The Collection
This section describes the colour category system. This followed by description of each category including equipment associated with it and how to use it. Then complicated/bespoke examples (NG6337 etc) and finally how to prepare the collection for loan. This will include all the casing stuff plus a description of the relationship with KSL.
Introduction
The National Gallery’s collection of art consists mainly of western European paintings from the 13th century to the beginning of the 20th century. The collection does include some sculptural objects, but the painting collection is its primary focus. Within this area of paintings are a wide variety of works with differing physical characteristics. These vary from early renaissance frescoes and panels (on a range of wooden supports) to many works on canvas and works on paper.
These works vary enormously in terms of mass and durability. For example, the collection includes very large and complex altarpieces, constructed from large wooden sections that can weigh up to 500kgs, to works on paper such as the Leonardo cartoon which are extremely ephemeral and require specific handling and display solutions. Paradoxically, large works of significant mass are themselves extremely vulnerable to movement by virtue of their structure working against the material they are made of when they are manipulated.
The role of the art handling department is to create safe systems of operations that we can use when moving the collection for any purpose. Any system that we develop needs to be understood by the art handling team as well as being reliable and repeatable. It also needs to follow the best conservation practice as described to us by our conservation team at the gallery.
The need for repeatable systems is due to the volume of moves that are undertaken each year with the collection. On average, around 15,000 moves of art works occur within the site of The National Gallery each year, all undertaken by the art handling team. This covers all aspects of our work, including basic moves throughout the gallery site, thousands of separate installations and preparation of works from the collection when loaned to other museums throughout the world.
Our aim is to create working systems that can safely cope with this volume of work whilst also being measurable. This is very important for the standard of our work as though we do create individual solutions to specific problems, we also need to know that our team is operating within a well understood framework from which we can confidently make decisions about the work in our care.
To facilitate our approach to the collection, we have developed a technical classification system that describes the art handling requirements for each individual object within the collection. This system breaks the collection down into three categories and names each category after a colour, either yellow, blue or silver.
Each of the categories assumes some simple characteristics for each object. Essentially weight and size are the main determining factors, the record of which category a work is placed in can be found on the individual record for each artwork held in the main collection database (TMS) under the art handling section. Within this record further, more detailed information can be included (please refer to the database description for further information).
The use of a largely generic classification system then allows us to design specific handling solutions to each category. In turn, the problems of handling and installing a specific object can be seen within this framework. The nature of the collection at the gallery has meant that such an approach is possible since the movement of large numbers of works that have similar physical characteristics is essentially the same. It also means that specific, individual solutions can be found to unique problems that can be seen within the context of the main framework.
A crucial element to the system is to develop the correct equipment alongside the correct process and approach. The art handling department has a long-standing equipment development program (now more than 20 years old) that designs and has manufactured specific equipment relevant to each of the categories.
It is worth noting that we apply the same or similar approach to our exhibitions where possible, however the requirements of lenders and the type of objects that may be included in our shows means that a more variable response is often necessary (please refer to exhibitions). This though can still be referred to the general principals established by our system. In the following pages we describe the processes and equipment for each of the categories.
Colour Category System
Due to the nature of the picture collection at The National Gallery, it is possible to categorise paintings according to the actions necessary for de/installation. This has led us to group works into three categories for this purpose, which are as follows:
Standard Manual Lift or Yellow Move
The yellow move category encompasses the simplest moves we are required to undertake. The category includes all works that can be manually handled over small distances by two art handlers, or can be installed without the need for additional equipment to elevate the painting into position.
The category does not necessarily state the characteristics of the works it includes but generally it refers to paintings weighing under 60kgs. The size of the work is also not such a significant factor as quite large paintings can be included if it is determined they fall within the ease of handling required.
The yellow category contains around 60% of the works within the gallery's collection and will form the majority of moves throughout the year. Using the correct equipment associated with the category (as listed below) multiple moves of paintings can occur simultaneously and this is frequently found to be the case when large gallery hangs occur. Commonly the works within the category are installed using a plate system or The National Gallery gadget system (please refer to installation methods) and additional security measures are also applied at installation.
Medium Lift or Silver Move
The silver move category covers most of the mid-range installations and moves that we undertake. This category probably accounts for around 20 to 25% of all moves that occur and requires the use of a minimum of three art handlers plus the designated equipment (as described here).
For these moves, we set a limit of 150kgs in weight for the object being moved. Most of the works that fall into this category also tend to be large in area with a major dimension usually exceeding 2 metres.
A lower weight limit is not set as the category considers the physical dimensions of the paintings involved as well as their weight. Often, we find canvas paintings can be light enough to fall within the yellow category but of such dimensions as to create significant problems when manually handling them.
Works within this category are usually transported singularly on stacker trolleys (see equipment). There are a variety of hanging methods employed when installing these works though the most common are supporting brackets and plates or a suspension system (within the National gallery chains are employed). Usually, given the size of the works, standard security is employed when on display.
Heavy Lift or Blue Move
The Blue move category encompasses the largest and most logistically challenging objects within the National Gallery’s collection.
The most common example of works found in this category are the group of large altarpieces dating from the early renaissance section of the main Collection. These works are usually the heaviest pieces, being up to 500kgs in weight but are also very large objects in surface area with a complex construction.
Conservation issues within the altarpieces can also be significant and therefore this category includes a number of bespoke handling solutions to individual objects (see the additional projects described in this section including for NG1).
The category also includes all the largest canvas works found in other sections of the collection. These works are not necessarily significant in weight, but it has been determined that their scale precludes their inclusion in the silver category and therefore they fall within blue moves.
