The movement of artwork at the Saint Louis Art Museum requires authorization from the Registrar through a Location Change Request. The requests are generated from the Museum’s Collection Management System, TMS (The Museum System) and attached to the Installation Calendar.
This process insures that the Registrar is aware of all object movement no matter where the requests originate and that locations are diligently tracked and maintained. Like most institutions, objects are constantly moving through the Museum for a variety of reasons so adherence to this policy is critical to the safety and security of the objects.
Each Location Change Request is a TMS report, converted to a pdf. Requests pull information from the following database fields:
Object number
Object image
Title
Date
Maker(s)
Dimensions
Component Names (if applicable)
Current Location
Home Location
Previous Location
In addition, the Registrar adds to each request:
Project
Requestor’s name
Due date
Location object(s) are to be moved to
Any notes about the request
As soon as an object is moved, the Art Handler writes the new location on the report, along with his/her initials and the date moved. At the end of each day, either the Head or Senior Preparator or Registrar uses these printed reports to record each object’s new location in TMS.
As a final check, each day a report of all location changes recorded the previous day in TMS is sent to the Registrar and Head and Senior Preparators for review. This daily report helps to ensure that all location changes are recorded timely and accurately in TMS.
A helpful TMS tool that the Art Museum also incorporates into object movement is Handling Notes (located in any TMS object record, under the Registration Tab).
Each object can have an unlimited number of Handling Notes. Each Note consists of the note itself, the author, and the date written.
Notes can explain condition concerns, packing notes, installation requirements and concerns, etc. Notes are entered by both Registration staff (including Art Handling) or Conservation staff. Any note entered is then highlighted on the Location Change Request immediately below that object. Because the same staff member may not be moving an object that he or she has dealt with previously, this information is often crucial to the safety of an object. The information attached could be as simple as a reminder that a piece installed has security hardware attached so that the person or persons de-installing are aware of this before trying to remove the object, or it could bring attention to an existing condition concern.
Pictured:
Nicole Stevens - Preparator St. Louis Art Museum,
Christopher Moreland - Senior Preparator St. Louis Art Museum.
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