We are proud to showcase our extensive collaboration with The National Gallery in London, a partnership that underscores our specialised skills in bespoke art display solutions. Among our numerous projects with this esteemed institution located in Trafalgar Square, we have delivered custom-designed stanchions and barrier systems tailored to meet the unique needs of the gallery’s historic environment.
This case study focuses on one of our most recent endeavours with the Gallery; the modification of existing stanchions to enable surface mounting. In this project, we faced unique challenges and executed bespoke solutions that not only respected the historic setting of The National Gallery but also adhered to stringent regulatory requirements and aesthetic sensibilities.
About The National Gallery:
The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, in Trafalgar Square since 1838, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the from 13th to the 19th centuries.
The Gallery’s aim is to care for the collection, to enhance it for future generations, primarily by acquisition, and to study it, while encouraging access to the pictures for the education and enjoyment of the widest possible public now and in the future.
Project Objectives:
AEC Museum & Gallery worked on the Lower Galleries section of the National Gallery. We were requested to modify the existing stanchions whilst keeping similar aesthetics and retain structural integrity.
Objective: Keep as much as existing hardware as possible, but change the design from a spigot fixed in the ground to a surface mounted stanchion.
Why? The National Gallery had to implement these changes due to regulatory requirements.
Client Needs and Challenges
Client Requirements:
The purpose was to increase the distance between the artwork and the barrier systems (stanchions); from 750mm to 1000mm.
Challenges:
We were unable to move the socket in the floor an extra 250mmm without significant infrastructural changes; We had to change the fixing method, whilst retaining the existing hardware.
We had a small window to work with the art handles, as they were rehanging the artwork, and we were liaising with the curators to confirm the location of the barriers.
Our solution
Conceptualisation:
Our solution was to design and manufacture an additional surface mounted plate that we fixed to the wooden floor with screws.
Then the existing stanchion was machined out so that it could screw onto this plate. The design was sleek and subtle. We used 3D visualisation to describe/show our solution to the Gallery, which they agreed.
Customisation:
We had to select a specific thread that had a large diameter and a fine pitch as we only had 6mm thickness to make the surface plate.
Collaboration process:
We collaborated with the Gallery during the design process and received confirmation before we proceeded. We then had to liaise with the curators whilst on site to ensure that the barriers were fixed in a suitable location.
Installation:
Access is always a challenge when significant parts of the building is open to the public. We had to ensure that all tools and materials arrives at the location before it was open to the public. We then had to work around the art hangers to ensure that we were not getting in each other’s way.
Services / products used
Diagrams or Blueprints:
Project Images
