so that the visitor can best

appreciate their beauty, and their aesthetic value. They are

frequently displayed alone. In the Anthropological museum, even

though some individual objects may be beautiful, the curators

believe that the object should be displayed in such a way so that

the museum visitor better understands the culture to which the

object belongs and how the object was used.

MUSEUMS OF HISTORY

History museums can either be traditional museums which

introduce the history of a particular place or period. In the

United States there are many old "historical" houses which have

been turned into museums. Or, the museum at Gettysburg tells

Americans about a particular battle in our Civil War which took

place in Gettysburg.

Other history museums are more complex - for example, the

Chinese National History Museum in Beijing uses archaeological

objects to educate people about the history of all of China. The

displays are arranged chronologically. Although some of the

14

artifacts are very beautiful, their main purpose is to explain

the course of history.

However, history museums developed an entirely different

kind of museum and concept of museums. During the late 19th

century in Scandinavia we see the development of outdoor history

museums. Entire outdoor villages were created which illustrated

the different periods in Scandinavian history. Visiting these

outdoor museums combined on a pleasant outing with learning about

ones culture and history.

In the United States the large complex at Colonial Williams-

burg reflects yet another variation on this outdoor, living

history museum. Whereas the Scandinavians moved buildings and

objects to their site, colonial Williamsburg was, in reality, the

capital of 18th century Virginia. In the 20th century people

still lived there, and many of the original buildings still

existed. Archaeologists and historians worked to preserve and

restore the buildings which existed. Archaeologists made excava-

tions to better understand what the site looked like in the 18th

century and to discover other structures. Now about 30 buildings

with carefully furnished interiors (all reflecting the 18th

century) are open to the public. In addition, the staff working

in the museum dress in 18th century clothes and each person is a

specialist in some aspect of 18th century life and history. They

talk to the visitors while visitors are on the site and explain

the different activities which go on there. Archaeologists also

continue to excavate at the site, and their sites become living

site museums where visitors can learn about the techniques of

archaeology and how to interpret what the archaeologists find.

15

CONCLUSIONS

Today we have seen how modern museums have grown out of the

desire of people to collect thing. Collecting objects seems to

part of human nature. Everyone as a child remembers collecting

things, small simple things that they liked, pebbles perhaps or

pretty shells from the beach. It was this passion for collecting

that led to the formation of the great art collections or natural

history collections of the world which, in time, formed the core

of many of the great museums of the world.

Once these collections existed, people naturally wanted to

take care of their collections. With this need began collection

management. Collection management means that people documented

and recorded their collections. They stored them in an orderly

manner in clean conditions. With the advancement of science and

technology, better restoration and conservation techniques were

developed. Private collectors also wanted to know more about

their objects, consequently they researched their collections.

Finally, the pride of having such beautiful treasures re-

sulted in wanting to have other people enjoy them which in turn

gave you, the collector prestige. With this developed the begin-

ning of opening collections to the public, and with this the

formation of museums.

So, we can see the development of the different and import-

ant roles of the museum. The museum's responsibility is to

collect, document and preserve their collections. They have a

responsibility to research their collections and to make the

results available to the public. Sometimes this is through

16

publication, but in a museum, exhibition is the most important

way to educated the public about your collections. To sum up,

the roles of the museum are: collection management, conserva-

tion, research, exhibition, interpretation.

17

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS AND EXHIBITION

LECTURE II 7 April 1995

THE ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT OF MUSEUMS

Before we talk specifically about the organization and

preparation of an exhibition, I want to make sure that you all

understand the organization and management of a museum. This is

important because the different departments in the museum work

together to produce an exhibition and you should understand what

those different parts are.

Most museums cannot be run by one or two people alone. A

museum is made up of different people who are specialists in

different disciplines all of which contribute to running the

museum. Larger museums require not only professionals and

scholars trained to take care of the collection, to research it

and display it, but also people who are good administrators whose

job it is to oversee the running of the museum. A task frequent-

ly overlooked, is that the museum needs a staff to keep the

museum clean.

What are the basic components and parts of a medium-size

museum?

BASIC COMPONENTS OF A MUSEUM

Let us look at the way a medium to large sized museum in

America is organized. This organization may differ in some ways

from the organization in French and English museums, but most of

the responsibilities and positions are the same.

In my discussion I will frequently use The University Museum

at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States as an

19

example because this is the museum with which I am most familiar.

I have been based at The University Museum for over ten years.

The University Museum has about 120 staff members and about 250

volunteers who help with many projects.

The .lIJiffeye-~.$~ &ctions of q .ERI~II~IYI -..~ .~-.--- .-

Most museums have a management structure that includes at

least three major components: Administration, Curation and Opera-

tions. The Administration section of the museum includes: per-

sonnel (the person (or persons) who manages the administrative

needs and affairs): accounting and business; fund-raising: public

relations; the library; publications and membership department.

The Curation section comprises: all curators, registrar's office;

collection management; conservation; and research. The Opera-

tions section consists of: exhibitions; public education: techni-

cal services; and facility management and security. Each of

these sections is staffed with people with very specific qualifi-

cations and experience. Using The University Museum as an exam-

ple. we will now look at the different kinds of professionals,

specialists and trained technicians who work together in a mu-

scum . I will introduce the principle positions and include a

standardized job description recommended by ICOM for some of

them. These descriptions together with their education require-

ments will give you a sense of how specialized museum jobs are in

many museums in the United States, Canada and Europe.

-The Chief Officer of the Museum _--~~~~.-~.- -_~ - .-.- .__. ~_~~~- .._ -_ ..~ _.

The head of the museum is called the Director. He oversees

and is responsible for all operat3irons of the museum. In the

United States and in Western Europe, the museum director is

expected to be a recognized scholar in an area of scholarship

related to the museum, and is also expected to be an administra-

tar. Sometimes these two requirements conflict with each other.

A good scholar may not have the skills to manage a museum, wher-

eas a good administrator will not always fully understand the

scholarly and educational functions of the museum.

In addition, because of his administrative responsibilities,

a museum director often has to put his scholarly activities aside

while he serves as director. Not all scholars wish to do this.

Theoretically, in the United States the Director should not

have to spend a lot of his time raising money. This task should

be done by other persons working in the museum. Again unfor-

tunately, he usually does spend a lot of his time doing this,

rather than devoting his time and energy to managing the museum

and carrying out his own research.

The current Director of The University Museum is an archae-

ologist who excavated in the Near East. He is a new Director who

taught for many years in a Department of Anthropology at a well-

known university. Before this position, he was Director of a

prestigious archaeological research institute which gave him

administrative experience.

A job description suggested by ICOM for a museum director is

as follows: The director provides conceptual leadership through

specialized knowledge of the discipline of the museum and is

responsible for policy-making and funding, planning, organizing,

staffing, directing, and/or supervising and coordinating activi-

ties through the staff. The director is responsible for profes-

sional practices such as acquisition, preservation, research,

21

interpretation, and presentation, and may be responsible for

financial management. All museum positions report directly or

indirectly to the director. His education: advanced degree in an

area of the museum's specialization. Course work and evidence of

participation in museum management and administration is desir-

able. Three years of management experience in a museum or relat-

ed cultural institution is required.

QSiez_ -EG&E Eel at&w to the .!A!* ezS9.r

Secretaries __-

All directors should have at least one secretary to help

with his administrative needs. The director's office of The

University Museum has two secretaries. These are persons trained

in typical office skills: typing, word-processing, filing, being

able to organize files and papers. They also answer the tele-

phone for the Director and arrange his appointments.

Associate Director ____~_~

In medium to large-sized museums there is usually an Asso-

ciate Director. In The University Museum there is one Associate

Director. In the Sackler-Freer Galleries in Washington, D-C.

there are three Associate Directors. Each oversees a particular

group of people or section. One manages all the departments

concerned with business and administration. The second oversees

the departments of exhibition and education and the third manages

the curators, conservation and all research. The Associate

Director (can also be called Vice Director) must have similar

education and experience to the Director. The difference is that

the Associate Director is usually younger and is still getting

experience.

22

.

CURATION EECTIQI'!

Curators - .-

Curators are the persons directly involved in taking care of

the collections. Their responsibilities include inventorying and

cataloging the collections, maintaining them on a daily basis, as

well as researching them, publishing articles about the collec-

tions and planning new exhibitions.

Larger museums have at least one curator for each of its

sections and perhaps an assistant curator as well. For example

in the University Museum there are seven sections which represent

seven different cultural areas. Each section is managed by a

curator, an assistant curator and a keeper. These sections are:

Asia, the Middle East, Egypt, the Americas, the Mediterranean,

Oceania, and Africa. Other museums divide their sections differ-

ently- For example, they may be arranged according to the kind

of object, for example, textiles, bronzes, stone, or ceramics and

they will thus have a curator of textiles, ceramics, or so forth.

Because The University Museum is part of a university and is

associated with the Department of Anthropology, its curators also

teach courses in the Department of Anthropology. Their primary

function in the museum is to research the pieces and create new

exhibitions. The primary function of the keeper is the daily

maintenance of the collection. This system differs from other

museums where daily maintenance of the collections is part of the

responsibility of the curator and assistant curator.

It is interesting to note that in British museums curators

are often called keepers. In the American system, keepers are

23

not the same as curators and their primary responsibility is to

"keep" or take care of the collection on a daily basis. They

make sure the storerooms are in order, pieces are catalogued and

conservation needs are met. They will also answer queries about

the collections. The curators, on the other hand, devote them-

selves to a combination of teaching and research. They research

both the collections and do archaeological and anthropological

fieldwork whose results enhance the collections. They also plan

exhitions.

The Registrar

The Registrar is head of the Registrar's Office. This

person is responsible for recording all the information about the

objects in the museum's collection and for storing this informa-

tion, The Registrar's Office is the central storehouse of all

the information on al-l. the objects in the museum. If you go into

the registrar's office and ask about an object in the museum, the

registrar should be able to tell you exactly where it is in the

museum at that time. Sometimes the object is in the storage

room, sometimes it is the conservation laboratory, sometimes it

is on display in the exhibition galleries and sometimes it has

been borrowed by another museum. The registrar must know.

Otherwise, objects will be lost.

If the collections are small, a museum will need only one

registrar. However, in larger museums, for example, The Univers-

ity Museum, which has more than 1.5 million objects, the regis-

trar's office has with three professionals and three trainee

assistants.

Job Description: The museum registrar is responsible for

24

creating,organizing, and maintaining orderly forms, legal docu-

ments, files, and retrieval systems associated with the follow-

ing: acquisition, accessioning, cataloging, loans, packing,

shipping,inventory, insurance, and storage of the objects. A

museum registrar organizes, documents, and coordinates all as-

pects of borrowing and lending objects, which include respon-

sibility for the handling and/or packing of objects (insurance,

shipping, etc.). The museum registrar organizes data so that

fact and ideas may be usefully extracted. Education: expected to

have a degree in the area of the museum's specialization or in

liberal arts. He or she should have had two years of experience

in a museum registrar's department and must be already knowledge-

able in all aspects of collection management.

~ONSElJQ4~d4’t THE

The conservator works in the conservation department. The

department is made up of people who have been trained in the

science of conservation of objects. The conservators are respon-

sible for taking care of the objects when the objects become

“sick” or damaged. These people are professionals who have

completed a university degree, often in archaeology or art his-

tory, and then continue their training in conservation and resto-

ration. Their training includes a knowledge of science, espe-

cially Chemistry, as well as conservation and restoration tech-

niques. They are more than technicians and also do research on

the science and theory of conservation.

Some museums are large enough to have more than one conser-

vator. Some museums are small and cannot afford to have even

one. The latter will have to send their objects out to a conser-

25

vator if their objects require treatment. The University Museum

has two full-time conservators. Sometimes when there is too much

work for two people to do, the museum will hire part-time conser-

vators to help with a particular task, for example, preparing

objects for an exhibition.

It is crucial for museums to recognize the importance of

scientific conservation techniques which are used not only to

restore objects, but to treat them regularly in order to prolong

their life.

A job description of a conservator is very complex. The

conservator, on a scientific basis, examines museum objects,

works to prevent their deterioration, and treats and repairs them

when necessary- The conservator sees that objects are fumigated,

kept at proper levels of temperature and relative humidity, and

protected from air pollutants and exposure to damaging light

intensities and wavelengths. The conservator usually has the

specialized knowledge to treat a certain class of objects, such

as paintings, sculpture, textiles, ceramics, glass, metals,

furniture and wood work, books and art on paper, and should know

where to refer materials that cannot be treated in the museum

laboratory. Education: the conservator must have graduate-level

training in a recognized conservation program of two or more

years in the theory, principles and practice of conservation,

including one year's training in the principles of general mate-

rial conservation and a minimum of one year's training or intern-

ship in a specialized field,

I wish to repeat, conservators re very important to the

work of the museum and museums should not underestimate the need

26

to hire a scientifically trained conservator as soon as possible,

ADMINISTRATION~~S~~~.I()1J __--___-_--

Administrative Staff

An administrative staff is important for taking care of the

many administrative matters of a museum. This staff can be large

or small depending on the needs of the museum. As I mentioned

above, the Director needs at least one or two secretaries to help

with his correspondence, answer phone calls and to keep his and

thus, the museum's affairs in order, However, as museums grow

larger, it may be necessary to create an entire administrative

office with a manager, accountant and secretaries to manage the

museum and to take care of its money. The University Museum has

such an office with a staff of approximately six people who

specialize in financial issues, grants, projects and other admin-

istrative matters.

The museum should maintain a collections of books related to

the research of the objects in the museum. All primary documents

concerning the museum, such as letters, photographs and other

materials pertaining to the objects, should also be preserved.

Sometimes these kinds of materials are preserved in a special

department called Archives. The University Museum maintains a

library which forms part of the entire university system. The

books in the library are about archaeology and anthropology.

There is a full--time professional staff of three persons, all of

whom attended graduate training in Library School. In addition,

graduate students work in the library part-time.

The University Museum also has an Archives where primary

27

documents concerning the history of the Museum, such as letters,

and photographs, are preserved in the best environmental condi-

tions possible.

OPERATIONS SECTION

The -Exhibit Designer

In medium to large size museums there are Exhibition Depart-

ments whose sole function is to work with the curators and educa-

tional department to translate their ideas into a visual format.

This is the department which organizes the installation of the

exhibitions in the museum. At The University Museum there is one

Head Designer together with several assistants, some of whom are

part-time art students. The staff consists of people who have

drawing skills, graphic design skills, carpentry skills and some

experience with lighting. They must all be willing to learn

about archaeology and anthropology in order to create exhibitions

which not only look aesthetically pleasing, but which express the

meaning and educational content desired by the curator. The

designer and his staff work closely with the curators to produce

the new exhibitions and renovate galleries. The role of the

designer is to communicate the educational meaning of the objects

in an aesthetically attractive way. In order to accomplish this

goal he relies on the curator for understanding the meaning of

the objects and for understanding the story the curator wants to

tell to the visitor. But the curator relies on the designer in

order to make the exhibit as beautiful as possible. Inmany

small museums the curator himself puts up the exhibits.

A job description for an exhibit designer is: The exhibit

designer translates curatorial and educational staff ideas into

28

permanent, temporary, or circulating exhibitions through render-

ings, drawings, scale models, lighting, and arrangement of ob-

jects and signage. The exhibit designer may supervise the pro-

duction of exhibitions and have administrative responsibilities.

The exhibit designer should have a degree or certificate in

graphic design, industrial design, commercial art, or communica-

tion arts, or in architecture, interior design, theatre design or

studio arts with course work in typography and media use.

The Educator ----___.- -

The Educator heads the Education Department and is the

person in the museum whose primary task is to create educational

programs to reach more effectively the museum visitors. Often

there is an entire department devoted to this mission. The

Education Department in The University Museum is very active. A

large percentage of the visitors to the museum are school child-

ren whose teachers arrange for them to visit the museum as a

group during the school day. The children will be introduced to

selected parts of the museum by a volunteer guide who has been

trained to explain the museum to children. The Education Depart-

ment also provides guiding and tours for adults. Tours of par-

ticular galleries in the museum take place on a scheduled basis,

or can be arranged.

At The University Museum, the Education Department works

also closely with the Public Events Department which provides

additional, special programs and events for adults, including a

public lecture series about archaeology and anthropology given by

the museum's curators and visiting scholars.

A job description of the head of the education department

29

is: the museum educator develops, implements, evaluates, and/or

supervises the museum's educational programs with the goal of

enhancing public access to and understand and interpretation of

the collections. and resources. The programs, which may employ a

variety of media and techniques, may encompass education exhibi-

tions, printed materials such as self-guides, demonstrations,

classes, tours, films.lectures, special events, workshops, teach-

er-training programs, school, or other outreach programs as well

as docent-guide training. The educator may have administrative

responsibilities. The educator should have an advanced degree in

education, and knowledge of an area of the museum's specializa-

tion.

The Public Events Coordinator organizes special activities

which fall outside the Education Department. For example, each

new exhibit has a special party to celebrate its opening. It is

also accompanied by a series of lectures and events such as films

and music performances. The Public Events Coordinator also

organizes other events during the year, special culture days,

special lecture series, etc.

The Public Relations Special--t

The Public Relations specialist works together with the

local newspapers and TV and radio stations in order to publicize

the events at the museum or to announce new discoveries in re-

search. This activity is important so that people will be con-

stantly informed of the museum's ongoing activities and achieve-

ments. It is hoped that people will support the museum after

they learn about its activities.

30

The..Securi trm-!3erds ___. __---

All museums must have attendants of some sort in the galler-

ies during opening hours. The job of these people is remind

people not to touch the objects in the gallery and to make sure

no one steals or damages anything. They should also be able to

answer simple questions about the museum and collections. They

should be given specific tasks every day, such as checking the

number of objects in the gallery each morning and night, checking

to see if the floor is clean, and making sure the museum cases

are clean. It is important that the guards wear a uniform so

that the visitor can easily distinguish identify them. I do not

need to tell you that night security requires even more profes-

sionally trained staff to handle more serious emergencies.

In many museums around the world, the guards are uneducated,

receive a very low salary and are looked down upon by the rest of

the museum staff and the public. Under these circumstances, it

is no wonder that many guards do not perform their job well.

They sleep while on duty and are rude and impolite to visitors.

It is important to create a sense of pride and responsibility in

the position of being a guard. This requires a change in atti-

tude on the part of the rest of the museum staff.

It is also important to remember that the security alarms

and devices are only as good as the people who monitor them. The

professional level of the security staff is crucial. The Univers-

ity Museum has a large staff of security guards as well as an

electronic security system. One night at 2:00 a.m. a guard

noticed that one of the security alarm-lights was on. He ignored

31

it because he was an irresponsible guard. The next morning the

museum director discovered that three objects had been stolen

from the museum!

The Cleaning Staff __-

This department is important for all museums. Every museum

must or assign people who are responsible for cleaning the museum

and its cases on a regular basis. The floors must be swept, the

garbage taken out of the museum and not left in corners, and the

cases must be dusted everyday and cleaned every week. If the

museum is dirty and unkempt visitors will not enjoy their visit

and think that the people who work there do not care about their

museum and their culture, In addition, a dirty museum is also a

security risk. Rags and garbage left in the corners could cause

a fire. Staff and visitors could trip over the brooms and equip-

ment left sitting around the museum and hurt themselves.

ADDITIONAL-SECTIONS IN A MUS,EUM WHICH ARE USEFUL ---__

Museum Shop

Every museum should have a shop. This is an opportunity for

the museum to make money, but it should sell items which are

suitable for sale in a museum and not simply tourist knickknacks.

For example, the shop could sell reproductions of objects from

the museum's collections, slides of objects, postcards of ob-

jects, books about art and archaeology as well as ones specifi-

cally relating to objects in the museum, and well-made handicraft

items. Many museums also sell things like tee-shirts which have

the name of the museum on it as a souvenir. The University

Museum has two shops. One for adults which sells books, tee-

shirts, postcards, reproductions of art objects, and jewelry and

32

handicrafts from other parts of the world. The other shop is

designed for school children and has many educational books, toys

and games which help children to learn about people and cultures

in other parts of the world.

RestauraD_t ..-~_r Cafe

Many museums today have a restaurant or cafe which sells

coffee, cold drinks, snacks, or even meals to its visitors. This

is a good way to earn additional money for the museum, and visi-

tors often enjoy the chance to sit down and rest while taking

some refreshment.

Conclusion -- .------

Many different kinds of people with different kinds of

skills are needed to run a museum. They must work together as a

tehm, and only then will the museum function smoothly. In order

to accomplish this goal, there must be good communication among

the various departments in the museum. People must speak with

each other on a regular basis and have regular meetings to coor-

dinate their activities. As we will see next week, all these

different departments of the museum play a role in creating a new

exhibition for the galleries.

33

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS 61 EXHIBITION

Lecture III 10 April 1995

INTRODUCTION TO THE PRINCIPLES OF EXHIBITION

OVERVIEW

Permanent collections of objects lies at the core of what

makes a museum a museum. It is these collections that distin-

guishes a museum from a research center or a school. As we

already know, part of the reason for the museum's existence is to

collect, protect, conserve, and research these collections. But

a museum also has the responsibility to communicate with and

educate the public about its collections and the research that is

done on them. The exhibition is the unique method chosen by the

museum to communicate with the public. Therefore, exhibition is

a very serious endeavor and curators must think very carefully

about what they want to put on display and why.

The main purpose of an exhibit is to educate, that is to

teach the visitor something new. Maybe the purpose of the exhib-

it is simply to learn to appreciate the beauty of an object, but

in many museums the purpose of exhibits is to educate people

about history, the culture, the technology etc. of a people.

According to our definition, simply to put objects out in cases

with no logical order is not an exhibit.

The difficulty about planning and designing an exhibit is

that you both want to attract your visitor to look at your exhib-

it, arid you want him or her to learn something as well.

In museums in the United States and Europe exhibitions have

become a primary way of attracting attention to museums, and many

35

museums compete with each other for what we have begun to call

"block-buster" exhibits. This term derives from the huge bombs

used in the Second World War that had the capability of destroy-

ing large sections of a city (we refer to sections in a city as

"blocks"). When used to describe an exhibition it means an

"explosive" and powerful exhibition which will attract many

visitors. The reason why the exhibit is expected to attract many

visitors is because the subject or theme of the exhibit is very

popular. for example, the contents of the tomb of the ancient

Egyptian ruler King Tut, or a paintings by Picasso. The large

crowds of people which came to see these exhibitions forced the

museum designers to re-think the way they structure an exhibi-

tion. For example, they had to think about how to create an

orderly way to see the exhibition. I would like to add that

quite often these exhibitions are traveling exhibitions. They

are created by one museum and then they travel to others, even to

others in different countries.

