I encountered this question in a discussion with a professional acquaintance regarding a museum at which staff people were under the impression that the "AAM standard" for environmental control was a constant 50% relative humidity, and 70 degrees F. temperature. One of the sources for that set of figures was "The Museum Environment," by Garry Thompson, published first in 1978. His recommendations were focused on museums in Britain, not museums in every climate zone. I suppose Thompson's recommendations were attributed to the AAM, since the latter is sometimes considered the fount of all museum knowledge and standards. This is not to make light for what AAM actually does, and their programs are many, various, and invaluable to the profession.
I am certainly not speaking for AAM, but I would suggest that anyone searching for environmental standards look at resources such as the ICOM Declaration on Environmental Guidelines (http://www.icom-cc.org/332/-icom-cc-documents/declaration-on-environmental-guidelines/#.WpRCfRPwbVo). The statements there include these guidelines from the American Institute for Conservation (endorsed by the Association of Art Museum Directors):
For the majority of cultural materials, a set point in the range of 45-55% relative humidity with an allowable drift of +/-5%, yielding a total annual range of 40% minimum to 60% maximum and a temperature range of 59-77ºF (15-25ºC), is acceptable.
- Fluctuations must be minimized.
- Some cultural materials require different environmental conditions for their preservation.
- Loan requirements for all objects should be determined in consultation with conservation professionals.
In my opinion, many museums in old buildings may have trouble meeting those criteria, but may be able to come close, with considerable work and expense. The phrase, "fluctuations must be minimized," is important, but it also suggests that fluctuations acceptable for some objects might be more liberal than those for other objects. The other two bullet points also indicate that types of objects, or even specific objects may require special conditions.
Please excuse this extensive post, but this subject is of great importance for all museums.
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Bruce MacLeish
Curator Emeritus, Newport Restoration Foundation
Cooperstown NY
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Original Message:
Sent: 09-07-2018 07:28 PM
From: David Lynx
Subject: Humidity and Temperature standards for art gallery
Hi all,
I found the Document center's information on humidity for document preservation. I was curious if there were resources for specific humidity and temperature standards for art galleries.
Thank you
David
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David Lynx MLS
Director
Larson Gallery
Yakima WA
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