Large moves described by this category are not an everyday occurrence, however, moves of all category of works have increased significantly over the last few years and the biggest volume increase has probably been within this section. In total, works within this category account for around 10% of the main floor display but when moved can account for a significantly greater percentage of the Departments resources and time. For example, NG1 (described elsewhere in this section) takes around 3 days to reposition and the majority of the AH team to carry out this task.
Although there are exceptions to these categories, nearly every object in the collection can be group in one of these sections. Our approach to designing installation and transportation solutions is informed by this system.
Equipment
General Statement
The art handling department deploys several general and bespoke pieces of equipment to carry out our role. Our approach has been to develop the processes and concepts for our tasks and then to match the equipment to our needs. This has led to a significant design program within the department over many years that has resulted in original design solutions and models of equipment that have then been improved upon. These include the following:
The Standard Picture Trolley
Associated with the yellow category move, our standard trolley was first developed in 1998 as a general-use piece of equipment assigned to art handling teams. The trolley is durable enough to transport all categories of pictures within the collection but is primarily used to transport multiple works simultaneously. The trolley also has the capacity to safely carry tools and materials for the team whilst transporting pictures. The original design has recently been upgraded to a new model by Tom Hemming, one of our team supervisors.
The Stacker Trolley
Associated with the Aluminium move, this picture trolley is used to transport and install larger category works. It is designed for one painting at a time and links with a hydraulic stacker to ease installation for the team. This design has undergone several modifications and variants.
The Case Roller
This piece of equipment was developed by the team to facilitate the unpacking of paintings from their cases. Most picture cases (used for external transport) must be laid flat to be unpacked and this usually requires a significant physical effort. The case roller acts as a quarter round lever and preparation table that makes this operation significantly easier.
The Blue Hoist
The blue hoist is a large, multi-functional picture transporter and installer that we developed to deal with the largest works in the collection. It is designed to register with our altarpiece display system and has features such as adjustable picture clamps made to hold a work in perfect vertical orientation for transport.
We also use a large range of common equipment normally found within art handling teams. These include J bars for cases, mobile packing tables, skoots and skates, weigh pallets and for working at height we use Mobile Elevated Work Platforms or MEWPS.
The standard model MEWP we use is the Genie GR12. This model has the right weight to height ratio necessary for our gallery environment. We have two of these and they have completely replaced the use of ladders and made redundant the use of scaffold. Step ladders are still occasionally used under normal, health and safety protocols.
Complicated Installations
As mentioned in our category system, the art handling department adopts a three-part system of classification for each artwork in the collection. The blue category includes the largest and heaviest works that also provide the biggest technical challenge to us. Most of these works are large altarpieces or canvases that exceed the limits imposed on the other categories, and special equipment (namely in the form of the blue hoist) has been developed to deal with these moves.
'Possible insertion of image of blue hoist with an altarpiece
However, there are several moves that can be considered exceptionally significant even within the terms of the blue category and these we call complicated installations. This category of move usually requires further processes or equipment designs to be developed, including some intervention to support the object itself. Usually this is due to the fragility of the object involved with respect to its size but can also be due to display requirements, such as a particular framing approach. A good example of this category is the requirements for the large painting by Sebastiano del Piombo The Raising of Lazarus (NG1).
NG1 is a painting with significant conservation issues around its structure that have caused considerable problems when it was necessary to move the work. The picture was originally a large altarpiece painted on a thick wooden support (exact nature unknown) which was then “transferred” during the 18th century whilst in the possession of the French royal court. The transferring process simply involves removing the original wooden support and replacing it with a canvas one. However, over time this caused significant conservation issues and when it became the responsibility of The National Gallery art handling department to move it (late 20th century) the process necessary to do so was too precarious to carry out without risking damage to the painting. A new process was necessary and would involve designing a support system for the painting which could then work with the newly designed blue hoist.
The new structural support for NG1
We had already adopted a possible solution in other altarpieces. This involved designing an aluminium “cage” that would fit around the painting as a permanent feature. This would then replace the picture frame as the standard support for the work, meaning the painting could be safely de-framed (necessary for NG1 in particular). In addition, a system of four “screens” was designed that could attach to the new cage. These would wrap around the front of the work where strategically placed soft pads would gently hold the surface of the work in place whilst it was moved (the main issue being the movement of the surface on the canvas). This support system could be applied whilst the work was hanging and would provide protection against the normal art handling techniques such as “bowling” (the re-orientation of a work from one axis to another). This also meant that the main display frame became a “veneer” for appearance only, as the structural load of the work was taken by the new support frame. With this arrangement, the work could now be de-installed and moved using the blue hoist system as described in the blue category.
Insert an image of NG1 on the wall with its frame removed and screens in place from the library.
Installing the new display frame
At the time of the development of the support system for NG1, we also discussed the possibility of a new display frame that would fit around it and reproduce the main altarpiece form its original location in a church in Italy. However, it would be several more years before this project began, eventually being realised due to the picture’s involvement in the gallery exhibition of Sebastiano and Michelangelo in 2017.
This project added another level of complexity to this move as it involved the installation of an extremely large frame in four parts, placed around the painting once the work itself had already been installed. To make this possible we developed an installation system that “registered” with the cage of the painting when installed.
The new systems have proved to be very successful and have allowed the painting to be moved as required (something we had stopped doing prior to the development of the process). However, it remains possibly the most complicated of moves necessary at The National Gallery, made more so by its very impressive display frame.
Patrick O’Sullivan