Scholars sometimes criticize these exhibitions because they

entertain the visitor too much and do not provide enough educa-

tional content. However, this criticism need not be true. The

curator and designers who plan this kind of exhibition have to be

very clever and must devise a way to both entertain and educate

the visitor.

Exhibitions can be "permanent" or temporary. I put perma-

nent in quotations, because if it is possible, most museums today

want to rotate the collections they have on display. This ap-

proach is good for at least three reasons. It allows visitors to

show more of their collections to the public, and it gives the

36

objects a "rest". Objects can suffer damage when they are on

display. They are exposed to higher light levels than when in

storage, greater fluctuations in temperature and humidity and

generally more dust and pollution. Thus, it is not good to keep

objects on display for very long periods of time. In addition,

after several years, the exhibition design itself begins to look

tired and weary. Labels, as well as the fabric inside the cases,

start to look dirty and worn. The information contained in the

labels themselves may become outdated. This is because there is

constantly new research being done by scholars. Archaeologists

might excavate new sites, for example, which completely change

our previous interpretation of a civilization. Consequently,

many museums aim to change their "permanent" exhibits every five

years. In reality, this is difficult because it is expensive and

time consuming. As a compromise, many museums will rotate only

some objects in their "permanent" exhibits.

Temporary exhibits remain on display for an even shorter

period of time. They may be as short as a few weeks or as long

as a year. Most average several months. Often these temporary

exhibits are traveling.exhibits and after staying in your museum -----~~-

for "one venue" (usually defined as three months), they travel to

another. Because a lot of money has usually been spent to create

a temporary exhibit, it makes economic sense to q aximize the

number of people who can see the exhibition and the amount of

time it is displayed. However, on the other hand, traveling an

exhibit also puts a lot of wear and tear on the objects because

they are constantly being handled. Despite these drawbacks, a

traveling exhibit is something your museum may want to do think

37

about in the future. Many western museums like to borrow exhibi-

tions from foreign countries and will help to find the funds to

do so. When an international traveling exhibit is planned, it is

more like a short-term joint venture between two museums. The

project usually takes three or four years to organize and in the

process there is considerable scholarly exchange between the two

museums as they jointly prepare the exhibition for its travel in

the United States or Europe. A catalogue is prepared to accompa-

ny the exhibit which includes scholarship from both institutions,

and often an international conference is planned as part of the

activities to celebrate the exhibit's arrival. It is hard work,

but it would provide the Vietnamese government the opportunity to

show other parts of the world its history and culture.

DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO EXHIBITION

There are different approaches to an exhibit and we will

review them here:

1. The "Open Storaqe" Approa.cc

This is when objects are put on exhibit in a completely

random manner simply because you have them. There is little

organization and little explanation. This kind of approach is

found in some small, local museums in the United States and is

not considered a good way to display the museum's collections.

2. The Object Approach (sometimes called Aesthetic Exhibition1

The object approach, as its name implies, centers around

objects. This is the most frequently used approach in art mu-

scums , because their primary focus is on the objects. In this

approach:

38

1. the objects are selected

2. they are arranged in a case

3. they are researched

4. they are given labels

5. they are lighted in an attractive manner

The intent of the exhibit may be educational, but it

sometimes focuses too much on objects without enough ideas.

The approach is also called aesthetic because:

1. the aim of the presentation is that the visitor should

appreciate the beauty of the objects which are selected for the

exhibition on that basis.

2. In order to achieve this aim, there is a minimum of

'visual interference'. graphics and other interpretive aids are

generally kept to a minimum, or are subservient and discreet, and

in no way compete with the objects.

3. The design of the presentation, i.e. the museum environ--

ment and all the components, is compatible with the aim, and an

aesthetic *ambiance' is created.

3. The Didactic-_BDproach

Exhibitions which are intended to impart information are

generally called 'didactic'. Their aim is to instruct and to

educate. They encourage the visitor to engage in a learning and

thinking process. Intellectual stimulation is important. While

all exhibits can be broadly educational, in the didactic exhibi-

tion, the instructional and educational functions are not left to

the objects themselves, but are built into the exhibition through

the use of specially created interpretative materials, such as

39

labels, graphics, photographs, etc. The didactic approach in-

cludes several types.

a. The Systemati-c.Approach

Although this approach also relies upon objects, it implies

an arrangement of objects according to an accepted system. In

this sense, we can say that it is didactic. The system used

might be taxonomic. This approach was favored by many natural

scientists, and could be used, for example, for an exhibit on the

flora and fauna of Vietnam. Although this display method is

informative for the natural scientist, it is not necessarily very

interesting for the general visitor. Alternatively, the system

used might be typological. If, for example, you are displaying

the material culture of the minority groups who live in the Dien

Bien Phu region, one way to display their artifacts is according

to the types of things they use. You would put all of their

agricultural tools in one group, their clothes in another, their

ritual objects in another. In this way you could compare and

contrast similar items from different culture groups. I would

like to point out that this kind of approach is not favored by

museum specialists in the west today, nor in fact, is it favored

by anthropologists and ethnographers. In the museum context, it

is also not very interesting for the general museum visitor who

will probably not remember very much from what he has seen. It

is useful only for certain kinds of specialist who still research

material culture in this manner. The preferred approach in most

museums today is the so-called "Idea Approach" described below.

b. The Idea Approach (also called..Thematic Approach1

This approach comes from the belief in the educational

40

mission of museums. This approach to museum display began about

40 years ago and was considered to be very advanced at that time.

Now it is accepted as general practice. How does it work?

1. the curator begins by deciding what story or idea should

be presented.

2. then he decides how the story can best be put across;

3. he selects needed objects from the collections or borrows

them from other institutions, or uses photographs, drawings or

models;

4. he plans the exhibit so as to teach, emphasizing the

concepts or ideas with various techniques;

5. he installs the exhibit as a unit.

The problem with the "idea approach" is that it can

sometimes be too much like a textbook with too many words and too

few objects. Hence, ideally and in reality, a combination of the

object and the idea approach is often used. Using this approach,

the curator selects both the objects and the ideas at the same

time based on:

1) the significant objects in the collections

2) the purposes of your museum (what stories or ideas

that should be put across).

In recent years, museums have begun to add a new dimension

to their exhibitions which aid the visitor in learning. This is

the use of participatory techniques and devices. It is based

upon the idea that people learn more about what they see when

they participate in the process. Curators and designers using

this technique install such things like interactive computer-

based displays in the exhibit which allow the visitor to ask

41

further questions about the exhibit, or even to test himself.

Other techniques involve interactive-videos.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD EXHIBIT

Before going over the planning outline of the stages you

must go through to make an exhibition, I would like to introduce

a few general guide-lines which are recommended for you to keep

in mind while you plan your exhibit.

1. It should be safe and secure. It must provide for the protec-

tion of its objects, the museum, the staff, and visitors. For

example, you would not exhibit live ordinance in a war museum.

On the other hand, you would not display fragile objects, like

costumes, for example, in a way so that people could easily touch

them.

2. It should be visible. The exhibit must be lighted, unob-

structed and shown with a minimum of inconvenience and distrac-

tion, You should not have to take a flashlight to the museum, or

lean over tables in order to see an object. You also have to be

careful with the glare cased by sunlight striking the glass on a

museum case (also called vitrine).

3, It should catch the eye. An exhibit that visitors pass by is

a failure.

4. It should look good. An exhibit that is dirty and crudely

made will repel the visitor.

5. It should hold the visitor's attention. An exhibit must

educate, stimulate, produce emotion, and even entertain, To

accomplish this purpose requires time. This means that each

display unit must grab the visitor's attention and make him or

42

her stop for a few moments to read the label and to look. Only

then will the display communicate with the visitor.

6. It should be worthwhile. When the visitor stops and gives the

exhibit his attention, we can say that he or she has entered into

a kind of contract with the museum. As part of the contract, the

museum must give to the visitor something of value in exchange

for the time of his visit. In summary, a good exhibit uses sig-

nificant objects, has an important purpose, and is well planned.

THE BASIC STEPS YOU MUST GO THROUGH TO CREATE AN EXHIBIT

A. Concept Phase or-Initial Planning-Stage

1. Decide what is the theme or story of the exhibit.

2. Decide who is your primary audience.

3. Decide upon a title.

4. Decide what you want your visitors to learn from your

exhibit. This means you should think about the questions your

visitors should be able to answer when they leave the exhibit.

5. Meet with the designer and talk about your ideas with him

so that he can begin to think about the visual interpretation of

your ideas.

6. Make a preliminary budget.

7. Create a preliminary time schedule for the exhibition

work. We try to allow 18 months to 24 months for organizing a

major new exhibit. This amount of time is needed especially if a

catalogue is being produced, if the objects need a lot of conser-

vation, or if money has to be raised. Exhibits can be done more

quickly if it is necessary and if the objects come from your own

collection, you decide to create an object oriented exhibit, and

43

the curator does not need to do a lot of research. However, even

under these circumstances a minimum of six months is needed in

order to produce an attractive, well-organized exhibit with

meaningful labels.

B. Secondary-~Planning Phase-_

1. Develop a complete, researched outline for the exhibition

- this includes the content of your exhibit and the kinds of ob-

jects your want to illustrate your story.

2. Make a list objects from your collections which can be

used to illustrate the ideas in your exhibit outline. This is

the preliminary list. As your exhibit develops, you may wish to

add or subtract objects.

This step is not really second, but is done at the same

time as #l. As curator you should know your objects and be work-

ing with both ideas and object selection at the same time.

3. In some museums, if their own collection does not contain

all the kinds of objects they need, they make arrangements to

borrow objects from other museums or even private collections.

If you are able to borrow pieces, then you must also do research

on the content of other collections, and make a list. Eventually

you will have to visit these collections to make the final selec-

tion.

4. Develop a list of "support" materials needed for the

exhibit. This list will include things like photographs, draw-

ings, models, charts, maps, and even things like films and music.

5. Develop a list of the supplementary components to the

exhibit you will want to produce, such as an exhibition cata-

logue, a guide, handouts, a lecture series, a film series. these

44

items are usually produced for a special exhibit.

C. Third Stage-of Planning ___-

1. After you have made your final selection of objects

each object should be inspected by the conservator. The conser-

vator will clean the object and do any conservation work which is

needed.

The conservator will also decide whether or not the piece

can be exhibited (if too fragile, the decision might be no), and

under what kinds of conditions.

Conservation work should begin as soon as possible, because

it will sometimes take a long time.

2. If they do not exist, photographs should be taken of each

object in the exhibition. If a catalogue is to be written, then

professional photographs should be taken after the piece has

been cleaned and conserved-

3. The curator now begins to research the pieces in order to

write the labels.

4. Labels

The curator must be able to take scholarly essays and

"translate" them into simpler, straightforward English which the

general public can better understand.

There are three levels of labels:

1, Primary text panel -

In English, maximum 250 words

These labels introduce the main theme of the exhibit

2. Sub-text Panel

These should have 75-100 words at the most. They introduce a

specific site or temple or a particular cluster of artifacts.

45

These labels treat the sub-themes of an exhibit

3. I.D. labels

These are the individual labels for each object and each

object should have this kind of label. They can be very brief,

providing only basic information about the piece:

object's name

what it is made from

where is it from

it's date

it's accession number

We will talk more specifically about labels, their content

and their production in greater detail later.

5. Catalogue production. At the same time that you research

and begin to write the labels, you should be preparing the cata-

logue to accompany the exhibition.

Essentially, the amount of your available funds will deter-

mine the kind of catalogue you can produce. This includes the

number of photographs, the kinds, the number of essays, the

quality of paper, the quality of printing in general.

I am sure that most of you have already had a lot of experi-

ence in publishing scholarly monographs here in Hue. Perhaps you

could tell me something about the process of publication here.

What are the steps you would go through in planning a catalogue

to accompany an exhibit? In Europe and in North America (and in

China) most publishers prefer to have approximately 9 to 12

months time to produce a good-quality monograph with photographs.

Is this true for Vietnam as well? If so, then work on the cata-

46

logW? must begin early on in the exhibition planning stage.

Just as a reminder, photographs of the objects which will be

in the catalogue should be taken after the object has been

cleaned and conserved. I also know from experience that

publishers do not like it very much when the curator changes his

or her mind about an object in the exhibition and at the last

minute wants to include this object in the catalogue as well.

This is often physically impossible for the publisher to do.

I would also like to point out that catalogues in the United

States and Europe today are not simply picture books of objects,

but are books with scholarly essays. They represent new and

serious research on the part of the authors and are regarded as

important scholarly works- This is why they take longer to

create and produce. Producing a catalogue in two languages also

takes more time because of you must guarantee that the foreign

language version is properly translated.

6. After your objects have been selected and they are at

conservation, and while you are beginning to research your la-

bels, you should at the same time meet with the designer again

and begin to produce a more detailed visual design of the exhibi-

tion.

You should go over the "story line" as well as the object8

with him. The space for you exhibit should have already been

selected, and you have to know what kinds of cases are available.

The designer will work up several sketches of what the

exhibit could look like. He will suggest where the objects could

be placed and how the exhibition could be organized. It is also

the responsibility of the designer to guarantee the stability of

47

each object. Some objects, especially small objects, may require

some kind of bracket to hold them in place - either on the wall,

or on the blocks inside the cases. Round-bottomed Neolithic

pottery is unstable and cannot stand by itself without a frame or

stand, other pots might need to be weighted inside with sand

bags. All of these issues should be considered.

The designer will also help plan the design of the text

panels and labels and other graphic materials you plan to use in

the exhibition. The designer's office should have an artist who

can help to design the charts and diagrams-you want to include.

I would like to point out that some exhibits in the United

States and in Europe today have very elaborate designs which

require a long time to design and to fabricate. I will provide

two examples.

1. The Museum of Mankind in London is the ethnographic museum

which forms part of the British Museum complex. Their staff are

famous for creating complete cultural environments to display

their objects. One such memorable exhibition was an Arab market

created in the mid 1970's. The exhibit came complete with all

the food and goods sold in the market. As the museum visitor

wandered through the market he could smell and see all the won-

derful things which were sold there. An audio tape played music

together with the sounds of voices in the background.

Another wonderful exhibit they created was one which intro-

duced the Mexican Festival of the Dead. The designers fabricated

the inside of Mexican houses complete with all their household

wares and their altars to their ancestors. In the houses and on

the altars they placed all the special objects used during this

48

very important festival when Mexican people honor their deceased

ancestors. The exhibit had many photographs, music and a video-

After the visitor left the exhibit he felt as though he had just

been to Mexico and experienced the festival itself.

2. The University Museum did an exhibit on the use of feathers in

South America. The curator and designer created the ecological

habitats of several tribes living in the jungles of South America

and placed mannequins of the people who lived in these jungles in

the large people-sized cases. The clothing they wore and the

objects they used every day were put into the cases along with

birds that gave them their feathers. A video accompanied the

exhibit together with a tape playing the haunting flute music

played by many of the groups.

D. Pr.od.uction and .FabrJcat$.o.n Stage

1. Building the Exhibition Parts

After the designer and the curator agree upon the design,

the designer and his staff begin to fabricate and produce the

different parts of the exhibit.

We will discuss later fabricating of the different parts of

the exhibit, including the labels and text panels.

2. Mounting and installing the objects in the exhibition.

Now is the time that everything you have been working on

comes together. The objects have been cleaned and repaired: the

text panels and labels together with photographs and charts and

diagrams have been completed; the design of the exhibit is fin-

ished and everything necessary to make the exhibit is in place.

Now the curator, together with the designer, begins to in-

stall the objects in each of the cases or in the spaces created

49

for them. At the same time you are hanging the text panels on

the walls together with any other labels, photographs and charts-

Once all the objects are installed, and the labels in place you

have to create the correct lighting for the exhibit. We will

discuss lighting in greater detail in a later lecture.

E. Supplementary Actiyi.ties Staqe For. Speciaa_Exhibits

During the whole time you are working on the scholarly

aspect of the exhibition process, there are other things which

you have to prepare.

1, For example, when an exhibit opens you have to have a way

to let people know about it. In order to do this you must pre-

pare materials called a "press kit" to send to reporters in

newspapers, in the radio station and the TV station. This press

kit should contain:

1. An introduction to the museum

2. An introduction to the exhibit.

3. A list of "highlights" from the exhibit

4. Selected photographs or slides of objects in the exhibit

5. A short introduction to the most important people who

worked on the exhibit, for example the curator(s), the designer.

6. A list of events which are scheduled to celebrate the

opening of the exhibit.

Reporters should have these materials several weeks before

the exhibit opens. Some magazines require a press announcement

several months in advance if you want your exhibition to be

mentioned in their magazine at the time the exhibition opens.

Just before the official opening of the exhibition, the museum

will hold a special gathering for the press. They can see the

50

exhibit in advance and interview the people who worked on the

exhibit. Then, the newspapers can publish a review of the exhib-

it the day that it opens.

2. Most museums also plan a party or reception to celebrate

the opening of the exhibit.

3. finally, with the opening of a new exhibition most mu-

seums plan several educational activities to complement the

exhibit, for example, when we opened an exhibit about the history

of Buddhism in Asia at The University Museum, we had a series of

lectures by specialists about Buddhism in different parts of Asia

and we showed some documentary films about Buddhism. We also

invited members of the Buddhist community in Philadelphia to a

special opening and encouraged them to use the exhibit as an

educational tool. The curator of the exhibit might also have to

give lectures for the public and to write some articles on the

subject of the exhibition. Sometimes an academic conference is

planned to discuss the topics and themes of the exhibit.

51

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS & EXHIBITION LECTURE IV

12 April 1995

CONTENTS OF THE EXHIBITION

I. OBJECT SELECTION AND PREPARATION

As you probably have guessed, my preference for an exhibi-

tion approach is one that is based on themes or ideas. Even in

an exhibit which is primarily art, a more educational and in-

formative display approach can be used.

On Monday I introduced the general over-all planning stages

museum specialists go through when they plan new exhibitions.

Obviously different museums and different individuals approach

this kind of planning slightly differently. However, no matter

how you plan your exhibit, you must still plan it, otherwise you

will end up with an "open storage" display - a confused and

meaningless group of objects put out for people to look at. How

can we avoid this happening?

In order to avoid this, your selection of objects should be

based upon a plan. What plan, you probably want to ask me?

Unfortunately I cannot give a "model plan" which will work for

every exhibit, because every exhibit is different. It is up to

the curator(s) to decide what idea or theme they want their

museum visitor to learn when he or she comes to the museum. What

I can do is to provide you with some examples of how I made

preliminary plans for the exhibitions I have curated and the

process of how I selected objects to go in them.

THE BUDDHIST EXHIBITION AT THE UNIVERSITY MUSEUM

The idea for this exhibition began as a response to several

53

different needs and ideas. First, the Asian Section in the

museum had just been consolidated into one section. Previously,

the Indian materials and Southeast Asian materials (mostly Thai

archaeological materials) had been administratively separate from

the Chinese and Japanese materials. This system did not make

much sense because the collection was not large enough to warrant

separate curators and keepers. It was decided we could maximize

our strengths, both economically and administratively by putting

all of Asia under one section. It was the head curator who first

came up with the idea. The head curator, an archaeologist and

Indian specialist who was also Associate Director of the museum

at that time, decided that it would be a good idea to mount an

exhibition illustrating a theme which unified all the different

parts of Asia. Buddhism was such a topic.

Second, during the late 1970's and early 1980's, many refu-

gees from Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam) had been

resettled in Philadelphia. We already had a large Chinese and

Japanese community which had lived in and around Philadelphia for

many years, (the Chinese community, for example, arrived in the

late 19th century). It was decided that an exhibition on Bud-

dhism could be a service to this community. Ideally, it could

also help the non-Asian community in Philadelphia learn more

about the customs and traditions of its new neighbors.

Third, we used this exhibition as an excuse to write a much-

needed conservation grant to clean and restore some very beauti-

ful 19th century Japanese wooden lacquer Buddhist sculpture which

had not been stored properly- This grant gave us the funds to

hire an outside conservator and her staff to do detailed and

54

difficult work on pieces which we would not have been able to

clean and conserve under regular circumstances.

These then were the preliminary motivating forces for us to

do an exhibition on Buddhism. The time was early Spring 1983 and

we had an opening date of November 1985 - about two years. the

conservation work on the Japanese pieces began immediately after

we had a preliminary object list because they required many

months of tedious work.

The first thing I was asked to do was to write an overall

story line for the exhibition, including a preliminary list of

objects which would be used to illustrate the story. In order to

do this, I had to first familiarize myself with the objects in

the collection. You see, I was new to The University Museum and

did not yet know the collections very well. Fortunately, on this

first exhibition, I did not work alone, the Associate Director

knew the Indian pieces, and there was also an older woman who had

been associated with The University Museum's Asian collections

for many years and served as our Keeper. She helped me immensely

in this process.

At the same time I was becoming familiar with the collec-

tions, I began to develop the storyline. The storyline was

first, historical- I wanted to illustrate the development of

Buddhism and wanted the exhibition to show the places Buddhism

spread it left India. I also wanted to illustrate the differenc-

es the two major branches of Buddhism, Mahayana and Theravada,

and visually depict the routes along which they spread. Another

theme, was to demonstrate that although Buddhism was a unifying

religion which crosscut and linked all of Asia, that it also was

55

a vehicle to illustrate the individual character of each Asian

culture. Buddhism, as you know, was strongly influenced by and

absorbed aspects of the local religions and philosophies of each

place it went to. Consequently, Buddhism in China differs from

Buddhism in Japan, in Tibet, in Thailand or in Cambodia. In each

of these areas Buddhism has a distinct personality and character.

Finally, I wanted to illustrate to our museum visitors that

Buddhism was still a living tradition for people not only in Asia

today, but also in Asian communities in the West and that many

western people had adopted the Buddhist faith.

As I developed this storyline, I also began to have prelimi-

nary meetings with our designer to discuss how to translate my

ideas into a visual display. In my original plan I wanted to

visually show the development of the two major branches of Bud-

dhism and have them both climax in full-size altars - one from a

Japanese temple (we had lots of material for this display because

of the collections of a turn of the century Philadelphian who had

traveled to the Far East to collect minerals and Buddhist sculp-

ture for the museum), and one from a Thai temple (this later

proved to be a problem because we did not have the Buddhist

paraphernalia from Thailand with which to create an alter. We

thought of purchasing modern Buddhist paraphernalia and our

colleagues in Thailand approved, but in the end we did not have

the funds to do this), As an anthropologist, I also wanted each

of the objects we selected to convey meaning. I did not want

isolated objects displayed. I wanted the objects displayed as a

groups which would have been used together by people practicing

Buddhism. The designer agreed with these ideas, and because we

56

already knew which space in the museum we would be using, he

offered me some suggestions and guidelines as to how many objects

we could accommodate comfortably. Before the designer could

actually begin to produce sketches of the display, he needed a

preliminary object list, So, that was our next immediate task.

