J.CAC VOLUME 27 (2002)
A Comprehensive Conservation Survey of the Vancouver Art Gallery Permanent Collection
A conservation survey at the Vancouver Art Gallery in Vancouver, British Columbia, has transformed the gallery’s ability to preserve and manage its collection. The landmark project, which took two years to complete, entailed the taking of inventory, examination and documentation of 6,108 works of all media. For each work, survey conservators recorded basic data (such as location, dimensions, materials) and reported in detail on its condition and conservation needs. Data was recorded on four survey forms for each of paintings, paper, photographs and objects (including sculpture). The forms contain a condition report specific to each media (emulating the detail and qualifiers of a standard report), and several conservation assessment and prioritization fields that are uniform across all media. Data is stored on a specially designed database from which gallery staff may create or extract reports on the character, condition and conservation needs of works to aid in planning for exhibits, loans, research or conservation projects. The survey has resulted not only in condition and conservation reports for almost all works in the gallery’s collection, it has also created a permanent conservation documentation system for future acquisitions.
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