Implementing an Adaptive Climate Control Strategy: Collection Monitoring and Sustainability Outcomes

In 2022, the authors presented the first stage of implementing a revised climate control strategy at the National Gallery of Victoria, monitoring collection object response in collaboration with the Getty Conservation Institute using acoustic emissions (AE) monitoring. The research and education, motivating factors, and interdepartmental alignment required for adopting the Bizot Green Protocol (BGP) were discussed, as well as the experimental design and set-up of the AE system on a large Flemish altarpiece in an active gallery. This second and concluding paper presents the results of the AE monitoring study along with energy used by the HVAC system for the gallery housing the AE monitoring study, during the transition from traditional environmental parameters through to broadened parameters as defined in the BGP. The project highlights the importance of understanding individual gallery and building behaviour as well as the HVAC system in place. In the case of the gallery housing the AE study, the implementation of BGP parameters resulted in smaller environmental fluctuations than expected. That HVAC energy efficiency could be improved with a relatively low impact on the gallery environment was an unexpected but welcome outcome. This case study describes some common challenges faced when considering such a change operationally, including resourcing and communication needs. Identifying points of resistance, framing problems clearly, and identifying common goals were essential to making progress. In this case, sustainability has compelled many stakeholders into alignment and enabled a shift in institutional culture.