Now the problem was to decide how to select objects which

could illustrate these themes most effectively. Obviously we

needed to select objects from each cultural area and we wanted

some objects that illustrated the historical development of Bud-

dhism, and others which illustrated the unique nature of that

country's specific development of Buddhism. As we selected the

objects we also had to consider the aesthetic nature of the

object as well as the condition of the object. Sometimes the

selection of an object was pre-determined because there was only

one of its kind. Our early Indian Buddhism material, for exam-

ple. was limited, and consequently, we did not have many choices

to make. However, we did have a number of early Gandharan bas-

reliefs. In this instance, we had two criteria. Because at this

beginning part of the exhibition we were introducing the basic

tenets of Buddhism together with the history and stories of the

life of the Buddha, we selected some bas relief because they

depicted these things - for example, one showed the Buddha's

mother giving birth. In addition, we paid attention to the

beauty of the carvings.

On the other hand, in the Tibetan section, we had abundant

examples of amulets and small statues and tankas to choose from.

To make these choices, we used a combination of aesthetic and

ethnographic principles. Obviously, with the gilt-bronze sta-

57

tuettes we tried to select ones which both illustrated important

gods or goddesses and were beautiful and in good condition. For

the amulets, however, I wanted to make a selection which reflect-

ed the difference between those worn by men and those worn by

women. I also selected some which had already been desecrated,

i.e. they had already been opened and their contents examined.

In this way, I could show to the visitor the kinds of things

actually placed inside thege amulets, rather than relying on

words to describe them. In the Tibet section, I also selected

objects which could be grouped together as though they were on an

altar in someone's home. I was fortunate in my planning of the

Tibet section because I had access to photographs in the archives

of the nearby Newark Museum. Their Tibetan photograph collection

is extensive and world-famous, For a small fee, the museum will

allow other museums to use their photographs in exhibitions and

publications. I found many photographs which illustrated the

religious objects I displayed being used by Tibetans in their

daily lives before 1949.

With the Japanese section, we almost had too much to chose

from, and here the problem was how to select those items which

best illustrated our storyline, Certain objects had already been

selected for conservation, so these would definitely be used.

These were also some of the largest and most beautiful of the

pieces. The decision was made that these objects would be pro-

tected in large cases designed to accommodate them because we did

not want our conservation work to be in vain. However, as part

of the Japanese section we physically built a large altar using

pictures from books on Japanese temple architecture. Then we

58

selected items of temple paraphernalia from among our vast stor-

age. In this instance, we selected those pieces which were most

complete and which required the least amount of cleaning and

conservation. Both the Tibetan and Japanese sections satisfied

me because they were both historical and ethnographic.

The China section, however, proved difficult. The Chinese

collection was much more art historical in nature.

Our weakest section was Southeast Asia. We had a very few

amount of things from Burma, Thailand and Cambodia and nothing

from Vietnam. Because this exhibit was designed to illustrate

out own collections, we were not supposed to borrow pieces from

other museums. Because during the time we were preparing the

exhibit I went to Thailand, I obtained permission to purchase

some small items to supplement the exhibit, for example, I went

to the amulet market and purchased different kinds of amulets.

The amulets were all recent (not precious antiques) and my selec-

tion criteria was to obtain a range of types reflecting the

purposes of the amulets. I also went to one of the many Buddhist

stores in Bangkok and purchased such items as a monk's robe, his

bag and eating bowl. All of these items are typical of the monk

today in Theravada Buddhism and could be used to illustrate this

part of living Buddhism.

THE CHINESE ANCIENT JADE AND BRONZE EXHIBITION

The planning of this exhibition is a good example of the

flexibility curators need when planning an exhibition, and the

necessity of always going back and forth between your ideas and

your objects to see if they agree.

59

In May of 1989 I returned to The University Museum after

having been doing ethnographic field work in Yunnan for 15

months. The museum had a slight crisis and asked if I could step

in and help them out with an exhibition. While I had been away,

very preliminary plans for an exhibition on Chinese jade had

begun. The older woman I mentioned earlier had been the curator,

together with the Director of MASCA (the Museum Applied Science

Center for Archaeology) who was to contribute a technical sec-

tion. Tragically, this woman became very ill that winter and had

passed away (she was in her late 70's). Under other circumstanc-

es, delaying the exhibition would not have been a problem, but

for important reasons, some kind of exhibition on jade had to be

installed in the museum by late November. We had only a few

short months - about 6 - to mount this exhibition and we did not

even have a preliminary plan for the storyline together with a

preliminary object list! Needless to say, we could not do a

catalogue for this exhibit because there was not enough time.

I immediately began work on a storyline, coordinating my

ideas with the technical curator from MASCA. My first idea was

to not only show the development of jade use in China throughout

the centuries, but to also talk about the theme of the tradition-

al jade trade between Burma and China in the late 19th and 20

centuries, However, after a week or so of pursuing this idea, I

had to give up. First, I discovered that the jade collection in

The University Museum was not strong enough to support any sort

of chronological display of jade through-out the different ages

in China. We were strongest in early jade, for example, Shang

60

and Zhou with a few items which could now be re-classified as

Neolithic (due to recent archaeological excavations in China),

and then jumped to the 20th century with a collection of not very

attractive, highly ornate modern jade pieces. So, the technical

curator and I had to stop and re-evaluate. It also became appar-

ent that while the idea of trade was interesting, we did not have

the objects to illustrate this theme and the exhibit would have

to depend upon a lot of photos and written text. This, as we

have already discussed, is not a good way to do an exhibit.

However, both the technical curator and I knew that the

museum's collection also contained a respectable number of early

Chinese bronze ritual vessels and other kinds of objects. With

this in mind, we decided upon a more traditional theme. We would

no longer concentrate solely on jade, but would display both

bronze and jade. I would illustrate the role bronze and jade

played in the political and ritual systems of the early Chinese

state (Shang and Zhou), and the technical curator would illus-

trate the development of these two technologies during the same

time period. Thus, in selecting our objects, we had to keep these

two objectives in mind.

Once, again, because of the limitations of the collection

itself, sometimes we chose what we chose because that was all

there was. If we were lacking an example of what was considered

an important item, then we found used a photograph or drawing.

Under different circumstances, we could have arranged to borrow a

piece from another museum. However, this exhibit had the re-

straints of a very small budget together with a very tight time

schedule. We had, by necessity, only to use objects from our own

61

collection.

Other times, for example, in our choice of Eastern Zhou belt

hooks (which from my point of view illustrated the de-ritualiza-

tion of bronze and its more widespread use in daily life), the

technical curator focused on one in particular which was covered

with a beautiful pattern of inlaid gold and silver with a few

pieces of turquoise. This use of inlaid precious metals was an

important technical innovation for the Eastern Zhou period.

Thus, this particular belthook was selected over other plainer

belthooks because of its distinctive technology and its aesthetic

beauty.

Other times, conservation concerns determined our choice of

objects. There was one bronze ritual vessel, a kind of wine

goblet called gu, which was too fragile to put on display, Other

objects that we could have used required cleaning, and our con-

servation lab was too busy to complete the work we required.

What the object selection process of this particular exhibit

illustrates is the necessity for flexibility, and the manner in

which ideas and objects play off of one another. A curator

cannot be so tied to a storyline that he refuses to change it,

even if he does not have the objects to illustrate it. The

curator must constantly go back and forth between his themes and

the reality of his collections and adjust his plan accordingly.

On Friday, I will meet with the museum group. Our purpose

will be to come up with a preliminary plan for the museum exhibi-

tion in the Long An Palace. Only when you have a plan, will you

be able to begin the selection of items for display.

Now I would like to turn to a more detailed discussion of

62

the next phase of the exhibition. Once you have made your story-

line and selected your objects, you should begin to do the re-

search to write your text panels and labels.

II. TEXT PANELS, LABELS AND GRAPHICS

Writing Labels

The text panels and labels together with the graphics (i.e.

drawings, maps, charts, etc.) and photographs are crucial to the

storyline of your exhibition. They are also more difficult to

write than curators think. The reason is that the curator must

be able to take what are essentially scholarly ideas and "trans-

late" them into simpler, straightforward English which the gener-

al public can better understand. Not all scholars are capable of

doing this. What I have done when I am writing labels is to ask

some of the volunteer guides to read my labels to see if they are

clear and understandable. If you recall, I described these .

volunteer to you last week. They are usually women who have a

university degree and an interest in archaeology and anthropolo-

gy, but are not academic specialists. They are able to tell me

if my labels are too scholarly. Some museums even try to write

their labels for the education level of children in secondary

school.

The curator is always in danger of having too many words

because he knows so much- It is important to learn how to ex-

plain your story with fewer words, making more use of maps,

charts, drawings and photographs and even models so that people

can learn with their eyes and not have to read so many words. If

you need so many words to write your label, some museum special-

63

ists say than you should write a book or article.

In the University Museum we have guidelines for the curators

for their labels. There are three levels of labels:

1. The first level is the primary text panel. These are the

introductory panels to the exhibition itself and to the major

sections or divisions within the exhibit if necessary. They are

used to introduce the main themes of the exhibit. For example, in

the E?uddhist exhibition I had several primary text panels, one

for the over-all introduction and one for each of the country's

or region (i.e. India, China, Central Asia, Tibet, Japan and

Southeast Asia). Using English, we are asked to limit ourselves

to a maximum of 250 words. We are asked to limit ourselves to

250 words because people will get tired if they have to read too

much and then they will skip any reading at all. These panels

often are accompanied by some kind of graphic, a map or a photo-

graph, for example.

These panels should be attractive and eye-catching in order

to draw people to your exhibit and make them want to read the

panels and to see the exhibit.

2. The second level is called the sub-text panel. These panels

or labels treat the sub-themes of an exhibit. For example, they

might introduce a specific site or temple or a particular cluster

of artifacts. In the museum in China, if a cluster of objects

came from one archaeological site, then, the site was introduced

briefly in a sub-panel. In the Uuddhist exhibit, I created a

sub-panel for the case containing Tibetan amulets. I wrote

another sub-panel on Tibetan religious music for the instruments

and dance masks. These labels should have 75-100 words at the

64

most.

3. The third level is the identification (I.D. for short) label,

These are the individual labels for each object and each

object should have this kind of label. They can be very brief,

providing only basic information about the piece:

object's name

what it is made from

where is it from

it's date

it's accession number

If its a gift, then should name the donor.

If an object has something unique or special about it, then

obviously the I.D. label should be longer to explain this. For

example, in the Chinese jade and bronze exhibit, the surface of

one of the jade halberds bore an impression of the cloth it had

been wrapped in the burial. This phenomenon is very rare and

needed an explanation.

Production of--Labels

In producing labels, it is also obvious that you want them

to be as easily readable as possible. To do so you must consider

legibility and visibility. One of the requisites for legibility

is consistency (of type face); design of typeface: type size;

length of line and spacing of line. You should select a type

face which is clear and straightforward and do not mix it with

other kinds of typeface in your labels. It is also recommended

not to use all capital letters. A typeface which is too small

will be difficult to read and words which are spaced too close

65

together will be illegible.

Visibility refers to the capacity of being seen or distin-

guished against a background. Three factors determine good vis-

ibility and readability for labels: illumination, size, and

contrast. Illumination refers to the amount of light which is

shown on the label. The size of the type will vary with the kind

of label. It is obvious that the text panels should be in the

largest type. The sub-text panels in a smaller size and the I.D.

labels the smallest. I am not familiar with the Vietnamese

printing system, but in the United States it is recommended that

the primary text panels be no smaller than a 72-point type (about

3/4" high for a capital letter). I.D. or object labels should be

no smaller than 24-point and be 30-point if possible. Finally,

the contrast between the letters and the background should be as

strong as possible. Black letters on a white background are the

best, although recently museum designers have preferred to use a

wider variety of colours for their background. Often the colour

of the text panels is the same or coordinated with the wall

colour. But, it is always a light color.

The reasons for all of this care is obvious. You have to

think of the ease with which people can read the labels from a

distance. If the type face is too small, or not spaced correct-

ly, or not well lighted, then people will not be able to read the

labels comfortably and will ignore them.

Making the Labels

The most professional way to make the labels is to silk-

screen the type-set labels. This method is also the most expen-

66

sive. It is also becoming common to eliminate the type-setting

phase and use computer generated type instead. There are many

"desk-top" publishing software which give you a variety of type-

face. Some museums, like the Sackler-Freer Gallery in Washing-

ton, has silk-screening specialists in their Design Department.

They are able to silkscreen text panels directly onto the gallery

wall, thereby eliminating the need to have a separate panel.

Another way to make the labels is to have them typeset, type

them on a computer or even a typewriter and then make enlarged

photocopies of them which can be mounted on cardboard or a hard

board for larger text panels.

67

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS AND EXHIBITION

Lecture V 17 April 1995

THE ELEMENTS OF DISPLAY PRODUCTION

I. Revi~.9~.-_D_e_~~~~

Using the storyline, objects, and space available, the

designer has now worked up sketches of the exhibition. In his

sketches he has:

1. presented a general picture of what the design of the

exhibition will look like.

2. indicated where the cases will stand and what they look

like. He has made individual sketches for each case and marked

where the pedestals and mounts are placed.

3. placed all of the objects inside the cases or outside on

their pedestals and dais.

4. indicated where to put all text panels, maps, charts,

photographs and any other supplementary material used in the

exhibition. For example, where to put the video if you are

showing a short video.

5. indicated the flow of visitors (called circulation pat-

tern).

II. Ciroulation Ro.u.ues

It is important to consider how you want your visitor to

visit your exhibition. At the entrance to the exhibition it is

not unusual to place an interesting object together with an

attractive text panel in order to draw the visitor into the

exhibition.

69

It has been observed that, people tend to spend a lot of

time at the beginning of an exhibition, and less and less time as

they walk through the exhibit. It is part of the task of the

designer to modify this tendency, encouraging people not to rush

through the last part of the exhibit. In doing research on

different kinds of circulation routes, one specialist has devel-

oped a typology for circulation types and has identified five

basic types: the arterial: comb: chain: star and block (figure

1).

The arterial is basically a continuous path; it can be __.. _-- .--

straight, angular or curving. It offers the visitor no other

alternative and put pressure on the visitor to walk only forward.

This kind of circulation pattern has been used in certain "block

buster" exhibitions where there are so many people the museum

designer wants them always to walk forward and not to turn back

to take a second look at an object or painting.

The comb pattern consists of a main path supplemented by

alcoves. This arrangement has the advantage of providing areas

off the main traffic route where visitors can study objects

without being jostled, and if space permits, may allow a two-way

flow of traffic. In addition, each alcove can be used for a

particular topic.

The chai..n is similar to the arterial pattern because it is

linear. However, it is more complex because it consists of a

series of self-contained spaces, and each space may have a more

varied path within it. This pattern is frequently used by art

galleries.

The star or 2-a-a pattern presents the visitor with a series

70

of alternatives radiating from a central point. This pattern has

the advantage of separating topic areas, and can create a very

busy central area, which can be pleasant.

The block is, in a sense, a non-pattern because it provides

free, random circulation which relies upon the wish of the visi-

tor.

All of these patterns can be used individually or combined

with each other.

III. Exhibition Components

A. The Museum Display Case

Every museum makes use of display cases. The display case

has its origins in the cabinets which were used in the past to

house collections of curiosities or precious items found in

churches and private homes. Because display cases are used in

both private homes and museums they reflect both the furniture

and architectural design of the period during which they were

made.

The development of high quality glass which could be pro-

duced in large pieces was also important for the development of

the display case. This technology appeared in the late 19th

century. Recently, additional advancements in technology have

influenced the display case, for example, the ability to include

lighting inside the display case, 'invisible' glass cements, and

the fabrication of light, strong, slim-line metal sections which

form the structural elements of cases. These have all improved

and changed the appearance of museum display cases.

Nonetheless, despite these improvements, museum visitors

71

I:’ often complain about the excessive use of display cases. They do

not like them because the cases distance the visitor from the

object. They say that they cannot get really close to the object,

and sometimes the glare from the sunlight coming in windows makes

it difficult to see the object. Unfortunately, the trend in

American museums is to put more and more objects inside display

cases. This is primarily for the security of the object - to

keep hands from touching the objects and to protect the object

from dust and other pollutants. The display case does, in fact,

serve several important functions which can be summarized as

follows:

-yunctions of the Display Case: ____-

1. To protect objects from theft and damage. Some cases are

able to be locked (the lock should be as invisible as possible).

Others are constructed in such a way that you have to unscrew

several bolts and screws in order to open the case. It is also

possible to install electrical alarm systems in cases, so that if

a case is touched or moved in any way, an alarm will sound.

2. To provide a micro-climate in which constant levels of

temperature, relative humidity and light can be maintained to

protect objects from ultra-violet light, pollutants, dust, in-

sects, etc. Some cases have special trays for silica get built

into their structure.

3. To provide a 'setting' in which objects can be seen.

This means that the case forms part of the design of the place-

ment of the object.

4. To support objects safely and position them in a way in

which they may be viewed conveniently.

72

5. To act as a design element which will bridge the gap in

scale between a very small object, such as a coin, the viewer,

and the room.

6. To act as visual and physical components within a gal-

lery. The case serves as a kind of three-dimensional sculpture

or furnishing within a room. By doing so it has the capacity to

interest and attract the visitor.

7. To be used as an element to assist in establishing a

circulation pattern within the gallery.

Thus, we can see that display cases do, in fact, constitute

an important part of museum exhibitions, and if the designer is

creative, they can form an interesting part of the design of the

exhibit itself and not just be an obstacle.

When you are having cases made for your display or purchas-

ing new ones, you should check them carefully to make sure that

they have been designed carefully and incorporate features which

are important for museum cases. They should be different from as

well as better made than display cases produced for shops.

Display~a_~~---~~~~~~~~~.-~~a~~~

1. They are normally level, completely stable and do not

vibrate.

2. They are adequately secure and incorporate any devices

such as locks or alarms as are deemed necessary.

3. They are accessible when necessary, and permit objects to

be placed within and removed both easily and safely, subject to

the security precautions. Note: in theory this is recommended,

but in practice many museums construct cases which are less

73

convenient. It is expensive to have cases with special, hidden

doors. My museum cannot afford this, so most of our cases are

wooden bases with a sealed plexi-glas unit placed on top. It

takes a team of three or four people to take off the plexi-glass

or to put it back on the base.

At the museum at Peking University, however, we had the

money to purchase very expensive free-standing cases from Germany

which were designed so that you could easily open and close them.

Our architect also designed wall cases which were modeled after

ones he saw in a museum in Hong Kong. These cases were construct-

ed so that the glass could be pushed back and forth on a runner

and included a hidden door panel which could be locked.

If the display cases contain light fixtures, these should be

accessible separate from the display case itself. It will make

your life much easier if you are able to change a burnt-out bulb

without having to disturb the objects inside the case.

4. They are made of materials which do not directly or

indirectly have a harmful effect on any objects displayed within.

This means that you have to be very careful with the kind of wood

used to make the cabinet. It should be dried out, given time for

any gases or chemical fumes (for example, if the case is made

from plywood which uses glues and other chemicals) to dissipate,

and should be covered with shellac or a white, latex-based paint

to seal in the acids. The fabric used to cover the base of the

case of any stands in the case must also be tested to make sure

it will not have a harmful reaction with the objects placed in

the case.

5. They maintain good light levels.

74

6. They take into account both the nature of the object to

be displayed and the nature of the viewer (height, eye level), to

ensure that the object is seen easily and comfortably.

7. The materials used and method of construction are suit-

able for the intended life of the case.

8. They are safe, without sharp corners or dangerous protru-

sions, and should be capable of withstanding the normal wear and

tear of visitors.

9. They permit basic maintenance - i.e. can change light

fittings, or clean the case without putting the contents at risk.

One of the most common complaints about display cases,

already mentioned above, is the glare you often get on the glass.

This is caused by the ability of glass and plexi-glas to reflect

light. This problem can be avoided first by not placing display

cases near windows so that sunlight does not strike them. In

using artificial light, the person who does the lighting must

experiment with the best way for the light to strike the case so

that it does not produce a reflection.

Shapes of Museum Display Cases

Display cases theoretically come in all kinds of geometric

shapes and sizes (including spheres, domes, cylinders and pyra-

mids). However, for reasons of ease of construction, the vast

majority of cases are rectilinear.

Display cases can be divided into standard (free-standing)

cases or wall cases. The free-standing or standard case consists

of a base unit and glazed upper portion. Up-right cases can

usually be seen from all four sides. You should keep this in

75

mind when placing your labels. You will want to repeat your

labels on at least two sides and maybe four side of the case.

The wall case is attached to the wall, or actually set into

the wall. Because of this, you can only view the objects from

the front of the case. They are obviously fixed cases, meaning

that they can not be moved around. Most museum exhibitions

contain a mixture of these two kinds of cases. In the Beijing

museum, we used the large wall cases to install those items

illustrating the fundamental chronological development of Chinese

archaeology and the free-standing cases to draw attention to

particularly beautiful objects.

B. Choosing the Right Colours.

Selecting the right colours for your exhibition is an im-

portant part of the design of the show. Usually this is done by

the designer because it is an integral part of the design.

Colour is not simply concerned with superficial visual

effect. Aspects such as psychology and symbolism may also need

consideration, and a knowledge of the science of colour and

colour theories is necessary. The use of certain colours is

also subject to trends which go in and our of style. In the

early 20the century, very dark colours, even black, was preferred

as the background to oil paintings. People believed that black

did not "interfere" with the art. Today the colours used in

museums are generally much lighter. In recent years it has been

popular to display modern works of art against a stark white

background. It is believed that the white colour does not

"interfere" with the colour values in the paintings and that it

reflects light around the exhibition space, while absorbing W

76

rays. However, the current trend is to display modern paintings

on a very light grey background. Museum people say that the grey

is less stark and still allows the viewer to see the true colours

of the painting.

In choosing colours for other kinds of exhibitions, design-

ers, if possible, try to coordinate the colours with the themes

of the exhibit. For example, agricultural themes might use earth

tones, certain religions are associated with specific colours and

an exhibit about that religion might incorporate that colour.

Designers may also try to draw a relationship between the colours

and the physical characteristics of the objects themselves.

In the exhibition in Beijing, for example, we painted each

gallery (room) a different color. The colour was intended to

reflect the majority of the kind of object in the room. For

example, in the Neolithic gallery, a very light brown was chosen

which drew upon the warm tones of the reds, greys, and pale

yellow-browns of the Neolithic pottery. The Shang and Zhou

galleries, on the other hand, contained mostly bronze ritual

vessels and weapons. Here we chose a very, very pale greenish

blue which complemented the very beautiful green-blue patinas of

the bronzes. In the Sui-Tang Galleries, where once again the

majority of objects were un-glazed tomb figurines with some

surface colour, we switched back to a tan-buff colour. With the

cooler Ming porcelains, we used a light grey colour. Throughout

the exhibit, we lined our cases and covered the pedestals with

natural (undyed) linen (a very light tan colour). This fabric is

completely safe for objects because it contains no harmful dyes

or chemicals, and its colour was very neutral - this means that

77

the colour was suitable for every one of the galleries and we

could use the same fabric everywhere. We did this because it was

more convenient, but sometimes if you have the money, the design-

er will change the colour of the fabric used in each gallery as

well.

