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Challenging problem. I have a few questions: - Do you already have an effective IPM program going on in the museum? If you do have recurrent pests, what are they? - How long is the duration of this installation? - How close can people get up to it? - Is it in direct line with an air register? I have to respectfully disagree with the plexi vitrine suggestion as I doubt that the artist would accept it. It would negate the concept of 'impermanence' of the piece and be visually intrusive. I do advocate for plexi glazing on paintings in public buildings and sites, and for barriers to objects and art objects, but it might not be warranted in this case. It would certainly create a separation between the two components of the work. Paul Storch On Wed, May 10, 2017 at 4:39 PM, Wingfield, Erika < erika.wingfi...@phxart.org> wrote: > This is a message from the Museumpests.net List. > To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net > To unsubscribe look at the footer of this email. > ----------------------------------------------------------- > > Hello once again! > > > > No beetle questions this time! An artist has proposed an installation that > is going to include “forest fire debris” (please see attached image). The > artist has described said “debris” as such: > > > > “…the ‘debris’ is more or less charcoal and silk, piled in a line about 6” > high directly beneath the photo. It is the charcoal remains of the forest > that appears in the photo, so it is essential to the concept of the piece. > Some of the charcoal retains the shape of pine needles, cones, bark, > branches or wood. It is fragile and can be crushed by hand. The brown bits > you see in the picture are charred pieces of silk from the bottom edge of > the photo. There are no leaves or wood chips. > > The charcoal bits have been re-burned and subjected to multiple > freeze-thaw cycles. The material was screened after cooling down to remove > ash and fine dust. The reality is that both the charcoal and silk are very > fragile and can be pulverized in handling as well as shipping which can > result in dust.” > > > > Obviously there are many concerns about this installation. The artist > claims to have done freeze-thaw cycles but how much would this actually > help in regards to keeping pests *away*. Certainly it could rid the > “debris” of any bugs that might be in there at present…but what about > prevention? We have a prohibited items list that we use for flower > arrangements and pine cones, bark, branches and wood (unless it has been > treated) are prohibited. But I am not so sure about these items after they > have been burned. This work has mainly been in galleries in the past…and I > think this is the first time it is coming into a museum so I don’t have any > institutions that I can contact to see what they had did during install and > the duration of the exhibition. I am hoping that we could make this work, > but no matter how I look at it this install seems like it can’t happen. > > > > Does anyone have any experience with dealing with piles of charcoal? Are > there any pests that would be attracted to this material, would they be the > same types that are attracted to wood and plant matter even though this > material has been burned down to charcoal? Obviously the dust is also a > concern because of our HVAC system…but that is a whole separate issue. I am > trying to arm myself with information so that if/when I have to go to the > curator to tell him it is a no go I will have documentation and perhaps > even examples. > > > > Any help would be greatly appreciated. > > > > Best, > > Erika > > > > *Erika Wingfield* > > *Assistant Registrar* > > Direct: 602.307.2030 > > Email: erika.wingfi...@phxart.org > > > > *Phoenix Art Museum* > > 1625 N. Central Avenue > > Phoenix, AZ 85004 > > > > phxart.org <http://www.phxart.org/> > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from this list send an email to > imail...@museumpests.net and in the body put: > "unsubscribe pestlist" > Any problems email l...@zaks.com > > > > -- Paul S. Storch Project Specialist III /Sites Collections and Exhibits Liaison Facilities-Historic Properties Department Facilities and Risk Management Division Minnesota Historical Society 345 Kellogg Blvd. West Saint Paul, MN 55102-1906 (651) 259-3257 paul.sto...@mnhs.org Visit Historic Sites! www.mnhs.org ------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send an email to imail...@museumpests.net and in the body put: "unsubscribe pestlist" Any problems email l...@zaks.com
