Behind the Scenes of Art Nouveau Innovation: Danish Porcelain from an American Collector
The Museum of Danish America’s latest exhibition, Art Nouveau Innovation: Danish Porcelain from an American Collector opens tomorrow (Oct. 2) with a free open house from 3-6 pm. Read on to get a behind the scenes glimpse into the installation of these incredible artworks.
Prior to arriving at the museum, the curatorial staff traveled to the collector’s home to pack each object and label it with a number. Objects were then placed into crates to travel, and an additional label listing each object number was placed on the exterior of the crate. At the museum, this made it possible to locate each object needed for each display case.
Objects were then place on a padded cart only used for the transport of clean museum objects. The works were very carefully and slowly wheeled into the exhibition space.
An empty case waiting to be filled!
Visible at the bottom of the above image is a glimpse of a purple nitrile glove, which staff always wear when handling museum objects. Also visible, though just barely, is the clear protective layer of archival melinex, which was applied to the base of each object to prevent it from coming into direct contact with the display case. Each piece of melinex was carefully cut to size to fit the base of the object while also not being too visible and distracting to visitors. The melinex was attached to the object’s base with strategically placed museum putty (the white blobs above). Double-sided tape was then attached to the melinex (the brown strip, and the two clear rectangles across the surface of the base) and used to secure the object in place within the case. These steps are meant to ensure that the fragile porcelain will not move or shake, while also protecting the surface of the artwork by only allowing safe, removable materials to come into contact with it.
Once the objects are arranged and secured, they are ready to be displayed under glass!
If you look very closely, you may be able to spot evidence of the steps I’ve listed above throughout the exhibition.
Some objects required different steps in order to prepare them for display. In the case of the plate in the above image, it is displayed using a plastic plate stand. The stand itself was secured to the bottom of the case using double-sided tape. Any points of contact between the stand and the plate were padded using an archival, inert foam. Finally, museum putty was placed at points of contact to secure the object in place on the stand.
In the case of the bat featured in the first image of this post, in order to fit the object into the drawer of the above display case, the thick layer of foam at the base of the drawer had to be carved to fit the shape of the bat. After covering the foam with fabric, this allowed the bat to rest in an indentation low enough to fit under the glass of the drawer and created greater stability for the object within the case.
If this brief glimpse has piqued your interest, Art Nouveau Innovation: Danish Porcelain from an American Collector will be on display October 2, 2020 through January 3, 2021.