It is common knowledge that colours contribute to the at-

mosphere in the exhibition. You can make your exhibition warm

and inviting by using warm colours (pale reds, oranges and yel-

lows or earth tones with a touch of a warm colour) or you can

create a "cool" environment with pale greens and blues. Design-

ers are careful to select colours which are harmonious with each

other and provide a pleasing effect.

Interesting experiments have been done on the psychological

effects of colour. For example:

1. A noise sounded louder to a listener in a white room than the

same noise heard in a violet room.

2. People in a blue room turned the heat up four degrees than

those people sitting in a red room.

3. In a situation where identical twenty-minute lectures were

presented to two audiences, one in a blue theater and one in a

red one, the people in the "blue" group said they felt bored and

people in the "red" group said that the lecture was interesting

and time passed quickly!

4. A dark blue packing case seemed to feel heavier than an iden-

tical crate coloured yellow.

Clearly there are many interesting things to learn about

colour and its effect on people. So far no experiments have been

made with museum audiences, but some of the results from other

78

experiments could be used by museums.

Lighting the exhibition is another important element in the

design of the exhibition, and we will discuss this topic next

week, because the lighting is arranged after the objects are

installed.

IV. The Exhibition Environment

While putting together the different parts of the exhibi-

tion, it is necessary to remember the exhibition environment and

to do your best to safeguard, i.e. to protect, both the objects

while they are on exhibit and the visitors while they are inside

the exhibition. Here we will focus on the safe environment for

the object.

As we all know, light, heat and humidity can be damaging to

objects as can be dust, air pollution (especially chemicals in

the air) and attacks by living things, for example moths, cock-

roaches and other kinds of insects.

It is recommended that questions about conservation of the

objects while they are on display should be answered in conjunc-

tion with the conservator. We have already mentioned, that all

objects, before they go on exhibition should be inspected by the

conservator.

A. Humidity

All museums are concerned about the relative humidity inside

their storage areas as well as their exhibition rooms. What is

relative humidity? Relative humidity (RH) is a measure of the

amount of moisture in the air relative to the amount the air is

capable of holding, expressed as a percentage. For example, if

the air at a particular temperature contains half the water vapor

79

it can hold at that temperature, the relative humidity is 50%.

The formula is:

RH L- amount of water in a given quantity of air x 100%

maximum amount of water air can hold at a given temperature

The reason for concern about the relative humidity of the

museum environment is because a high level of RH has a deleteri-

ous effect on many kinds of museum objects. It can make metals

corrode, dyes fade and organic materials deteriorate. Different

kinds of fungus and moulds, as well as different kinds of pests,

also flourish in environments with a high RH.

In temperate climates we recommend keeping a stable tempera-

ture of about 66-72O F (19-22'C) with a relative humidity between

45-558. Not enough work has been done on or published about the

conditions for tropical climates where the humidity is always

higher. I have, however, read a chapter by one specialist who

briefly mentions tropical environments and he acknowledges that

it would be a mistake to try to lower the relative humidity in

either the storage rooms or the exhibition rooms in the tropics

to 55%. Instead he recommends trying to keep RH around 65%.

Why does he make this recommendation? Tropical countries

are normally hot and humid all year round. Consequently, the

objects are "happier" in a more humid climate and are acclimated

to containing more moisture. If you introduce them suddenly to a

drier environment, the dryness itself will cause damage. For

example, I was given a wooden carving of an elephant in China

which was made in the Xishuangbanna region of Yunnan, a tropical,

humid environment, on one visit to Yunnan in 1991. I brought my

elephant back to my room in Beijing. Beijing winters are cold

80

and very dry. My poor elephant developed a large crack. Thus,

we can see that my elephant was happier in a more humid environ-

ment. However, are there recommended limits to how high the RH

can be in tropical environments?

Humidity in tropical countries is almost always above 65 8

with most days being at least 80% or higher, and it is recommend-

ed to try and keep the RH at 65% and no higher than 70%. The

reason for this is because specialists have discovered that 65-

70% seems to be a critical threshold. A constant RB above 65% is

a problem because it encourages the growth of moulds and fungus.

Thus, it is recommended for museums in tropical regions that they

try to keep their RH around 65% all year round. This means that

during the rainy or wet season, it will be necessary to use

different methods to lower the RH and to try and keep it at a

steady level.

Ways to do this include air-conditioning systems, fans and

more sophisticated ventilation systems, and dehumidifiers.

Another solution is to create a "micro-climate" inside the dis-

play case (also called the vitrine). The use of moisture-retain-

ing materials such as wood and textiles in their construction or

in display supports, as these will act as buffers against rela-

tive humidity fluctuations. Should strict control be necessary,

chemical dessicants such as silica gel might be used.

Before you can monitor and modify your museum environment,

it is essential to know what is your environment. For example,

what is the range of RH is for your area? Does anyone, in fact,

know what exactly is the range of RH for Hue? Everyone always

says that Hue is very humid, but what are the facts? In addi-

81

tion, does anyone know what are the shifts in humidity in Hue?

Does the humidity change radically from one week to the next or

from one season to the next? The latter information is signifi-

cant because sudden shifts in RH are more harmful than gradual

shifts, or even a constant higher RH. This is why it is harmful

to turn air-conditioners off at night, and why it might be better

simply not to use an air conditioner at all.

In order to measure both the temperature and relative humid-

ity in your museum, you can use several kinds of simple instru-

ments. They are: sling psychrometers; recording thermohydro-

graphs and dial hygrometers. I have already recommended that

your museum purchase these items in order to begin monitoring the

environment. We will discuss these instruments and their use in

detail in the workshop on preventative conservation.

B- 1I&&t

Light is damaging to many kinds of museum objects, but not

too others. Light does not cause much damage to stone, metal and

glazed ceramics, however, organic materials and especially mate-

rials which have surface colour are particularly effected. This

category includes things like paper, textiles, leather, feathers

and pottery with painted surface designs. Although you cannot

eliminate light completely (otherwise you can not see your exhi-

bition), but you can reduce damage by doing three things:

1. eliminate as much ultra-violet (W) radiation as possi-

ble. To do this, can place W filters (like a sleeve which fits

over bulb) over all fluorescent lights. Daylight is the most

dangerous source of W, so it is recommended to place W filters

over the windows, or not to have windows at all. You should also

82

place light sensitive objects as far away from sunlight as possi-

ble.

2. In addition, there are recommended light levels for

specific kinds of material:

Bone, horn, ivory (where there is surface colour), lacquer,

leather (undyed) and oil paintings: lo-15 footcandles (150 lux)

dyed leather, furniture, manuscripts, prints and drawings, tex-

tiles (including costumes and tapestries) and natural history

specimens: 5 footcandles (50 lux).

Light exposure is measured in terms of illuminance (the

level of illumination) as well s the duration of exposure., The

way to measure the light exposure is to use the kind of light

meter used by professional photographers. The footcandle unit is

used in the United States and is the amount of light projected

from a standard light source one foot away from the object.

"Lux" is the name of the measuring unit used in Europe. We will

discuss light levels in greater detail during the preventative

conservation seminar.

3. In addition to the harmful rays emitted from sunlight and

fluorescent lights, we should also consider the damaging effect

of heat from lights. Museum lighting systems usually include, in

addition to fluorescent lights, tungsten lights and low-voltage

spotlights. Although these lights do not emit harmful W vol-

tage, they are very hot and should not be placed close to an

object. To understand the heat in these lights, even ordinary

lights used in our living rooms, I can tell you that I often dry

small pieces of laundry on top of a light whenever I am in hot

and humid countries (I do this in Hue). On occasion I have

burned my laundry if I have left it too close to the bulb for too

long! This can happen in your museum cases if the bulbs are too

close to the object. They also heat the air in the cases and

thus can make the environment inside the cases too cry. The

starter units of fluorescent tubes also get hot. This is someth-

ing people do not usually think about.

In the exhibition area, the harmful effects of light have to

be balanced with the need of the visitor to see the exhibit

clearly and to be able to read the labels. We will discuss this

problem more in Wednesday's lecture.

C. Pollution

As our final topic for today, we will briefly consider the

problem of pollution in the exhibition gallery. Dust is general-

ly the pollutant which poses the commonest threat to museum ob-

jects.

Dust contains atmospheric pollutants, and substances like

sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide (bad for metals). Dust can

also be mixed with grease and oils and form a sticky surface on

your objects which is harmful. Obviously it is best if you can

keep the museum doors and windows closed. However, your museum

has specific problems which you will have to resolve.

84

114 The exhibition environment

‘

(a) Arterial

----. .\ i \\ ,---- - \; ;:’ -

(d) Star/Fan

Linear

Figure 9.1 1974)

(b) Comb

(e) Block

Free Corridor

I I I *----

: a,- - - - -

I *\ \ I

----- ‘- ’ \ s-0 , I

~~

I 1 \ ,------ ‘y---w I \ *\ ‘W-M- \ I

-8 .---’ I

t

(c) Chain

Alcove Composite

Examples of typical circulation patterns (after Lehmbruck

85

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS AND EXHIBITIONS

Lecture VI 19 April 1995

INSTALLATION OF THE EXHIBITION

I. RULES FOR HANDLING OBJECTS

At this time I feel that it would be useful to review the

rules or guidelines for handling objects. After your exhibition

pieces are in place, it is time to install the pieces in their

proper place inside the exhibition. Very often people are often

now in a hurry because they are trying to meet the deadline of

their opening date. However, installing the objects is exactly

the time when you have to be the most careful, because you are

handling the objects themselves. These are rules which I am sure

you all already know, but it is always useful to review knowledge

we already have. It is also very easy to forget or decide not to

follow these guidelines and then.to break an object. These are

the same rules you should follow when you work with the objects

during inventory.

Before bringing objects into the exhibition area, it is

obvious that the room should be completely clean and ready for

the objects. The display cases should also be ready: they are

clean both inside and out; any stands or inserts used in the case

should be covered with fabric and in place: labels should be

ready. Now it is time to bring your objects into the gallery,

put them into their correct place, put in the labels and close

the display case.

As you do this you should remember:

1, Take your time. Never Rush.

87

2. Begin with clean hands. It is best to wear white gloves

unless the object is very slippery, like a porcelain bowl for

example. Our hands are constantly exuding grease and sweat, and

these can stain unglazed pottery and even stone (stone is porous

and absorbs dirt and grease). Sweat and the salts in sweat can

damage metals. It can etch lines into its surface. This sweat

can accelerate bronze disease.

3, Check condition of object t&ore touching it. Look for dam-

aged or restored areas which may be weaker than other parts of

the object. When you move it do pick the object up by these

parts.

4. Do not move an object until you have prepared the space to

where it will be moved. Make sure the object is stable before

leaving it.

5. Remove lids or other movable parts before moving objects.

6. Keep the object over the table or other padded surfaces as

much as possible,

7. When grasping an object, always use both hands. One hand

should be used as a support for the object. Never grasp a handle

or some other kind of protrusion on the object because it might

break off. Try to always grasp the body of the object.

8. If the object is heavy, such as Cham sculpture, then make sure

you have equipment ready and have prepared yourselves how to move

the object.

10, When moving objects out of storage into the exhibition room,

used padded trays, push-carts or dollies. Do not overload your

vehicle. Stand objects on their most stable base for moving, for

example a bowl with a wide mouth should be turned upside down

88

.

when moving. When pushing your cart, remember to walk slowly, do

no run. Even the movement of the cart can loosen weak parts of

the object and cause them to fall off.

11. Never leave an object sitting directly on the floor.

II. LIGHTING

Lighting is essential to an exhibition and is a key factor.

It ranks with shape, colour, form, space and texture as one of

the basic design elements, It is also one of the most complex

because it involves an understanding of behavioral psychology as

well as aesthetics. It is also very technical. People who are

light specialists must understand and be trained in the technolo-

gy of the equipment they are using, as well as be able to master

the technical calculations involved in order to'achieve the de-

sired effects. If the lighting plans are complex, it is recom-

mended that you consult with an electrical engineer.

The obvious reason to put lights in the museum is to make

visibility easier for the museum visitor, However, as YOU all

well know, the techniques of lighting are more than just a tech-

nical assignment. Lighting also produces an aesthetic effect as

well as a psychological effect on the visitor. Lighting can

create a sombre, pensive environment, dark and mysterious in some

sections, while highlighting others. On the other hand, lighting

Call create a warm feeling in the exhibition, simulating the

effect of being outdoors on a nice day.

The question, "what is the correct light for an object?"

from an aesthetic point of view has answers on different levels.

On the subject of European painting, some curators argue that to

89

be historically accurate, the painting should be seen using light

similar to the kind the artist used when he was creating it.

Others argue that the painting should be seen today in the same

kind of light that it was seen when it sat in the home of the

person who first owned it. Others would disagree with these

historical arguments and suggest that the painting should be seen

in a kind of light which helps today's visitor to see it clearly

in a light which accentuates its beauty.

Of course, as we have already discussed briefly on Monday,

at the same time, you must also consider the conservation needs

of the object. Certain objects, such as textiles, and paintings

on paper, should have very low levels of light which will not

damage the object.too much while it is on display.

Before putting the objects into their cases, the basic

system of lights should be in place. Then, after the objects are

present, the "fine-tuning" can be done. This means that the

detailed aspects of lighting should be done, making sure each

individual object is lighted in the best possible manner.

A. Kinds of Lights ..-__~_ .

There are two main types of artificial illumination: fluo-

rescent lamps and incandescent lamps.

1). Fluorescent lamps provide an even shadowless emission of

light. They are extremely economical (i.e. they are inexpensive

to buy and to use) and come in a limited range of cold or warm

white colour (the "warm" fluorescent lights might not be avail-

able in Vietnam). One of their problems is that they cannot be

focused on particular objects and do not project parallel beams

of light. They are best used to provide general illumination.

90

This means that the room or cases can first be lit using fluores-

cent lights to create a general, well-lit atmosphere. Many

people agree that this atmosphere is bland and lacks drama.

Thus, most lighting specialists will create special effects using

the incandescent lights.

One of the most serious concerns with fluorescent lights is

that they emit alot of ultra-violet rays which are harmful to

organic materials, especially organic materials with pigments

(colour) on them. In your museum the painted wooden objects and

textiles are at risk. We have already mentioned that the way to

prevent these rays from damaging your objects is to cover the

lights with UV lights with filters which are like a sleeve which

fits around the tube. A common type of W filter is thin plastic

sheet called UF-3 which is sold rolled up. They can be used

around fluorescent tubes. The sleeves should be long enough to

cover the ends of the tubes where W output is the highest.

These are easy to use, but you have to remember to take them off

and put them back on when you need to change the tubes.

Let us summarize the good points and the bad points of

fluorescent lights:

1. they produce a minor heat output - good

2, they produce a significant amount of ultraviolet - bad

3. its unattractive fixtures are often hidden - good

4. they have a long life - good

5. they do not cast a long ray of light - bad

6. they have poor color rendering - bad

7, they use energy efficiently - good

91

2). Incandescent lights, produced by tungsten-filament

bulbs, is a more interesting light source. They emit only a very

small amount of W rays, but their main problem is that they

produce alot of heat, I also mentioned this problem on Monday.

So, when using these kinds of lights you have to remember to keep

the lights far enough away from the objects so that the heat from

the light does not hurt them. You can also create ventilation to

cool down the air.

Incandescent lights include come in a variety of different

types such as spotlights, reflector floods and floods. They also

come in a variety of strengths. The floods are used to give a

general light in one direction. They highlight large objects or

create pools of light. Low-voltage spotlights throw a light beam

at a considerable distance with sharp shadows and are ideal to

illuminate small objects with a beam of bright light. For light

to travel farther, higher wattage is required; so for example,

two loo-watt lamps give off the same light as one 200-watt lamp,

but the 200-watt lamp will throw the light further.

One of the additional problems of incandescent lights is

that they are also more expensive both to buy and to use. Howev-

er, it is the use of these kinds of l.ights that give you the kind

of flexibility to create different kinds of lighting effects in

an exhibition. Your should remember, if you only use fluorescent

lamps in your exhibition, you will create an even (shadowless)

flood of light. People will be able to see the objects and read

the object labels, but the lights will not create any special

effects or any kind of environment for your exhibit. On the other

92

hand, should you only use spot lights, the effect will be very

dramatic, but the visitors will not have enough general light to

move through the exhibit comfortably and to read the labels

clearly.

Often incandescent lights are part of a system of "tracks"

(show illustration) which are built into the ceiling of the

gallery. Others are designed for use in fixed position. The

system of tracts means that you can attach as many or as few

lights that you want. You can also move them along the track to

position them where you want them to be, so that you can focus

them on one specific object or group of objects. Fixtures for

tracks generally have small clips in the front that provide a

space for the addition of additional equipment such as diffusers

and neutral-density filters, This track system is also equipped

with special electrical wiring and adaptors designed for the

incandescent lamps. It can only be installed by people who have

trained as electricians.

To sum up the pluses and minuses of incandescent lamps:

1. they produce a lot of heat - bad

2. they have insignificant W - good

3. they have a controllable focus - good

4, they come with a wide range of fixtures - good

5. dimmers are available, but they have a short life - bad

6. they cast a long beam of light - good

7. their show the truer colours of the object - good

8. they use energy inefficiently (i.e. they are expensive)

- bad

If the lighting system in your museum has no flexibility

93

(and I think the Long An Museum will lack flexibility - but I may

be wrong), then one way we might think about highlighting objects

is to design lights mounted on panels which can be placed where

ever you need emphasis.

B - Li~h_t_ing T~c.MWzues

If done carefully, lighting can be done at safe levels so

that the objects can be seen in a flattering way. How does a

lighting specialist do his job and what are the kind of things he

considers as he lights the exhibition?

Let me use the Sackler Museum of Art & Archaeology at Peking

University as one example of how a lighting system was created

and how the final lighting was done. First of all, I would

like to point out that the museum always required artificial

light because the architect designed the museum so that there was

almost no natural light. He was following the principles of

modern museum design, but it was my opinion that this principle

came into conflict with the economic reality of the museum. In

addition, almost all of the objects displayed in the museum were

pottery, bronze and glazed ceramics - none of which are highly

light sensitive. So, it would not have been unreasonable to have

allowed more natural light. However, this was not done. Conse-

quently, the museum was also designed with an elaborate lighting

system -

It was decided to use a system which combined fluorescent

and incandescent lights. Because of the expense of using incand-

escent lamps as well as the expense of replacing them when they

burned out, the architect designed a dual system. This means that

the most beautiful exhibition light system would be the one where

94

both incandescent and fluorescent lamps were turned on. However,

if the museum wanted to save money, it could just use the fluo-

rescent lamps and the exhibition would still be visible, although

not as beautiful. Each wall case had been designed to include

several fluorescent lamps as well as several incandescent spot

lamps on a track. They were installed in each of the wall cases

behind a thick layer of shatter-proof opaque glass so that you

could not see them. The ceiling was fitted with rows of tracks

for spot lights as well as rows of fixed flood lamps set into the

ceiling.

When Richard, the lighting specialist of the Sackler-Freer

Galleries in Washington, D.C. came to Beijing to light the gal-

leries the track system was in place, and the fixed flood lamps

and fluorescent lamps had already been installed. He began his

work in the following way. First, he assembled all of the eguip-

q ent and parts he would need to do his lighting. He had already

asked us to prepare tall ladders, a mechanical lift (a kind of

mechanical ladder with a basket large enough for a person to

stand in) and to take all of the lamps and their fixtures out of

their boxes and put each lamp inside its correct fixture. He

also asked us to prepare small filters for each lamp. This

filter, which we made ourselves, was a round circle cut out of a

very fine mesh screen. The purpose of this filter was to soften

the brightness of the spotlights. This small filter was placed

in front of each lamp.

All the lamps with their fixtures were then brought into the

different rooms in the museum. Each room was assigned a certain

number of lights and this number was placed in each of the rooms.

95

Now Richard's .job was to create the artistic and dramatic

atmosphere for the exhibition, Richard liked to begin with a

totally dark room. After installing the spotlights on the

tracks, he first illuminated the walls, to bathe the room in

light. Next he concentrated on the primary text panels which

were found at the entrance to each room, and finally he focused

on the individual cases and labels inside the cases. He wanted

to create a harmonious effect of general light together with

dramatic ligbting of each object of groups of objects. During

the time he worked on the lighting, he took great care to avoid

creating glare or light reflection on the glass of the display

cases.

As you know, the surface of bronze ritual vessels from the

Shang and Zhou dynasties are covered with elaborate and intricate

designs. When we installed tflece objects and there was only

fluorescent lighting, the general shape of the object was clear,

but it was only with the addition of the spot-lights that the

designs appeared clear and sharp. The effect was very notice-

able.

C, Some Gene.ral Principles and Guidelines for_ Lighting - _--.-..-. _.

1). Lighting for Emphasis_md Modeling

If items are to be viewed to their best advantage they must

be lighted so that their special features are brought out most

effectively. The eye is always drawn to the brightest and most

strongly accented parts of a scene. Lighting, therefore, should

highlight the objects without being overdone. Sometimes a strong

ray of light on an object in a dark environment can draw your

attention, but at the same time it can prevent details of the

object from being seen clearly. Lighting can also be used to

"hide" dull corners of the exhibition and give contrast to bright

ones. + even light is generally desired for flat objects such

as paintings and textiles, whereas a more dramatic effect will

emphasize the form, solidity and surface qualities of three-di-

mensional objects.

Light can be used to model an object, this means to reveal

the true shape and texture of the object. The person doing the

lighting should study each object to see what characteristics of

the object to emphasize.

In general we can say that the effect of modeling is

achieved by the direction and dominant angle of the light flow.

Highly diffused light tends to flatten shape and form, suppress

detail and dull the sheen or glaze of metals, ceramics and many

embroidered or woven fabrics. On the other hand, excessively

sharp, direct lighting can give an very harsh appearance. The

person doing the lighting must experiment with the lights and

using his own judgment decide which direction and angle looks

most flattering.

2). .CoL_o_r_ s% L&?l_t _-and ..Backs.r~wd

You have to consider the color of the light and the intensi-

ty or brightness of the light. We have already mentioned, colors

are either warm or cool. We mentioned this trait in discussing

colours used for painting the walls. The same contrast exists

with the lights themselves. Tungsten incandescent lamps are warm.

This means that warm colors, for example reds and oranges, will

look more red and more orange than they do in daylight- Most

97

fluorescent lamps are "cool". They will emphasize cool colors

such as blues and greens. In your exhibition you will both want

to render the true colors of the objects, but also to create

effects. Once again, the best lighting uses both warm and cool

colours and the specialist experiments with both.

3). Some Guidelines for Specific Kinds of Gbiects

Gostumms: Low light levels should be used. However, choose lamps

which provide true color rendering, If costumes shown in a

3-dimensional manner, use some incandescent lamps to highlight

shape.

Glass: -_.-_.-. Spotlighting glass will emphasize facets that are often

best seen against a dark background. Opaque glass should be

treated as a ceramic, with strong front or side light for model-

ing against a slightly rough, neutral background.

Las@-Met-sl Qbiect : These works well with general lighting sup-

plemented by spotlights to pick up luster and modeling. Metal

objects which look silvery will frequently be enhanced by a pale

blue or grey background- Gold looks best against a dark back-

ground.

PECQ.% t we : General lighting is usually alright for furniture

displayed alone or in small groupings* We must be careful with

W rays for the painted furniture in the Long An Museum.

Sxlpture : Some directional lighting looks good on sculp-

ture-in-the-round (means you can see the sculpture from all

9x

sides) - adding spotlights will help. Use light "modeling" on

the sculpture, with most of it coming from one side, and not from

behind. Avoid direct frontal lighting.

Very shallow carved panels are best lighted by means of

fluorescent lamps located slightly above them. Carving in high

relief looks best with a combination of fluorescent and incandes-

cent lamps.

D. Different Kinds-of Lightii.Syst.emg -----__

Lighting should consist of three separate systems: house

lights for working and cleaning purposes; display lights, for

when the exhibition is open to the public: and emergency lights

for use should either of the other systems fail.

4. Maintenance-of -hishtJ-ns 5~stems

Lighting systems need to be designed with maintenance in

mind. Is it easy to change the bulbs when they burn out? Do you

have the proper equipment in the museum necessary to change the

bulbs? Are the bulbs that you are using easily available in your

city? Surprisingly this mistake is often made. Lamps were used

in the Beijing museum which are not yet readily available in

China, and when they are, they are very expensive.

In cases where bulbs are designed as part of the case it-

self, the bulbs are usually accessible through a special door.

If you had to open up the display case each time you wanted to

change a light bulb, you probably would not do it.

I realize that these are all simplistic recommendations, but

very often people forget the simple and obvious things because

they are concentrating on more complex issues.

99

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS AND EXHIBITION

Lecture VII 24 April 1995

MUSEUM SECURITY I. Museum Securie. ___----

Now let us talk about another important topic for collection

management. This is the problem of museum security. First, I

would like to emphasize that problems with security, especially

with theft and vandalism, are problems all over the world. These

are not problems unique to Vietnam. Recently in the United

States and Europe there have been thefts of important paintings

from well-known museums. These thefts were the work of profes-

sionals.

When we talk about the topic of security, I wish to point

out that the topic includes more than the problem of theft.

Security in a broader sense includes the need for museums to be

safe from vandalism and fire as well. We must also remember that

when we talk about security, we are not just talking about the

security of the objects, but we must safeguard the security of

people as well, both the staff and visitors.

II. FIRE

Fire is the most terrible enemy for objects. Why is this?

This is because it is always possible to find a stolen object,

and an object which is the victim of vandalism can be repaired,

but fire can completely destroy an object in seconds, especially

if it is made from wood or cloth or paper.

In recent years, fires have increased in museums. This is

partially because of the increased use of electrical wiring in

101

modern day life.

A. Ways to Safeguard your Museum to Prevent Fires

I do not think that I have to tell you about how to safe-

guard your museum from fires. You all work in a cultural complex

whose buildings are made from wood so you have always lived with

the danger of fire. So, today I would like you to tell me what

regulations your museum and the entire Hue Monuments Complex have

concerning fire prevention. I think they will be very similar

with regulations in other countries. I would also like to know

if these regulations are written out and given to all the workers

in the complex? Are they posted where everybody can see them?

How do people learn the regulations, and are there fines or

penalties for people who break the regulations?

I present the following as minimal things to do in order to

make our museums as fire-proof:

1. Check to insure that the electrical wiring is safe. What

about the plugs on all of your appliances, such as lamps, fans,

computers, etc.? Make sure to check the sockets on the walls as

well.

2. Remove all combustible materials from around the museum.

This refers to things such as sawdust, old papers, oily and

greasy rags, half-empty tins of paint, containers of gasoline.

These items tend to accumulate in corners of the museum where

people rarely go, for example in basements and corridors. These

items catch fire quickly. Some of the items, for example, the

oily rags, can begin burning because of spontaneous combustion.

This means if the rags become hot enough, they will begin to

burn. If someone drops a cigarette which is not completely

102

extinguished, these things will also quickly catch fire.

It goes without saying, that there should no smoking in most

areas of the museum, especially the qalleries, the storage area,

the laboratories.

3. In general, good fire prevention is to keep the museum

clean and tidy.

4. Install and maintain fire detection equipment,

5. Install and maintain equipment to put out fires.

B - Esuisment .to~~ut~~~~ _fUs

I will review the basic kinds of equipment used to put out

fires if they start. Again, I think you are familiar with all of

this equipment, and you can tell me which equipment you keep in

your buildings. The standard equipment is still the fire extin-

guisher. There are different kinds, and they are good for dif-

ferent kinds of fires. With all of them, it is important that

the extinguishers are light enough that people can lift them and

carry them. On the other hand, if the extinguishers are too

small, they are useless for a real fire. More important, several

people should also be trained how to use them. All extinguishers

should be checked at least once a month to make sure they are

still functioning. How many people on the current staff are

trained how to use the fire extinguishers? Are these persons

present every day in the museum? I assume the night guards have

all been trained how to use them.

1. For certain parts of the museum, you can use a water fire

extinguisher. Water is good for putting out fires caused by

paper and wood. It will not put out electrical fires or fires

caused by grease or oil. Water will also damage museum objects,

103

so it is not recommended for used in the exhibition galleries and

the storage rooms.

Another version of the water fire extinguisher is the au-

tomatic water sprinkler system.. This system is automatically

activated when a fire begins. If you decide to install this

system, you should put it in the office area and other work

spaces. Recently, the Museum, Library and Archive Committee of

the American Society for Industria-1 Security drew up guidelines

for museum security. They recommended using sprinkler systems

even in galleries and storerooms because they believe that the

newest systems are more technically advanced and that they do not

cause as much damage to objects as a fire does. Many museum

persons still disagree with this recommendation.

2. Carbon dioxide extinguishers (Co2) work by reducing the

amount of oxygen in the air which in turn puts out the fire. They

are effective for grease and oil fires, and they do not damage

objects as much as water does. They do not leave any residue.

However, because they deplete oxygen, they are harmful to human

life.

3- Recently, many specialists favor fire extinguishers with

dry chemicals. It leaves, however, a powdery residue which must

be cleaned up afterwards.

4. You may have heard about a kind of fire extinguishing

system which works by taking all the oxygen out of the room and

replacing it with halogen gas. This is called the halogenated

extinguishing system. This system protects the objects better

than the other systems because it does not use water or chemicals

which may harm the objects. However, this system will kill

people if they are trapped in the room when the system is turned

on. Thus, it is dangerous for the people who work in the museum.

This system was not meant to be used in galleries;, but in store-

rooms. In addition, halogen gas is harmful to the atmosphere.

C. Different Kinds of Prevention Devices

There are many different kinds of devices used to detect

fires, and I think you are familiar with many of them. I will

review them briefly.

1. Smoke detectors: You should place smoke detectors in the

storage rooms and galleries. They should be attached to an alarm

system. When fires begin, the first sign is smoke. If you can

stop the fire before it bursts into flames, the fire will be much

less serious and cause less damage.

2. Heat detectors: It would also be useful to have heat

detectors, which are also attached to a fire alarm system. These

are devices which can detect changes in temperature and can alert

you to a fire which is starting, but which you cannot yet see.

I have seen fire extinguishers in your buildings and even

hose systems. Do you also have fire alarms? What is the rela-

tionship between the Hue Monuments Centre and the Hue Fire De-

partment? Does the Fire Department come and make inspections on

a regular basis? Does the Fire Department come if a large fire

breaks out in one of the buildings?

D. General Guidelines

Everyone in the museum should know what to do in case of

fire. Some people should be assigned as leaders and they should

have more responsibilities if there is a fire. The exits in the

museum should be clearly marked so that visitors can leave the

105

museum quickly if there is a fire. In many countries there is

something called a fire drills. This means that everyone prac-

tices what they should do if there is a fire.

III. TIEFT

How can a museum defend and protect itself against theft? I

am sure that you are all completely familiar with the basic

guidelines recommended to prevent theft and vandalism. For exam-

ple, the most important being:

1. To make sure the collections are all inventoried and

photographed. If an object is stolen, then you have the docu-

ments to prove the object belongs to you.

I would like to digress at this point to introduce the

UNESCO Convention of 1970 and what it means for cultural proper-

ty.

A. UNESCO Convention of 1970

The UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Pre-

venting the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of

Cultural Property was ratified in November 1970. I will intro-

duce this convention and its relationship to the need for you to

have thorough inventories with photographs of all your movable

and immovable cultural property.

Before beginning, it is necessary to explain first what is

International Public law and second what a convention means in

legal terms. International Public law refers to the total of all

the rights and duties of states towards each other. In the past ' 8.)

States believed that they had the right to act in any way they

wanted to achieve what they wanted. Beginning around the 16th

106

century, some statesmen began to believe that there were limita-

tions to this freedom. Gradually a set of rules emerged defining

what one State may legally do to another State. Generally it is

believed that one State should not attack another State. Force

should not be used unless you are attacked by another state. In

general, International Public Law does not interfere with the

domestic affairs of States. However, recent political events,

such as the internal struggles in Yugoslavia, Cambodia, and

several African States, call into question this policy of non-

interference because it conflicts with a state's right to humani-

tarian assistance.

There are two major sources for International Public Law:

Customary Law and Treaty (also called Convention) Law. Customary

law consists of rules recognized and permanently applied by the

majority of States (in the world) as legally binding. It is

applicable to all States. Treaty law (treaties are also called

conventions, covenants or agreements) are treaties made between

two (bi-lateral) or several (multi-lateral) States. They are

only binding for the contracting States (this means they are

binding only for the States who signed the treaty). Treaty law

is important for us because most of the rules and regulations

protecting cultural property on an international level are con-

ventions, and thus are not applicable to all States.

107

1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibitinq and Preventing the ---.-.-_--_--- ____. -___-- _-_ -._. . Illicit Imort, Export-and Transfer-of Ownership-of Cultur_a_!, -__--- - --_ PrPs~x9

What is illicit trade and traffic of cultural property?

Cultural objects such as paintings, antiquities, archaeological

objects, etc. are goods which individuals want to buy and collect

because of their beauty or economic value. These same cultural

objects can be part of the cultural heritage of a country, and

this is why States claim the right to control the trade and

transfer of ownership of some or all cultural objects.

According to International Public Law, States have the right

to declare some cultural objects national property when these

objects are important for the identity of the people living in

the state. Thus, the State is free to decide which cultural

objects belong to the cultural heritage of the State and to make

laws and regulations regarding their ownership.

If the ownership of the objects is transferred contrary to

these laws and regulati.ons, then this transfer is considered

illicit or illegal.

Illicit traffic of objects can be large-scale criminal

operations or single events. They involve stealing or looting

objects from museums, archaeological sites, etc. Illicit traffic

of cultural objects has become an international business because

it is very easy to transport objects from one country to another.

Once an object has moved from one country to another, the

country of origin loses control over the object. The laws of the

country of origin do not apply in the new country. Thus, it is

important to have some kind of international law and cooperation

among countries in order to prevent and prohibit this traffic.

I 08

The UNESCO Convention of Prohibiting and Preventing Illicit

Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property

(hereafter called the Convention of 1970) is an attempt to help

prevent this traffic. It was initiated in 1962 and the final

version was adopted on 14 November 1970. The convention has been

ratified by some 75 countries. However, several important

art-importing countries remain skeptical and consequently have

not yet signed the convention, for example, Japan, Thailand,

England, France, Germany and Switzerland. On the other hand, the

United States, Canada and Australia have ratified it and adopted

various legislative measures necessary for its implementation

into domestic law.

The Convention is non-retroactive - this means that a State

is bound to it only after the time it has signed. Objects which

may have entered that country years before the signing, even as

short as one month before signing, cannot be retrieved using the

treaty as sole justification. The objectives of the Convention

is to reinforce international solidarity in order to combat

illicit traffic in cultural property by establishing a system of

co-operation between States and the ethics of buying and selling

cultural property.

What are the most importantprovisions of the Convention? _--.-.- -_ _--- - -~

1. Every State has to take appropriate and practical measures to

protect its own cultural patrimony according to the standards

established in the convention. These measures include:

a. establishment of inventories b. supervising trade of cultural objects C. adoption of ethical standards for museums, private

collectors and art dealers.

! 09

2. The State must require certificates for the export of cultural

objects, otherwise the export should be prohibited.

3. The Convention also requires States to prevent museums and

similar institutions from acquiring cultural property originating

in another State and which has been illegally exported after the

Convention has been signed by their State. Some museums, like

the museum where T work in the United States, The University

Museum, not only abide by the Convention, but have signed addi-

tional legislation drawn up by the IJnited States government. I am

unhappy to admit that there are other museums in the United

States which do not abide by the Convention and are notorious for

their purchasing of cultural property which has been illicitly

acquired.

4. The Convention furthermore requests States to take measures

for the restitution (return of property to its rightful owner) of

cultural property stolen from a museum or similar institution

(Angkor for example) even if it is in the possession of someone

who acquired it legally.

NOTE: THIS PROVISION TS ONLY APPLICABLE JF THE STOL,EN OBJECT HAS BEEN REGISTERED TN AN INVENTORY.

In this case, as well, the person who purchased the object

"in good faith" (i.e. he or she did not know that the object was

stolen), is entitled to compensation (i-e. they are entitled to

money).

5. The Convention also expects that if a particular site is

endangered by pillage or looting that States who have signed the

Convention should adopt import bans or other kinds of measures to

help of the State whose Cultural Heritage is in danger. The

United States is in the process of doing this with regard to

Khmer art. If a ban on the import of Khmer art becomes law, then

it will be illegal for museums who do not abide by the Convention

to purchase Khmer art.

6. The most important result of the Convention should be the

change is attitudes. By adopting this Convention, the interna-

tional community is exerting moral pressure on people and coun-

tries to re-evaluate the way they buy and sell cultural objects.

One of the results has been the codes of ethics adopted by many

museums in industrialized countries..

In 1978 the "Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the

Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its

Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation" was established by

the General Conference of UNESCO- It is composed of 20 Member

States. It's function is to facilitate negotiations for the

return or restitution of cultural property. The committee has

devised Standard Forms for such requests and has adopted recom-

mendations for legal and diplomatic procedures for specific

cases.

In 1984 UNESCO asked UNIDROTT (Rome-based institute for the

harmonization of law) to draft another Convention for the return

and restitution of cultural property. The main problems are to:

1. define the States of origin 2. define the rights of a bona-fide purchaser 3. define the rules for judicial settlement instead of

diplomatic negotiations.

The final draft of this convention has already been presented and

will probably be adopted by an International Conference shortly.

111

2. After doing the inventory, it is then the responsibility

of the museum director to make sure his museum is as secure as

possible. This is an obvious statement, and includes things with

which you are all familiar. For example, you all know that the

first line of defense against theft is to have a secure building.

You should make sure you have strong walls, strong doors, secure

windows. A strong physical barrier will deter many amateur

thieves. This defense includes putting bars on the windows on

the ground floor, and making sure that the locks you use on your

doors are as sound as possible. You should go through your

museum carefully, checking doors, windows, roof on outside, and

interior barriers on inside of museum. The museum should be

well-lit outside so that at night the guards can see clearly.

3. The best protection against vandalism and theft during

the daytime is still to have well-trained guards in the museum

galleries. On this topic, I will repeat what I said in a lecture

given two weeks ago. It would be useful to teach the guards to

take an interest in the galleries and to feel a sense of respon-

sibilities. They are the people who will watch the public most

closely to make sure they do not touch the objects.

The guards frequently get bored, so if their responsibili-

ties can include more than just sitting in the galleries, they

will be more alert and responsible. They should not replace

guides, but they should be able to answer questions visitors have

about the museum, where facilities are, etc.

Guards could be given a list of objects in the galleries

they protect, and each morning and evening they should check to

112

make sure all the objects, and parts of objects are in place.

In most museums it is common for guards to inspect the bags

of visitors and staff as well. This should be a stated regula-

tion and everyone should comply, especially the staff, so that

there are no bad feelings.

Guards should wear a uniform so that you know who the guards

are. This will also create a sense of pride and respect.

4. Night guards must be even more well-trained than the

daytime guards. They are usually men, and there should be at

least six night guards on your staff. There should be two shifts

per night with two men per shift, plus two men in reserve.

The night guards must make periodic rounds of the museum,

both inside and outside the museum at irregular intervals.

People often ask the question, should night guards have

guns? This is a difficult question to answer. Many people argue

that if the guards carry guns, then the thieves will carry guns

and the violence will escalate. If your museum decides to arm

its guards, then it is essential that they have professional

training so that they do not injure or kill themselves or others.

5. There are many different kinds of electronic security

devices and alarms which can help to protect your museum. Howev-

er, you must remember these devices cannot replace a good staff

of security guards together with strong physical barriers around

the museum, i.e. strong locks on doors with strong doors and

protected windows.

Let us review some of these devices:

1. CCTV System (closed circuit TV system): In this system video

cameras are placed in the galleries and storage rooms. They are

113

attached to a "closed circuit" TV, a television screen which is

set up in a room designated as the security center. The guard on

duty must watch the TV screen continually. There is usually more

than one TV screen, and the guard can change the channel so that

he can watch different parts of the building at the same time.

The problem with this system is that if the guard turns away from

the screen for a few moments, he will not notice if a thief

enters the gallery. Because it is very difficult for human

beings to sit and watch the screen for hours and hours, the

museum must have other kinds of back-up security systems as well.

Let me add one more item about CCTV systems. Some of them are

available with recording devices, so that you are continually

filming everything which happens in the museum. However, this

kind of system is even more expensive, and critics say that it is

a waste of time.

2. The doors should also be attached to an alarm system, so

that if someone enters one of the doors, the alarm goes off. In

more technically advanced systems, there is no alarm which the

thief hears. Instead a signal is transmitted electronically to

the security center so that the security person on duty will

immediately know that a door has been opened. In The University

Museum's security center, we have a large electronic diagram of

the museum and its galleries. Lights flash on the electronic

diagram indicating clearly where the door has been opened. In

this way the thief will think that the museum does not know he is

there, then the security guards can catch him in the act of

stealing.

3. Motion detectors: you can also install motion detectors

114

.

which lets you know that someone is either in the galleries or

has moved an object.

4. Alarms for individual display cases: Sometimes certain

cases themselves are wired with electronic security devices, so

that if someone opens a case, or even moves it, alarms go off or

a signal is transmitted to the security center. This technique

is obviously used for very valuable objects.

In conclusion, however, most museum security specialists

emphasize that none of these devices will be effective if the

guards in the museum are not doing their job. The greatest

deterrent to theft, in the end, is the presence of guards in the

building.

115

.

.

INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUMS AND EXHIBITION

Lecture VIII 26 April 1995

VISITOR INTERPRETATION AND MARKETING

I. INTERPRETATION IN THE MUSEUM AND THE HUE CULTURAL COMPLEX

In many of the previous lectures I raised the topic of the

importance of the role of education in the museum. Education is

one of the results of good interpretation. Interpretation has

two meanings which relate closely to the museological use of

interpretation: 1) to explain or clarify; and 2) to translate (as

from one language to another). The root word wterpres come from

Latin and means a negotiator or mediator between two parties. The

museum, in a sense, is mediating between the collections and the

museum visitor.

In 1957, an American museum specialist defined interpreta-

tion in the museum as "an educational activity which aims to

reveal meanings and relationships through the use of original

objects, by firsthand experience, and by illustrative media,

rather than simply to communicate factual information".

In 1995 this definition is still valid, but we can expand on

it a little to include the following elements:

1. Interpretation seeks to teach certain truths, to reveal

meanings, to impart understanding.

2. Interpretation is based on original objects, whether

animate or inanimate; natural or man-made; aesthetic, historical,

or scientific. Objects when properly arranged, have innate

powers to impart and inform.

3. Interpretation is supported by sound scientific or his-

117

torical research that examines each museum object; analyses the

museum's audience, and evaluates its methods of presentation so

as to secure more effective communication.

4. Interpretation makes use, where ever possible, of sensory

perception - sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. This

approach is illustrated beautifully by exhibits in London's

Museum of Mankind. I described some of the exhibitions in this

museum in earlier lectures, but I think I did not actually tell

you about them because of the lack of time. One memorable exhi-

bition created an Arab market complete with all the good and

spices and sounds. As you wandered through the exhibit, you felt

as though you were walking through a real "suk" (market), com-

plete with smells! This use of sensory perception does not

replace words and more traditional methods of display, but works

together with them to create an experience from which they hope

the visitor will learn.

Interpretation done in the manner of London's Museum of

Mankind provides informal education without the restrictions of

the classroom. It's purpose is to make learning something new a

more enjoyable experience. It is hoped that by creating these

special environments, that the visitor will remember more because

he is engaged in an active learning experience.

So what then are the methods the museum uses to "interpret"

the collections to the museum visitor? The task of interpreta-

tion is done using a variety of techniques and effects. In

addition to creating three-dimensional environments such as the

one mentioned above, which draw the visitor into a new culture, a

natural environment or a historical period, museum specialists

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today make use of all sorts of multi-media technology such as

videos, audio-visual productions and the latest in computer

technology. The more traditional techniques of interpretation

used by museum specialists include tour-guides, demonstrations,

self-guided tours, lectures and publications. All of these are

important methods for interpretation.

Let me briefly expand on a few of these traditional tech-

niques. By demonstrations, we mean a living performance by

people doing something related to the exhibition. For example,

for an exhibition on pottery of American's Southwest Indians held

at The University Museum several years ago, the curator arranged

for a potter from one of the Indian groups to come to the Museum

and demonstrate how she made her pottery. The potter was not

there every day - only on special days - and it was hoped that on

the days when the potter was demonstrating her craft, that more

people would visit the museum.

The so-called self-guided tours are often preferred by

Western museum visitors who do not like to stay in a group. They

do not like to stay in a group because they like to see the

museum at their own pace. I think many of you who have guiding

experience in the Citadel may have run into this problem. It is

very difficult to keep western groups together and speak to them

all at the same time. Because interpretation of your museum and

buildings in the Citadel relies on guides, i.e. it lacks suffi-

cient educational information for the visitor to learn about the

citadel on his or her own, the person who strays from the guided

tour, often loses a lot of information and does not learn as much

as he or she could from the visit (I know this from my own ex-

119

perience bringing museum groups to Asia).

Because of this particularly Western habit, our museums have

developed many strategies for the visitor to learn on his own

while visiting. In addition to the usual text panels and labels,

each gallery might have a detailed pamphlet which is offered free

to the visitor. In France, these pamphlets take the form of

laminated boards which you do not remove from the room. Each

text is produced in French, English, Spanish and German. In

addition, many museums offer a self-guided tour using a walkman

(tape recorder with earphones which you attach to your belt).

The tape takes the visitor on a route similar to that of the

guide, and provides similar information. However, the visitor

can go at his or her pace because he 'or she can turn the tape

recorder on and off. This allows the visitor to linger longer at

one display case than the tour guide might normally allow. In

addition, both the guided tour and the taped tour do not include

everything in the museum (usually because there is not enough

time). With the tour guide, the visitor is rushed by the exhib-

its the guide does not discuss. With the walkman, the visitor

can once again turn it off and then look at things not included

in the taped tour. In this case, the museum labels provide the

visitor with the additional information he or she needs.

Another aspect of interpretation in the museum, is knowing

who is your audience, so you best know how to interpret your

collections and exhibitions. For a long time museums did not

seem to care who was their audience. However, as the role of

education and interpretation in the museum grew, so did the

realization that museums had to understand better their visitors,

120

so as to serve them better. Hence, during the past 15 to 20

years, the idea of using a marketing approach in the museum has

emerged.

II. MUSEUM MARKETING

It is very popular to talk about "marketing" these days -

even in Vietnam where the current "toi moi" policy encourages

individuals and institutions to develop new ways to stimulate and

promote the economy. However, what does the term "marketing"

really mean?

Many people incorrectly believe that marketing simply means

publicity for the museum, i.e. drawing the attention of the

public to their museum and the various activities of the museum

so that more people visit their museum. Although this job is

important, it is a mistake to believe that making publicity is

exactly the same things as marketing. Publicity is part of

marketing, but is not the same thing.

Marketing is really the science of trying to understand who

is your market (this means the people who buy your product or

service), and marketing research is supposed to answer questions

such as what does your market want and how can you best provide

the people in your market with services they want? Marketing is

a concept which comes from the world of business which puts the

customer at the centre of the activity. To do marketing, you

must go through the following cycle:

1. you do market research (to find out what the customer needs or

wants) ;

2, then you develop a service or product to meet this need;

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3. then you sell and promote the product:

4. afterwards you make sure you maintain quality control to

guarantee that the product or service does not fail the needs of

the customer; and you also provide after-sales service.

In many cases the order of the first two items is reversed.

Maybe you already have a product or service and you do research

to see if the customer needs or wants this product or service. I

will provide some examples of both possibilities.

For the first possibility I will provide an example using

the tourist market. Let us suppose you have the idea that you

want to develop your city for tourism, but you have very little

experience in tourists. Before building hotels and creating

services for your tourists, it will be wise for you to first find

out what kinds of hotels tourist like. You can do this by con-

ducting a marketing survey. You will probably discover that

there are different kinds of "markets" depending on the national-

ity, age. income bracket (i.e. what is the salary level) and

educational level of the tourists. The urban planners and archi-

tects can then better plan the kinds of hotels. You do not want

to end up only with luxury hotels, nor do you want to only have

inexpensive guest houses. You must also understand what are the

services tourists expect in their hotels. The Century Hotel is

criticized by many European tourists because it advertises itself

as a first class luxury hotel, but it lacks the superior service

expected by tourists in luxury hotels.

I can provide an example of the second approach based on a

situation in Hue. Last Thursday I visited the village of Sinh.

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As you all know, the village is well-known because for many

generations it has produced wood-block prints which are used

mostly for ritual occasions. Although the people no longer print

the pictures using the traditional methods, many people from the

Cultural Bureau, from UNESCO etc., talk about how wonderful it

would be to restore the use of traditional dyes and methods.

However, to make the natural dyes and to do the prints in the

traditional way takes alot of time and many of the villagers do

not think it is economically profitable to make the prints in

this manner. However, there is a possible tourist market for

these prints. Tourists might be happy to pay good prices for

these prints if they were good quality, used natural dyes and

were made in the traditional way. In order to decide whether or

not to put money into restoring the traditional methods, the wise

investor would first do a marketing survey. He or she would do a

survey among tourists visiting Hue to determine whether or not

they would really want to buy these prints, and if so, at what

cost. If the data suggested that there was a "market", then

someone could invest money into helping the village artisans to

restore the more expensive and time consuming traditional meth-

ods.

.

The second possibility is also the one museums in general

should take. The product, i.e. the museum and its services,

already exists. The question you want to ask is "is the museum

meeting the needs of its public and, if not, what kinds of re-

quests do the people have?" This kind of marketing approach for

museums began in the mid-1960's in America when museums began to

do many visitor surveys. In these surveys museums asked many

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questions to their visitors to find out who they were and what

they wanted from their museum. Here is a list of general things

you will want to find out about your museum from a survey:

1. General attitudes people have towards your museum and its

services.

3 _- . Why people do.n't come to your museum (do they know it exists?)

3. Why people do visit your museum - this helps to provide an

evaluation of the museum's strengths.

4. An evaluation of the image currently projected by your museum

(both negative and positive factors).

5. A critical appraisal of existing visitor services (i.e. cafe,

shop, lavatories, etc.) - identifying any weaknesses or omis-

sions.

6. An evaluation of existing professional services together with

an appraisal of demand - this includes an evaluation of the text

panels, labels, general design as well as additional services

such as lectures and guided tours.

7. What the various groups which make up the potential consumer

market is willing to pay for good service. Is the cost of your

entry too high? Too low? What about the cost of other services?

While you are carrying out your survey, you will also col-

lect data on the people themselves. You will want to know things

like how old they are, what is their level of education, where do

they live, how did they travel to your museum, what is their job

now, of course note whether or not they are a man or a woman. If

they are part of the local population, you will want to know how

often they visit your museum.

However, once you have your data is it important to do

something about it - to try and change what you do in your museum

to meet the requests of the people.

In the United States, one of the stronger complaints about

museums was that they were elitist institutions whose services

were aimed at a well-educated, white visitor. The many other

ethnic groups in America, and especially the black and Hispanic

communities, said that museums were not relevant to their lives.

Since that time many museums have tried to change their image and

to include programs, exhibitions and other activities which will

pay attention more to the needs of these groups. In addition,

during the 1970's and 80's several small, community museums

sprang up in many cities in the United States. These community

museums which were sometimes more like community centers than

museums, were created by the communities specifically to address

some of their cultural needs.

Other things you discover on your surveys might be mOre

concrete. For example, for a long time most buildings in the

United States,including museums, did not provide easy access for

people using wheelchairs. Now it is the law in the United States

that all public buildings construct special ramps and have

special bathroom facilities so that people who are in wheelchairs

can also visit the museum.

III. HOW TO DO A VISITOR SURVEX

Marketing surveys, including visitor surveys, have been car-

ried out for years. Consequently, well-defined methods have been

established which are used in planning, taking and analyzing your

125

survey. Once your museum has decided to take a visitor survey

and has received permission from the Director to do so, the

following steps should be taken:

A. Conceptual Planning

This planning stage is important so that you do not collect

useless data in an incorrect manner. To do proper planning you

should do the following:

1. first organize the team who will be responsible for the

survey and set up the parameters (boundaries) of your study.

This team will then determine if the study is really necessary

(have other studies already been done?), how will the study be

used? How will the information help the museum plan for the

future? And, is the museum really willing to make changes based

on the information gathered in the study?

2. define the purpose of the survey. The planning team

should briefly state, in general terms, the topic of the study

and why it is being conducted. Having a clear statement of

purpose, will help to insure a well-constructed and more meaning-

ful study.

3. define the general and specific information categories,

i.e. define the general and specific topics you want to collect

data on and the kinds of questions you wish to answer. These are

not the specific questions, but the categories of information you

wish to find out.

You also need to decide if you wish to do a survey which

consists of open-ended interviews based upon sets of questions

(which produces qualitative data) or closed-ended interviews

based upon multiple-choice questions (quantitative).

126

4. prepare to collect the information. There are several

different ways to collect data: face-to-face interviews; tele-

phone interviews, mail surveys and partial self-administered

questionnaires, For your purposes in Hue, you can only consider

the face-to-face interviews and the partial self-administered

questionnaires. The latter type means that a person is present

to distribute the questionnaires to the selected visitors. This

person is not expected to do interviews or read the questions.

His or her role is to offer assistance in completing the ques-

tionnaire if the person filling it out has problems.

5. decide how you plan to analyze the data. Even before you

have written your questionnaire, you must think about and plan

for data entry and analysis. Most people use a computer to do

this analysis, and usually consult with a computer specialist.

B. Writing Standardized Questions and Designing the Questionnaire

In order to do an extensive visitor survey with meaningful

results, it is recommended that the team use a questionnaire

which is able to be analyzed by statistical means (i.e. a quanti-

tative analysis), and the information I will talk about today is

about the quantitative questionnaire. However, it might be

useful to select a small sample of people to interview in *eater

depth with "open-ended" questions which allows the visitor to

speak more freely and m0re extensively. Although it is very

difficult to quantify this data, the information obtained is very

useful supplementary data.

It is recommended that you keep your questionnaire relative-

ly short - to about 10 or 15 minutes. This is for the conven-

127

ience of the visitor - you cannot expect him or her to give up

alot of their time. If the survey takes too long, they will

refuse to participate. It is also for your convenience. If you

expect your survey to yield statistically significant results,

then you have to select a sizable sample which could be as many

as 1000 people, This number of people will occupy considerable

time of your team for collecting the data and for analysis,

There are two major categories of questions: open-ended

questions and closed questions.

1. Open-Ended Questions: these questions allow the visitor

to answer in their own words. They are a way to begin the inter-

view - to relax the visitor before beginning the other questions

- or as a pleasant way to end a face-to-face interview. These

kinds of questions are, however, difficult to interpret and

analyze using statistical methods. In addition, it is advised by

those experienced in creating these surveys, that you limit the

number of responses a person can make in an open-ended question.

For example, you might want to ask the visitor "What was the

least satisfactory part of your visit today ? (you may write up to

three comments below)".

2. Closed Questions. This is the question type most often used

in standardized questionnaires and it usually takes the form of

multiple-choice. Closed questions provide the person taking the

survey with a set of predetermined responses from which they must

choose the most appropriate answer(s). This kind of question is

easier for the person taking the survey, and are easier for the

person giving the survey to code and analyze because the data are

uniform. There are two broad categories of closed questions: 1)

128

checklists, and 2) scales.

a, a checklists offers the person interviewed several op-

tions that are independent of one another. The person examines

the choices and chooses one or more responses according to the

instructions. At the beginning of your visitor survey you first

want to collect demographic information about your visitor, for

example, his or her age group, educational level, what is their

nationality etc.

Examples: The highest level of schooling you completed is:

[ ] Grade School [ ] Some High School I: ] High School [ ] Some College [ ] College [ ] Graduate Degree [ ] Other (please describe)

Notice that the question includes a response called "other".

This is important because you cannot describe all the possibili-

ties in your question and there will be several people who do not

fit into the categories you offer. If you do not provide them

with a space to say specifically what is their situation, they

will probably not answer the question.

Another example:

Which collections do you believe this museum holds? (You may choose as many responses as you think appropriate),

[ ] I do not know [ ] Photography [ ] Drawings [ ] European Paintings [ ] American Art [ ] African Art [ ] Asian Art [ ] Greek and Roman Art

b. Scales Scales are used when asking visitors to describe values such

129

as frequency, quantity, quality and intensity. A scale includes

two extremes of the spectrum and moves, at even spaces, from one

to the opposite extreme. They can be designed as multiple-choice

questions. For example:

Indicate the intensity of your opinion by circling one letter for

each statement below. A = Agree: U = Uncertain; D = Disagree

AUD I like to view art without written explanations.

AUD I like to know why a work of art is important.

AUD I like to know the story depicted in a work of art.

AUD I like to know about the materials and techniques used

by the artist.

Guidelines to Follow When Writing Questions:

1. Use simple vocabulary using words all your visitors will

understand. Avoid using jargon and abbreviations.

2. Keep the questions short, no more than 25 words.

3. Be specific and clear.

4. Include only one thought per question.

5. Make sure the responses do not overlap

6. Use "Do Not Know", "Other", "Did Not Use", "None of the Above"

as possible answers when appropriate.

C. Sampling: How many People Should You Survey? How Should You

Select Them?

First you must define who makes up your population. With a

museum, it might include members, museum visitors and even non-

visitors. Once you have decided who is your targeted population,

then you must take a sample of this population in order to gener-

alize about your entire population. Most surveys only use a

sample because the entire population is usually too large. In

selecting a sample of your population, you must use a sampling

method which produces a random sample. Random sampling does not

mean you select respondents at random. It does mean that every

person in the population has an equal chance of being selected to

complete your questionnaire and that you have devised a very firm

plan for selecting respondents. In general, the large(t‘he sample

the more likely it is to be representative of the whole popula-

tion.

There are established methods for selecting a random sample

of your population, such as using a Computer-generated random

numbers table.

D. Pretesting

Once you have designed your questionnaire, the most import-

ant thing you can do to help guarantee success is to pretest it.

Pretesting allows you to discover any problems or ambiguities

with the questionnaire before you actually administer it.

E. Coding Your Data

The next things you have to do after administering your

questionnaire is to code the data. Coding is the process of

converting responses into numbers which can then be used to

tabulate, to count or analyze the data. To code, thus means to

assign one number to each possible response. This makes the data

more easily quantifiable.

F. Analyzing Your Data

Finally, you have to analyze the data using statistical

analysis. If your sample is under 100 people, then you probably

do not need a computer. However, in order to get a reliable

sample, you will probably have more than 100 people and then a

131

computer is very useful. There are different kinds of standard

statistical analyses which you can carry out on your data. Many

museums seek help from a computer analysis specialists at this

stage.

G. Using The Data

Once your analysis is completed, you have to interpret what

the statistics mean for your museum and write a report explaining

the findings. You will also make suggestions and recommendations

for change based upon your findings.

What I am recommending is for you to do a small survey among

the tourists to the Citadel to find out whether the Hue Monuments

Centre is meeting the needs of the tourists. Are the tourists

satisfied with what they are given? Are certain services lack-

ing? Is the cost of admission too high for what they receive?

I know that you are not permitted to make any decisions about

making a survey. However, you could perhaps suggest the pos-

sibility to your leaders.

132

UNESCO WORKSHOP ON COLLECTION MANAGEMENT & PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

Heather Peters

This workshop will be held three times per week, three hours each session for nine or ten sessions- The purpose of the work- shop is to review standard collection management and preventative conservation techniques for the Guardian staff and to encourage them to practice them at all times. Doing so will greatly en- hance the preservation of the existing collections. The workshop will stress the need to use methods which do not rely on expen- sive technology.

Rather than hold a series of lectures, the workshop will move from monument site to monument site each session. Among the sites we find similar problems together with problems and topics specific to a particular site.

SCHEDULE OF UNESCO WORKSHOP

10 May 1995 - Opening Ceremony Lecture: The Storeroom: The First Step in Preventative Conservation Signage

12 May 1995 Lecture: Environmental Conditions in the Museum and Monuments: Humidity, Light, and Pollution

15 May 1995 -- Tomb of Khai Dinh

17 May 1995 - Bao Dai's Mother's House

19 May 1995 - Hon Chen Temple

22 May 1995 - Tomb of Tu Due

24 May 1995 - Tomb of Dong Khanh

26 May 1995 - a.m. Thai Hoa Palace & The Mieu p.m. Closing Ceremony

133

STORAGE MANAGEMENT b PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

CARE OF COLLECTIONS: THE ORGANIZATION OF STORAGE ROOMS 10 May 1995

Today we begin the second UNESCO workshops for the Hue

Antique Museum group. In the first workshop we focused on exhi-

bition. The most important goal of that workshop was to intro-

duce the kinds of planning and programs needed to create an

attractive and educational exhibition for your museum.

The goal of this new workshop is to review the principles of

collection management and preventative conservation. However,

more important than what I say, I want everyone in this workshop

to begin to put into practice on a daily basis the principles of

collection care with which they are familiar. Museum workers

everywhere are tempted everyday to put aside or ignore these

basic principles when they are rushed or pressed for time. What

I hope to accomplish in this workshop is for all of your to

realize that each one of you has the responsibility to do your

best everyday, even when you are very busy. The guidelines for

handling objects, for example, should become a habit, not someth-

ing you have to think about. Then it will not be a burden in

your lives, and your collections will be happier.

I. THE STORAGE-_-ROOM---AND COLLECTION MANAGEMENT

A. Collection Management is a term used by museum specialists

which essentially means taking good care of your collections. It

can be regarded as the first level in the conservation of ob- I

jects. There are three primary ways to insure good care and

management of your collections:

1. Keep proper environmental conditions in your storerooms

135

and museum in general. This means controlling the temperature,

relative humidity, light levels and pollution.

2. Provide training for al.1 persons in the museum as to how

to handle objects properly and make sure everyone follows the

rules, and how to recognize when' an object needs conservation.

3. Keep clean and organized storerooms. This recommenda-

tion does not require a lot of money, just time and care.

B . Ir_h_e_~--g.tore.r-oom

The storage rooms form an important part of the museum.

Many people tend to think of storage rooms as closets where you

put the "less good" pieces which are not on display. However,

nothing could be farther from the truth. We should not think of

the storage rooms as "dead" rooms. They are a living and vital

part of the total collections and should be treated as such. Not

all parts of the collection can be on exhibit. Consequently, the

rest of the collection should be maintained in good condition and

in such a way so that it can be used by curators and scholars for

research and other purposes.

When planning a new museum, It is often suggested that 30-

40% of the total space be used for exhibits, 30-40% for storage

and 20-40% for rest of museum's functions, i.e. offices, labora-

tories, the library, the shop etc. From these statistics we can

see that the storage occupies a significant amount of space in

the museum. This re-emphasizes what I said above, i.e. that the

storage is not merely a dusty, dirty room containing an unorgan-

ized hodge-podge of things. If it is, then it becomes a dead and

unusable room.

C . FxnsZLws_.-o_f_ -.t_h.e~~Ws3~3e Row

136

The function of the storage room is to lengthen the life of

the museum object, to preserve it for the future in order that

the object can be used in the role of interpreting the past and

culture. Whether or not an object is well preserved for the

future is very dependent on the kind of storage provided for it.

Expensive conservation treatment is wasted if the object is

returned after its treatment to a damaging storage environment.

However, it is important to understand that part of the

condition of an object also depends on two initial factors which

lie outside the control of the museum staff itself. These are:

P. the materials and methods of manufacture of the object

2. the environment to which the object was exposed over the

course of its life prior to its arrival in the museum.

Sometimes very little can be done to correct the results of

the maker of the object having used poor materials or craftsman-

ship. However, the museum specialist can lengthen the life of the

object after it arrives in the museum by carefully controlling

its environment, thereby stabilizing deterioration.

What about the history of the environment of the object? By

having this information, the curator and conservator can make

better decisions as how best to store the object. For example,

excessive dampness is not usually considered the best storage

condition for wooden objects. However, if an object has spent

its life in a very humid environment, the recommended range of

relative humidity levels for storerooms in Europe and North

America will be too dry for the object and cause it to crack.

Japanese and Chinese lacquers, for example, also require higher

137

levels of relative humidity than is normally recommended. Con-

servators, in recent years, in fact have become less rigid in

their prescriptions, preferring to evaluate each object's needs

individually.

1. It is important to monitor the climate of your storage

area as closely as possible, and to modify its conditions to meet

acceptable standards. This means you should know precisely what

are the conditions in your storeroom during the year. For exam-

ple you should know what is range of temperature and relative

humidity, not just the temperature and relative humidity on one

day. In this way you can make a better plan to manage your

storeroom.

Basements and attics are considered the worst places for

storage because they are closest to the exterior of the building

and are consequently exposed to any extremes of relative humidity

and temperature. Unfortunately, in most museums, these locations

are the only space available. The best space is usually given to

the exhibition galleries and to offices. Consequently it is even

more important to create methods to improve the climate of your

storage rooms. This will be discussed in detail below.

2. The storage room should be closed to the general public

and accessible only to a limited number of staff members, for

example curators, keepers and registrars. However, visiting

scholars from other institutions who are doing scholarly research

should be permitted to examine and study objects from the collec-

tions. Naturally, they should always be accompanied by a member

138

.

of the museum staff who controls that particular storage. Re-

cently, The University Museum began the policy of bringing the

objects to the scholar, rather than bringing the scholar to the

objects. This means that the scholar has to know in advance what

obj..ects he needs to examine for his research (he does this with

the help of the registrar's office by using the inventory cards

and computer). The objects the scholar wishes ,to examine are

then brought to a "viewing area" in the registrar's office where

he can examine them at his leisure. This method is a little more

work for the keeper of the collection, but eliminates the socuri-

ty concerns that occur each time you bring someone who is not

part of the museum staff into the storage area.

Some museums, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, or

the Sackler-Freer Gallery of Asian Art in Washington, D.C., for

example, also use certain rooms in the storeroom area, or parts

of storerooms, as classrooms. The curator, together with the

professor, brings the students of art and archaeology into the

storerooms in order for them to study and examine pieces which

are not on display in the galleries. From this experience the

students can also learn more about museums.

3. When people are in storage area they should not use pens

or any sharp objects. They should not bring in any food or

drink. It is even recommended that women remove jewelry which

may damage the objects. It goes without saying that there is NO

SMOKING in the storage rooms or in the galleries where objects

are kept. This is a fire hazard and the pollution from the smoke

can do damage to the objects.

134

E. Arrang.ement of. -Qb&-c.ts..-in the Storeroom --.-- ~. --

I wish to emphasize that there is not one way to arrange the

objects in your storeroom. There is no model which every museum

fol,lows. The arrangement of objects within the storage rooms is

a matter of choice by the curators. The arrangement is in-

fluenced by the nature of the collections as well as by the

research and uses to which the collections are put. For example,

at The University Museum, the collections are large and come from

all over the world. Consequently, the first thing we do is to

divide them according to geographical region. Then, within each

regional storage area, each curator and keeper has to decide how

to further arrange the objects. Sometime the collections are

arranged according to material object is made from, sometimes by

period, sometimes by archaeological site, by ethnic group, or

even by type of object. There is no right choice. You, the

curator, must make the best possible arrangement based upon the

needs of the collections. This choice usually reflects how the

keepers and curators use the collections.

Sometimes the material the object is made from overrides all

other issues of storage. Textiles, for example, because they are

organic and more sensitive to temperature, and levels of relative

humidity and light, require stricter storage conditions than

stone objects or ceramics. Therefore, the keeper might decide to

take all textiles in the collection, regardless of where they are

from or what period, and keep them together in one storage area

so that better control can be exercised over their environmental

conditions.

140

In your museum, because the objects mostly come from Viet-

nam, belong to the Nguyen Dynasty and date to the 19th through

the mid 20th century (exceptions are the Champa material and

objects imported from France) you will probably want to arrange

your objects according to the type of material: porcelains,

glass, textiles, wooden and lacquer objects, etc. Then you will

have to decide how you want to arrange the objects within each

category. I can think of many possibilities, and the system

might change with each category. However, whatever way you

choose, it should be systematic and organized. Drawers and

cabinets should all be clearly labeled on the outside so that you

can easily know their contents.

However, there are other aspects of the layout and physical

arrangement which are more general in nature and there are cer-

tain guidelines you should keep in mind while arranging your

storerooms.

1. Do not forget that people have to go in and out of the

storerooms and will have to take objects in and out for various

purposes. Consequently, you should always plan enough space

between the shelves or cabinets for people to walk. There must

also be enough space between the cabinets to open the doors. If

you do not consider these simple suggestions, then there is the

possibility you will bump into your cabinets, or the doors will

knock into the cabinets. This action can cause porcelains or

glass objects to breaklG$I)

At the moment your storage arrangement currently has this

problem. I am aware that the current arrangement is not the

final one, so I am simply drawing your attention to this recom-

141

mendation.

2. If possible, the objects should not be piled on top of

each other and behind each other. This practice is harmful for

the objects and increases the risk of damaging the objects each

time you move them. If some objects have to be stacked on top of

each other, then you should put protective padding between the

objects. I have seen many examples of porcelains stacked inside

each other in your present storerooms. I sympathizes with your

problem of limited cabinet space, but even in the present circum-

stances, it is not too difficult to put some padding between the

bowl and plates to protect them.

3, The storage cabinets themselves should be constructed so

that the keeper can easily reach the objects. Unfortunately many

of your storage cabinets do not allow the keeper to reach easily

the objects. The only solution to this problem is to purchase

new storage cabinets. I know that this problem can only be

solved by your Director, so all I can do is to support your

request to the Centre to purchase more appropriate storage cabi-

nets.($yrr>

4. The storage area also serves as a one of the workspaces

in the museum, so it is very useful to create a space in the room

to set up a table with a good light. It is not good for the

objects to be constantly moved about the museum because each time

you do, there is potential damage to the object. Thus, if you

need to put a new number on an object, or inspect it for conser-

vation purposes, or look at an object like we are doing, to see

if we want to include it in an exhibition, it should be possible

to do this work using a table in the storeroom. You should not

142

have to remove the object from storage.

F. What .~ind.~._f_~st~-~ag_ Feurnirtu.re Do You--Need in. t.~-~....~t.o~~-~~~-~~~ -_--.

What are the kinds of storage furniture you will need in

your storage room? As we pointed out above, the arrangement of

objects in a storage room is unique to the particular museum and

depends upon the on the kinds of materials stored there together

with their function. If the museum specializes in paintings and

drawings, the kinds of storage furniture and arrangement of this

furniture differs from that in a museum whose collections are

primarily large sculpture. Many museums, yours included, have

collections which consist of many types of objects which come in

different shapes and sizes. Therefore, you will have to have

different kinds of storage furnitureffiY.3)

I estimate that you will need a variety of cabinets, flat-

drawer files, deeper drawers and open shelves. In order to

estimate in more detail the kinds and numbers of shelves and

cabinets you will need in your storeroom, you will obviously

first have to finish your inventory. When your inventory is

finished, you can then determine how many objects there are, and

what percentage of the objects are big, are small, what percent-

age are textiles, what percentage are porcelains, etc. With this

data you can better estimate the kinds of storage furniture you

will need and how many.

In the meantime, let us talk about the different kinds of

furniture you will need based upon the kinds of objects I know

you have. In general, because you do not want light effect your

objects, the cabinets should not have glass doors. This is

especially important for objects which are sensitive to light,

143

such as textiles, leather and wood with paint on its surface.

In countries where humidity is not as serious a problem as

in Hue, it is recommended that the doors on cabinets be as tight-

fitting as possible. This will help to eliminate dust. In Hue,

ventilation is probably more important than dust. Consequently,

the cabinets should allow air-flow. In addition, some special-

ists recommend that items like textiles could be covered with un-

bleached cotton, linen or muslin. This method will keep out dust

and light, but also allow the object to have ventilation.

Figure #@,,$llustrates the way that costumes which are in

good condition can be stored. They can be hung on padded hangars

inside the cabinet, or as Ms. Hang has suggested, traditional

Vietnamese robes, could be hung by putting padded wooden rollers

through the sleeves. These robes could then be suspended inside

a specially designed cabinet. Rather than a door, a Venetian

blind or curtain can be used to cover the opening to the cabinet

to keep out light and dust. The drawers beneath the cabinet can

be used to store smaller textiles or costumes which are too

damaged to hang and must lie flat. Each textile in the drawer

should be wrapped in acid-free tissue paper or unbleached cotton,

muslin or linen.

However, objects made from metal require the driest condi-

tions possible. Most specialists recommend cabinets which you

can close tightly and add chemicals such as silica gel to keep

the relative humidity of the "micro environment" low. Another

method is to use "the box-within-a box" system. This means that

you place the bronze object inside a smaller box which is placed

within the tightly closed cabinet. The box inside the cabinet

acts as a buffer zone between the object and the air and helps to

insulate it against the environment.

Many of your objects, for example, porcelains, glass, wooden

objects, can sit on open shelves without doors (figure 2). This

kind,of "open shelving" is often cheap and convenient. I would

recommend that you make shelves which can be moved up or down on

the frame so that you can adjust the height between the shelves.

It might also be useful to construct your shelves so that they

are like shallow drawers. This will prevent objects from falling

off the shelf (figure%). In addition, as a general rule, your

shelves and cabinets should be no deeper than two rows of ob-

jects. It would most ideal if -the open shelf could be reached on

both sides.

Another recommendation for open shelves is that the shelves

should be lined with some kind of padding to cushion the objects.

If there are earthquakes in your country, then some kind of

barrier, for example, fishnet, should be attached to the front of

the shelves to prevent pieces from falling out. A disadvantage of

open shelving is that they are more dirty and dusty than cabinets

with doors. The first solution is, of course, .io seal your

storeroom and make it dust free. However, this solution is not

always possible in many museums. So you need to consider another

way to protect the objects from dust and pollution in the air.

There was a debate in museums as to whether or not you should

place the objects in loosely tied plastic bags, or plastic bags

with holes punched in them (for ventilation) to protect the

object from dirt and dust. Most specialists no longer recommend

this solution, and I especially do not recommend it for the

145

museum at Hue. The levels of relative humidity in Hue are too

high, and even by putting holes in the bag, there is the danger

that condensation would form on the inside of the bag and damage

the object. In addition, with high temperatures, the plastic can

begin to melt and get sticky. Thus, another possible solution

might be to make curtains from unbleached cotton, linen or muslin

to place over the fronts of the open shelves.

Small objects are best kept in drawers or in boxes placed on

shelves or inside drawers. As a general rule, if you have small m

objects such as jewelry, do not wrap or place them in co-tton,

Use acid-free tissue paper or cloth.

Very large and heavy objects, however, often cannot fit into

cabinets or onto shelves. Because it is very important to get

objects off the floor for environmental and security reasons,

most specialists recommend placing them on a sturdy wooden dais

or platform. Mr. Son has already suggested this solution for the

large porcelain water jars and bonsai plant containers in your

collection, and I completely agree. You should also store your

Cham sculpture in this manner. I personally would recommend

covering the Cham sculpture with unbleached cloth to keep the

dust and dirt off the sculpture. I would not necessarily recom-

mend this strategy for the porcelains because it might be too

easy to break them if you remove the cloth carelessly.

G. )Jhat-fla-teri.als .Shou.ld You. Use._to_M_akethe. Storag.?_F.~yni.ture?

There has been a lot of discussion about the kinds of mate-

rial one should use to make the shelves and cabinets. Special-

ists in conservation frequently prefer shelves made from metal.

But because metal can rust or corrode, it is important to that

146

.

the metal cabinets be enameled. However, enamel cabinets must

have been baked at temperatures high enough and long enough to

burn off the harmful components of the paints. You do not want

the cases to off-gas. This means that you do not want the cases

to emit harmful gases which will chemically react with the ob-

jects and damage then. Conservators usually recommend that after

you purchase new enamel metal cabinets, you air them for several

months before putting objects in them. In addition, the metal

cabinets should be well made, and sealed at corners, edges, door

spaces. Before purchasing, pay attention to rough and\or sharp

edges which could hurt people working in the storeroom.

Wood is considered less desirable as a material for cabinets

because it is acidic and exudes harmful resins and other elements

which can damage artifacts. Wood is also more subject to water

and insect damage and can burn in the case of a fire. There are

some advantages to wood, however. It blocks out light; if

objects are dropped on it, they are less likely to chip or break

than with metal, and if fire does not consume it, it is more

protective since it does not conduct heat like metal. It is also

less expensive in many countries.

It is recommended that if wood is used, it should be also

coated with an inert sealer to reduce the possibility of the

wood's acids from harming the objects. Specialists also recom-

mend using a hardwood, but not oak. Plywood can be considered,

but you must used only exterior adhesive-grade type I. Like

wood, it should be coated with layers of some kind of protective

layer. Many people recommend using shellac. Shellac is not

harmful to objects, but the danger lies in the possibility that

147

the layers of shellac will crack as a result of the wood itself

expanding and contracting. When this happens, the acidic fumes

from the wood will be released. Other people recommend layers of

latex (rubber-based) paint. Although latex paint is safe for

objects, it is not considered by everyone to be a good barrier

between the wood and the objects. However latex paints which are

white or other light colors generally include a high proportion

of calcium carbonate which does neutralize acid. Thus white

latex paint can provide some protection against the acid in wood.

It is not expensive in North American or Europe. I do not know

about Vietnam.

At the moment, professionals most commonly recommend using

something called a two-component epoxy and a moisture-cure poly-

ethane. The problem with this epoxy is that is must be mixed

exactly according to the directions and very carefully applied in

several layers. I am told that it is not easy to apply to the

wood. In addition, both of these two recommended barriers are

expensive and not widely available even in North America. Thus,

for your purposes here in Hue, I would recommend using shellac as

a barrier on wooden shelves.

One more alternative to painting the shelves with latex

paint or shellac, or perhaps as a supplement to them, is to line

the shelves with materials such as "Mylar" (polyester sheeting)

or something called Marvelseal (a laminated metal foil). These

are very thin foils which are completely impermeable. I do not

know if they are available in Vietnam.

For the padding you should put on your shelves, specialists

recommend foamed polyethylene (also called ethafoam). In addi-

148

tion cotton, linen, nylon and polyester fabrics are safe if they

have not been contaminated with processing chemicals. You must

know the manufacturing process of any fabric you purchase. This

means you will probably have to go to the factory to inquire how

the textile is made. Undyed and unsized fabrics are the safest.

H. Rules for Handling Cbjeets ----

In our storeroom session on Friday I am going to review the

guidelines for handling objects and make everyone practice. s.

When you are working in the storeroom you will have to pick

up objects and move them around. These are the rules you must

follow so that you do not damage or harm the pieces in any way.

1. TAKE YOUR TIME. Never rush.

2. Begin with clean hands. It is also best to use gloves unless the object is very slippery, a porcelain bowl for example. Few people realize that our hands our constantly exuding grease and sweat, and that these things can stain unglazed pottery and even stone (stone is porous and absorbs dirt and grease). The sweat and salts can also harm bronzes and can actually etch lines into its surface. The sweat from you hands can also accelerate bronze disease.

3. Check condition of object before touching the object. Look for damaged or restored areas which may be weak.

4. Do not move an object until you have prepared the space to where it will be moved. This should be a clean space away from the edge of a table. Make sure that the object is stable before leaving it.

5. In general, move artifacts as little and as seldom as possi- ble. Each time you move an object is potentially dangerous for the object.

6. Remove lids or other movable parts before moving objects unless you are certain that they are firmly attached.

7. Keep the object over the table or other padded surface as much as possible.

8. When grasping and lifting an object, always use both hands and

use one as a support for the object. Never grasp a handle or extension on object because it may break off. Always grasp the body of the object. Again, look for existing damaged areas before picking up an object.

9. If the object is large and heavy, such as a Khmer stone sculp- ture, have trained people and equipment ready. If object is very large and heavy, then is best to bring in specialists with spe- cial, equipment.

10. When moving objects out of the room, use padded trays, push- carts, or dollies. Do not overload your vehicle. Objects should never protrude from the vehicle. Stand objects on their most stable base for moving, for example, bowls are often wider at mouth than at base, therefore invert them during moving. Try to keep objects of one type and one size together. Remove movable parts like lids. When pushing your cart, remember to walk slow- l‘Y, do not run. The movement of the cart can cause loose parts of an object to break and fall off.

11. Finally, never leave a piece of art sitting directly on the floor.

In conclusion, the most important of good storage is very

simple, it is good housekeeping. This means that you keep your

storage room clean, free from dirt and dust and garbage and in

good order. You should check your storage areas frequently, for

changes in temperature and humidity and for any damage which may

have occurred, such as a water leak. You should also regularly

check certain kinds of objects for conservation problems. We

will discuss in future sessions what things you should look for

while inspecting your objects.

1’50

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151

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FGuf-e 3 153

MANAGEMENT OF STOREROOMS 61 PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION Session II: The Environment

12 May 1995

I. Teemperatur.e-and. Relative H+i-.l&ty

A. What is Relative Humidity

Let us review again just what is relative humidity and why

it is so damaging to museum artifacts. As you probably already

know water is found everywhere and is in everything. Even our-

selves - as much as 65% of our own body weight is water. Plants

and animals contain a lot of water as well, so it is not surpris-

ing that products made from organic materials also contain mois-

ture. If you take away too much moisture from organic objects

for example, wooden objects, or lacquer objects, then the object

will shrink and which will result in it splitting or cracking.

The fibres in leather or textiles become less flexible and we say

that the textile is brittle. It crumbles easily in our hands.

Too much moisture, on the other hand can cause objects to

swell and in doing so they can change shape. When wood does

this, we say that it warps. For example, when the temperature is

very humid and the door to your house swells and cannot be

closed, we say it is warped. Another serious problem with damp

conditions is that they are ideal for the growth of moulds and

fungi.

Specialists sum up the changes influenced by RH into three

different modes of deterioration:

1. Change in size and shape (physical mode)

2. Chemical reaction (chemical mode)

3. Biodeterioration (biological mode)

157

Because the amount of moisture in the air (i.e. humidity)

has such an important effect on museum objects, it is impor.tant

for the museum specialist to be able to know how to measure it

and control it. Most specialists agree that controlling humidity

is.even more important than centrolling the temperature. They

also agree that controlling wide swings in the humidity is more

important than the specific humidity.

Let us review some principles of humidity and why we talk of

relative humidity and not absolute humidity. This is because the

amount of moisture air can hold depends on its temperature. The

warmer the temperature, the more water it can hold. At 10°C air

can hold ab0u.t 10 gallons per cubic meter of air, at 206C about

17 g/m)and at 3@C'over 30 g/m? This means that hot air with

lOg/m'of water vapour is dryer (and possibly too dry) than cold

air with lOg/m'which is too damp. This principle also means that

moisture can actually condense out of the air as the air cools as

it does from daytime temperatures to nighttime ones.

Thus, the formula for relative humidity is measuring the a percentage,saturation of the air. Air at 50% RR is holding half

the water i,t can at any temperature. This is more meaningful

information for us, the museum specialist than knowing the abso-

lute amount of moisture the air is holding at a specific moment

at a specific temperature. I already gave you the formula for RR

during last workshop, but I will give it again for the new peo-

ple.

RR = amount of water in a given quantity of air x 100%

Maximum amount of water which the air can hold at that temperature

158

This question is not as easy to answer as it once was. As a

general principle, most museum specialists agree that the storage

and exhibition areas in the museum should try to maintain steady

temperatures and relative humidity. They suggest keeping the

temperature at 18-21°C and the RH at 45%-55%. This range of

temperature and relative humidity seem to be good for most ob-

jects found in museum collections in temperate climates.

However, this is not the case with museum collections found

in tropical climates. In addition, recently many conservators

have come to realize that individual items have different envi-

ronmental histories and consequently may have differing environ-

mental requirements. For example, organic objects which origi-

nate from the tropics might require higher levels of humidity

than organic objects from drier areas. Asian lacquers are now

generally accepted as needing higher levels of RH. Lower levels

will cause them to crack and split.

I emphasize that most professionals agree that more damaging

than a high temperature or humidity level is to have extreme

shifts (i.e. changes) in temperature and relative humidity within

a very short time period. Thus, stability of relative humidity

levels in the museum is important for maintaining the good condi-

tion of the objects. In temperate climates because of the ex-

treme shifts in temperature between winter and summer coupled

with major shifts in humidity, specialists now recommend that

museums try to allow for a gradual shift from a winter-time RH of

40% to a summertime RH of as high as 60%.

159

Once again, I repeat, that for tropical climates, many spe-

cialists are now beginning to agree that because the RH in natu-

ral climatic conditions are so high, to try and keep museum

objects stored or exhibited at an unnaturally low RH would not

only be difficult and expensive,' but probably even harmful for

most organic objects. Nonetheless, most experts agree that

somewhere between 65% and 70% RH the potential for mold and

fungus greatly increases, so even in tropical climates, the goal

should be to hold the RH around a constant 60-65%.

C. Basic Damage Created by Humidity - ---- .__ -_ -.. -

There are several basic harmful effects which occur when the

relative humidity is constantly above 70%.

1. Mould and mildew form on paper, parchment, leather and tex-

tiles (biological mode).

2. Objects made from cellulose (paper, wood), protein (silk) and

bone change their internal structure. The tension of the fibers

may change causing them to become soft and soggy. They might

also expand (physical mode).

3, Ferrous metals (iron) and copper alloys (bronze) corrode

(chemical mode).

4. There is a movement of salts within stone and ceramic objects

which damages their surface (chemical mode).

5. Glass becomes opaque (this is called crizzling).

D.Wgs to MeasureTemperature and Humidity -___----

During the last workshop I briefly mentioned that there are

several instruments which can be used to measure temperature and

RH. These instruments should be kept not only in the storerooms

160

but also in certain exhibit cases and galleries as well. They

should be checked regularly to determine the climate patterns in

your particular museum. They must also be checked regularly to

insure that they are still recording the temperature and RH

accu,rately. If not, they must be adjusted.

1 . psychrometer. This is a small instrument which can be used

for taking spot checks all over the museum. It is also called

the sling psychrometer because you "sling" it around in the air

when you are taking the temperature. The sling psychrometer

consists of two ordinary thermometers. The bulb (end of the

thermometer) of one is kept as it is and is called the dry bulb.

It simply reads the air temperature. The second bulb, called the

wet bulb, is fitted with a small sleeve or wick made from fabric

which is kept wet with distilled water. The wet bulb will yield

a lower temperature reading than the dry bulb. The difference

between the two (called the wet-bulb depression) is then used to

determine the RH by consulting a chart or table.

The sling psychrometer is considered highly reliable when

used correctly. However, using it takes a little practice. You

must also keep in mind the following:

1. Use only distilled wa-ter for the wick. Keep the wick

clean and change it when necessary.

2. Whirl the instrument away from body and walk slowly

around the room.

3. Keep hands and breath away from the thermometer bulbs

(you want to take the temperature of the room, not your body).

4. Keep strong light away from bulbs.

5. Insure that the wet bulb does not dry out.

6. Take several readings.

7, Read the wet bulb quickly before it dries out and temper-

ature begins to rise.

If used correctly the sling psychrometer is quite accurate

with a ~2% RH accuracy. However, mastering the technique ,takes

practice. Recently many museum conservators have preferred

battery generated psychrometers. However, do not buy cheap ones

because they are frequently inaccurate.

2 - R_e_cor_dj.w ~Yygrothermograph - This device tracks the relative

humidity and temperature continuously over a period of one, seven

or thirty-one days. The device is attached to a pencil and graph

paper which records the information. This kind of instrument is

left inside the storage room and galleries and is checked at

appropriate intervals. Hygrothermographs are more expensive than

psychrometers, but they are very important. (cost ranges between

$500 to $1000).

3. Dial hyqrometetrs: Made with hair, polymer, or coiled paper

sensors or paper strips impregnated with cobalt salts, these

instruments are less expensive devices (as cheap as $10 - and the

most expensive are only around $100) that can be used for supple-

mentary readings and for exhibition cases. They are less accu-

rate than the instruments described above and consequently are

useful for indicating general conditions, not specific condi-

tions. However, many models are very limited and their needles

do not go above 70% RH or below 30 or 40%. There are more ad-

vanced models, but the general consensus is that they are not

reliable.

162

4. Non-Mechanical.JHygrometers: These devices include things such

as humidity indicating cards. These are a series of patches

impregnated with cobalt chloride. Each patch is labeled with an

RH in 10% steps. Their colour ranges from pink at the dry end to

blue,at the 100% end. The RH is read at the point of change

between pink and blue. The problem is that it is impossible to

do a completely accurate reading. It is impossible to distingu-

ish between 57% and 59% for example. This kind of device is not

highly accurate, a. there is a 5% accuracy at best, but they are

cheap and at least can provide a general idea of the general

range of RH.

E.mys to Contrq_l_.~tf?_e_.~-~-idLty _--.-...-..

What then are the ways to control better the environment in

the storerooms, the museum or in your monument building?

The best method, if you have the money and technology, is

centralized climate control (called HVAC System - means Humidity,

Ventilation Air-Conditioning System). With this system, the air

coming into the building is washed, cleaned and then heated or

cooled before sending it out through a system of pipes and ducts

to the rest of the building including the storage. This system

not only controls the temperature and relative humidity, but

keeps dirt and dust to a minimum as well.

However, this kind of system is not possible for many mu-

seums, The University Museum included, because it costs a lot of

money to install, run and maintain. &r youc ~u-rulkrl~

It would not be practical

Not only is it expensive, but the building itself has too many

open windows and spaces for the system to be effective. There-

fore, the solution lies in devising systems of localized climate

163

control.

Where humidity is a problem and the room is too large and

open (like your monuments) to use dehumidifiers, the most import-

ant improvement is to create good ventilation or airflow. Stale,

still air is humid, moldy air. With proper ventila-tion the

humidity is lowered and the temperature drops. One simple solu-

tion is to install fans in the windows.

Another method when you are using cases for the objects is

to use buffers. Buffers are anything which resist or help to .

"buffer" a change in the RH of the air around it. The buffer can

be any kind of moisture-absorbent material, for example wood,

paper, cotton. These objects can be placed inside the case or be

part of the case structure. In addition, certain chemicals, such

as silica gel, which absorb moisture, can also be used to create

a drier environment inside a case. Silica gel can be used either

as a drying agent, in which case it has to be dried out by heat-

ing it in an oven when it comes too wet, or as a buffering agent.

II. &jg_h_ting _.j,~.i$~c&.. the Monument _Build.ings ._~ ..-.

All light is damaging to artifacts, especially to textiles,

paper and anything with paint on it. Why is this so? Light is

harmful because it contains something called ultraviolet rays.

Sunlight contains these ultraviolet rays, fluorescent lights also

contain ultraviolet rays. Ultraviolet light, combined with heat

or humidity, speeds up oxidation and deter*ioration of many organ-

ic materials, causing them to bleach and harden. Too much ultra-

violet light fades and embrittles paper, textiles, dyes, and var-

nishes; it also causes discoloration and increasing insolubility

164

in varnishes and oils. Objects made of wood may either darken or

bleach out.

Objects which are particularly sensitive to light are ones

which contain cellulose, for example, wood, paper and some tex-

tiles: organic materials such as leather, silk, wool, bone,

ivory; and paint pigments and coatings.

You can use a photometer or photographic light meter which

is sensitive to low light levels to measure light levels inside

your buildings. It is suggested that you keep light sensitive

objects at a light level of no more than 5 to 8 footcandles.

Stones and metals can be kept at 20 to 30 footcandles. (A foot-

candles is the amount of light projected from a standard light

source one foot away from the object). In North America we use

the unit called footcandle to measure the amount of light. In

Europe the unit of measurement is called the lux. One footcandle

= ten lux. Thus, to convert from footcandles to lux, you simply

multiply the footcandles by 10.

A simple way to see the kind of damage the light inside your

building does to the objects and to the furniture is to make a

test using pieces of cardboard covered with dark blue cloth. You

do the following:

1. The guardians of each monument should make two or three card-

board boards measuring 8 x 30 cm.

2. Cover each board with dark blue cloth.

3. Then attach to the board a covering of some type which will

not allow light to penetrate. Expose about 1 to 1.5 cm of the

board.

4. Attach the boards to the wall in different parts of the room.

165

5. Every two or three days expose another 1 to 1.5 cm of the

board. Do this regularly for 30 days.

6. At the end of 30 days, if there is sunlight or fluorescent

light striking your board, the blue cloth will be faded in a

progressive pattern.

7. Place one board at the beginning of the 30 days in direct

sunlight and use it to compare with the other boards.

By doing this simple test you can first better understand

The damage caused by light, and second, you can tell where in

your building there is a problem with light.

Because your objects sit in historic buildings, you can not

control the amount of light as carefully as people who work

inside modern museums where they might decide to eliminate all

natural light. Fortunately, most of the historic monuments are

quite dark inside, so that damaging sunlight does not fall on too

many sensitive objects. What you as guardians and keepers must

watch for is to keep objects which are light sensitive away from

windows where they will be in direct sunlight. I am especially

concerned about the textiles which hang inside the ancestral

temples at each monument, as well as any of the painted wooden

objects.

However, because the interior of the monuments is dark, you

are then faced with the problem of how to make it possible for

visitors to see some of the objects which are inside the monu-

ments and to enable them to read text panels with information

about the monument. I have noticed that several of the monuments

have used fluorescent lights. However, if you remember, I just

said that fluorescent lamps were another source of ultraviolet

rays. There is a solution. You can place UV filters over the

fluorescent bulbs.

If in the future you decide to use other kinds of lights in

the room, for example spotlights, then you will have another

problem. These kinds of lights do not emit harmful W rays, but

they are very hot. So, you must remember to keep them far enough

away from the objects so that they do not do any damage. These

bulbs can also cause fires if they are too close to objects which . .

catch fire easily.

You should try to keep the interior of the monuments as

clean and free from dust and dirt as possible. Dirt and dust,

especially dirt and dust which is mixed with any kind of oil and

grease is damaging to everything, to the objects, to the altar

tables, furniture as well as to the walls of the monument.

Stone, textiles, any kind of paper or object made from bamboo can

become permanently damaged by dirt.

Because your buildings are all open to the outside, keeping

them free of dust and dirt is a difficult task, perhaps an impos-

sible task. I am afraid that the solution to this problem is

tedious and boring. You should clean the monuments everyday.

This means cleaning everything, the floors, the furniture and the

tops and sides of any cases inside the building, even the walls.

B. Pollution

Pollution is becoming a growing problem for the better care

167

and preservation of objects. With growing industrialization,

museums may find themselves next to factories which expel fumes

and waste which is damaging to their objects. For example, the

collections in the Liaoning Museum in northern China are exposed

daily to highly sulfurous fumes created from burning coal.

These kinds of polluting gases, alone or in combination with

water vapor, form sulfurous acid and sometimes acid rain. "rhese

poisons attack all metals except gold, as well as bleach paper,

decay leather, erode buildings, and are destructive to plant and

aquatic life. Exhaust emissions from cars add greatly to pollu-

tion problems.

Without having proper data, I suspect that the amount

of pollution in the air of Hue is increasing all the time.

Riding across the bridge from the south side of the river to the

north is already a highly unpleasant experience because of the

large numbers of trucks, buses and motorbikes which belch out

exhaust fumes. Fortunately, the monuments and tombs still lie

away from this kind of pollution. However, as tourism increases,

the number of buses, cars and motorbikes arriving at your door

will also increase and will bring with it an increase in air

pollution. Because you cannot close off the monuments from the

outside air, one solution is to restrict the area around the

monuments to people and bicycles. Cars, motorbikes and buses can

be requested to park farther away.

Inside the monuments, you should be careful with any new

materials you introduce into the building, for example cases and

textiles used for decoration inside the cases or in other parts

of the buildings. You must also be careful with the kind of

168

paint which is used for the inside and outside of the building.

And finally, neither you or the visitors should be permitted to

smoke inside or around the monuments. Not only is the smoke

itself harmful to the wall surface of the monuments and to ob-

jects inside the monuments, but it is also a fire hazard.

Sling Psychrometer

leter,

Recording Hygrothermograoh

Figure 7.5 Tem&rure, Ii+ measuring. and humidity measuring devices ------

0 1 20%’

._ --..a-

171

COLLECTION MANAGEMENT & PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

Workshop at the Queen Mother's Former Residence 17 May 1995

I. Care of Photos

The historic photos are the focus of our workshop today.

A. Explain process of what happens to photographs and negatives in poor environmental conditions.

1. sunlight 2. heat 3. humidity 4. pollution

Because photographs are printed on paper, the kinds of damage you find on paper, you also find with photographs. For example, light will cause chemical changes in paper resulting in fading, darkening, bleaching and breakdown of the cellulose (are from plant fibers in the paper). Signs of damage: yellowing, browning and fading of paper on which photo printed.

It might be surprising to learn that black and white photos are much more permanent than color, Color photographs and slides are one of the few kinds of artifacts to fade in complete dark- ness! With black and white photos, the image is relatively stable. It is the paper on which image is found that is suscep- tible to damage. Also, the lower the ASA the more permanent the photograph.

High humidity, as we already know, can cause growth of mould which will destroy both the paper and the photograph image itself (it destroys the emulsion on top of the photograph). Try to keep negatives in RH less than 50% and prints in place with ventila- tion.

Acids in pollution also harm photographs. Sulfur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, hydrogen sulfides and ozone react with the lignin in wood-pulp papers - make them more acid. Pollution can also tarnish the silver used in the process of making photo- graphs.

Photographs and negatives, and film are on of the kinds of artifacts which are more severely effected by temperature. Thus, in storage conditions, recommendations is between 208-508 RH, have the following temperature recommendations:

1, glass plates: 15 to 25 C 2. film: below 21 C 3. paper prints: 15-25 C

B. Exhibition Conditions

173

1. low light levels (c. 10 footcandles or 100 lux) 2. short periods of time - up to a few months, 3. mount on acid-free board protected with a “mat window"

(see photocopy). 4. cover with glass - make sure glass does not touch print.

C. Recommendations for photos currently displayed

1. if had negative, then would do a copy of original nega- tive and make exhibition prints from the copy negative

2. because do not have negatives, it is urgent to store historic photographs in proper conditions to prolong what is left of their life.

3. thus, have professional photographer take photos of the photos inside a photo studio using proper equipment. Make prints for exhibition from the new negative. Then store negatives and historic prints under proper conditions.

4. prints of Queen Mother's funeral gets too much direct sunlight at main entrance. Might consider moving to another location. Would also recommend remounting.

C. Storage Conditions for Photographs and Negatives

1. Humidity: 20% - 50% RH 2. Temperature: 15 - 25 C. 3. Clean and dustfree room 4. Place photos in acid-free folders, separated by acid-free paper and placed in acid-free boxes. 5. Place negatives in acid-free paper (in US and Europe we now have special sleeves made from uncoated polyester). For 35 mm film can leave negatives in single roll or cut into strips.

Avoid use of glues, sticky tape and paper clips when storing photographs and negatives.

Keep away from areas that might leak water.

Whenever working directly with photos or negatives, wear gloves.

II. Works on Paper

Second floor has a number of works on paper - royal decrees(?)

A. Introduce nature of paper -

B. Damage to paper: light, humidity, pollution

Paper objects in house show evidence of foxing and staining - evidence of mould growth. Smell the paper - does it have a musty odor?

Look out for traces of insect activity: small holes in surface, loss of color in certain areas, small raised dark brown spots.

1 74

C. Recommendations

1. look at frames - need remounting?

2. keep room darker with a curtain

3. make good photocopy (color if possible?) and put copy on display and store original.

III. Wood

Wood objects in house seem to be in relatively good condi- tion. At moment, simply recommend keeping it clean, while watch-- ing for evidence of insect or termite infestation, or rot from too much humidity.

Cleaning: dust wooden objects regularly with soft cloth - if have vacuum use it first with brush attachment. Carved areas - use soft brush

With beds, tables, might consider applying a thin coat of hard paste wax (beeswax, carnauba or candelilla wax). Do not apply more than once a year. Buff (i.e. rub surface of wood with soft cloth} regularly. Do not want surface of wax to attract dust and dirt.

I would test layer of wax on one object and see how it responds to heat and humidity. Does it get sticky? Do dirt and dust cling to surface of the object, making it even more dirty? (Dust in air is also mixed with grease and other kinds of pollut- ants, therefore is not considered good for a layer of this to adhere to object).

IV. Paintings

Keep surface clean

Bat problem?

V. Textiles

Wall hangings are fading and disappearing before our very eyes.

"Birthday Poem" - would take down from its lofty height - would try to keep dust and sunlight away from it - not sure about covering with glass for fear of condensation. At the least, would cover with a dark cloth which could be lifted when guests visit home.

Textile behind altar - it is already in quite bad condition - ripped as well as faded. Might take down and put in storage because it is historically significant - put a modern reproduc- tion in its place.

175

COLLECTION MANAGEMENT & PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

Workshop at Hon Chen Temple 19 May 1995

Today, we will divide the group into four teams.

Each team will be assigned to monitor the situation in the Hon Chen temple- They will be given the first 50 minutes to do this- Then during the second hour each group will present their find- ings and recommend simple solutions to the problems they find.

Each team will be responsible for making a simple sketch of the main building at Hon Chen temple. There are two levels to this building. Each team will use the temperature and humidity instrument and will mark the temperatures and humidities at different parts of each building on the drawing. To do this, you should take a reading in each corner of the upstairs and down- stairs space as well as in several places in the central space. Each team will be allowed to use the temperature and humidity instrument for 10 minutes.

Each team will be assigned a different kind of object, and they will look for evidence of mould b fungus, insect damage, sunlight damage, corrosion, pollution damage and general dirt on these objects. You will practice wearing gloves when you pick up any object to examine it.

Team I Wooden Objects

Team II Textiles

Team III Ceramic Objects & Paper Objects

Team IV Metal Objects

176

COLLECTION MANAGEMENT 6 PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

Workshop at Lang Tu Due 22 May 1995

Today we will divide the group into five teams of five people each:

Team I: Thanh (Khai Dinh, leader), Dy, Ly, Xe, Lien

Team II: Nghe (leader), Nhi Anh, Muon, Thanh (Hon Chen), Sat

Team III: Binh (leader), Huy, Tinh (office), Thiet, Quang

Team IV: Sau (leader), Nam, Binh, Hieu, Thuong

Team V: Trong, Lot, Hoei, Ha, Tuong

Assignments

Teams I & III: Assigned to Hoa Khiem Palace

Teams II 6r IV: Assigned to Luong Khiem Palace

Team V: Assigned to Nha Bia and MO Vua

As you did at Hon Chen Temple, each team will make a simple drawing of the structures to which they are assigned. As before you will check the temperature and humidity inside your struc- tures. You will do this by taking a reading in several parts of the structure, including the corners and central area. Mark these readings on your drawing.

Teams assigned.to-m Ho-a Khiem Pal-ace and Luong Khiem Pal-ace: ~ -

1. Provide a general assessment of the condition of the building. In your assessment, tell me where are dampest parts of building, and where are the areas which receive the most sunlight.

2. Then I want each member of your team to select two objects each. I want you to give me the following information about the object:

1) name of object 2) date or period of object 3) what object is made of 4) where object is located in building. Does it receive

a lot of sunlight? Is the location dark and damp? Any evidence of pests or insects in area of object?

5) description of what the object looks like 6) description of the condition of the object In order to describe the condition of the object you must

examine it carefully, using light and the magnifying glass. If you have to handle the object, please use gloves and follow the

177

rules for handling objects.

3. Based upon the problems you find, each team will make three recommendations how they would improve the condition of the building and objects in the building.

1. Make an overall assessment of the condition of the two parts of the Stele House and stele and the tomb of the Emperor Tu Due.

In your condition report pay attention to the following things:

1) the condition of the stone. Do you see evidence of fungus growing on the stone? Is there evidence of deterioration? Use your magnifying glass to look closely at the stone. Is there evidence of physical damage (this means cracks or miss- ing pieces from the stele or tomb structure)? What is the condi- tion of the mosaic decorations? Is there graffiti?

2) Is there evidence of graffiti on any part of the struc- tures or stele? Is it new or old (look for dates next-to the names)?

3) What is the condition of the stele pavilion itself?

2. Based upon your findings your team will make three or four recommendations on what you would do to improve the condition of the Stele House and tomb of the Emperor.

Would you make additional signs for the tomb and Stele House?

COLLECTION MANAGEMENT & PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

.

Workshop at Lang Dong Khanh 24 May 1995

Today we will divide the group into the same five teams of five people each:

Team I: Thanh (Khai Dinh, leader), Trong, Ly, Xe, Lien

Team II: Nghe (leader), Nhi Anh, Muon, Thanh (I-Ion Chen), Sat

Team III: Binh (leader), Huy, Tinh (office), Thiet, Quang

Team IV: Sau (leader), Nam, Binh, Hieu, Thuong

Team V: Dy, Lot, Hoa, Ha, Tuong

We will begin our workshop by hearing two reports from our visit to Lang Tu Due: 1) on the condition of the Dien Luong Khiem and 2) the condition of the Nha Bia and the MO Vua.

Today's Assignments

Teams I, III, IV & V: Assigned to the Dien Nhung Hy Team II: Assigned to the San Chau and the Nha Bia

The Dien N.N.wgBy

Team I: This team will survey and examine objects made of wood, lacquer and bamboo.

Team III: This team will survey and examine objects primarily made of textiles.

Team V: This team will survey and examine objects made of metal and paintings on glass and mirrors

This time, I would like the teams which are inspecting the condition of the objects to assess as many objects as possible during the hour. Please try to make an informed generalization about the condition of each kind of object. Then I would like each team to introduce the most damaged object they have exam- ined. Please include the following information about this ob- ject:

1) name of object 2) date or period of object 3) what object is made of 4) where object is located in building. Does it receive

a lot of sunlight? Is the location dark and damp? Any evidence of pests or insects in area of object?

5) description of what the object looks like 6) description of the condition of the object

In order to describe the condition of the object you must examine it carefully, ,using light and the magnifying glass, If you have to handle the object, please use gloves and follow rules for handling objects.

Finally, I would like each team to make a realistic recom- mendation about how to preserve better this object.

Team IV: This team will assess the condition of the temple itself. This team will make a simple drawing of the temple floor plan and take the temperature and relative humidity readings.

Please indicate which of the columns are damaged and which part of the roof leaks. You can mark this on your drawing.

Please also indicate which parts of the temple are the dampest and where there is the greatest amount of sunlight.

I know that there is a problem with bats at the Dong Khanh Tomb. Please indicate how we know that there is a problem with bats and where in the temple the problem is the most serious.

Finally, I would like Team IV to offer three realistic recommendations for solving some of the building problems, such as the roof problem, the bat problem, the humidity and light problems.

Team II: This team will survey and assess the condition of the San Chau and the Nha Dia. I suggest dividing your team into two groups. One group should assess the San Chau and the other the Nha Bia.

In your condition report pay attention to the following things:

1) the condition of the stone. Do you see evidence of fungus growing on the stone? Is there evidence of deterioration? Use your magnifying glass to look closely at the stone. Is there evidence of physical damage (this means cracks or miss- ing pieces from the stele or tomb structure)? What is the condi- tion of the mosaic decorations? Is there graffiti?

2) Is there evidence of graffiti on any part of the struc- tures or stele? Is it new or cld (look for dates next to the names ) ?

3) What is the condition of the stele pavilion itself?

Please try to be specific in your fl%cription of the condi.-- tion of the structures. Don't just say that there is mould on the surface of the stone, please indicate the surface of which

part of the structure. If might be easier to indicate the prob- lems with a drawing. You can also be more specific by indicating if the damage is on the north, south, east or west side of the structure (use my compass).

2. Based upon your findings your team will make three or four recommendations on what you would do to improve the condition of the Salutation Court and Stele House.

What do you think about the kinds of signs which currently are found at the site? Would you recommend putting additional signs? What kinds signs could improve the cleanliness, security and general preservation of the structures?

183

COLLECTION MANAGEMENT & PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION

Workshop Inside the Imperial City 26 May 1995

Once again we will divide the group into the same five teams of five people each:

Team I: Thanh (Khai Dinh, leader), Trong, Ly, Xe, Lien

Team II: Nghe (leader), Nhi Anh, Muon, Thanh (Hon Chen), Sat

Team III: Binh (leader), Huy, Tinh (office), Thiet, Quang

Team IV: Sau (leader), Nam, Binh, Hieu. Thuong

Team V: Ha (leader) Dy, Lot, Hoa, Tuong

Today's Assignments

Team I: Assigned to the Ngo Mon Team II: Assigned to the Thai Hoa Team III: Assigned to the The Mieu Team IV: Assigned to the Thai Binh Lau Team V: Assigned to Huu Vu and courtyard

We will meet, back at. the Dien Thai Hoa at 9:OO a.m.

We have done enough looking at objects and condition of buildings during the past two weeks. Today I want each team to examine each building assigned to them and think about how they. would better present it to the visitor, This assignment includes thinking about every part. of the building: the way each room is arranged, what is put in it, the number of containers for garbage and what these containers look like, the number of and kinds of signs in the citadel, even thinking about whether or not the guardians should cook and play music while visitors are in the monument. What would make the landscape around the buildings look the most attractive? Below I give each team some things to think about for each of your buildings.

1. Ngo Mon Please think about the following: a. what is the best thing about the Ngo Mon? b. why is the room at the top of the Ngo Mon empty? Could better use he made of this space?

signage lighting, inside and outside

2. Dien Thai Hoa Please look at and think about the following: a. the shop on your left. as you enter the palace b, t.he t.wo shops behind the throne

C. the cabinets filled with objects inside the Dien Tien Hoa d. signage

3. The Mieu Please look at and think about the following: a. the restoration work of the altars b. the kinds of textiles used for the parasols C. the quarters of the guardians d. signage

4. Thai Binh Lau Please look at and think about the following: a. the shop b. the room with the exhibits C. the front room with photographs d. the bonsai area e. signage

5. Huu Vu Please think about the following: a. the drinks shop b. the daily arrangement of furniture in the room C. the objects sitting in the cases d. the courtyard area leading from rear of Dien Thai Hoa to space in front of Huu Vu and Ta Vu e. signage

In addition, I would like everyone to consider the following questions:

1. Why do the buildings inside the Dai Noi look cleaner and better cared for than the temples at the various tombs?

2. When you visit the Dai Noi do you get a feeling of the rich life of the former Nguyen kings? If not, why not? What would make the buildings more interesting for the visitor?

1!?4

BOOKS PRESENTED TO THE HUE MONUMENTS CONSERVATION CENTRE

1

FROM: UNESCO DATE: JUNE 1995

History.-o-f Mu.se.w-s...and General Mmuseolcgic.al ___-.---

Alexander, Edward, P- 1979 Museums in Motion: An Introduction to the

History and Functions of Museums Nashville, TN: American Association for State and Local Museums 8th pri.nting, 1993

Burcaw, G. Ellis 1983 Introduction to Museum Work

Nashville, TN: American Association for State and Local History Second Edition

Pearce, Susan M. 1990 Archaeological Curatorship

Washington, D-C.: Smithsonian Institution Press

Dudley, Dorothy, Irma Bezold Wilkenson and others 1979 Museum Registration Methods

- Washington, D-C.. American Association of Museums Third Revised Edition

Conservation

Americr?n Association of Museums 19634 Caring for Collections

Washington, D-C.. - American Association of Museums

Appelbaum, Barbara 1991 Guide to Environmental Protection of Collections

Madison, CT: Sound View Press

Kenworthy, Mary Ann, Eleanor M. King, Mary Elizabeth Ruwell & Trudy Van Houten

1985 Preserving Field Records: Archival Techniques for Archaeologists and Anthropologists Philadelphia, PA: The University Museum

MacLeish, A. Bruce 1985 The Care of Antiques and Historical Collections

Nashville, TN: American Association 'for State and Local History Second Edition

Security

ASIS Standing Committed on Museum, Library and Archive Security n.d. Suggested Guidelines in Museum Security

Exhibition ---

Belcher, Michael 1991 Exhibitions in Museums

Washington, D-C.: Smithsonian Institution Press

Witteborg, Lothar P. 1991 Good Show! A Practical Guide for Temporary Exhibi-

tions Washington, D.C .: Smithsonian Institution Press Second Edition

Ethics --

American Association of Museums n-d. Professional Code of Ethics

Museum News Reprint Package Washington, D.C .: American Association of Museums

186