I was always told that in libraries, height was given first because of the need to determine shelf height for the books. I would imagine the same sort of logic was applied to artwork for both display and storage purposes. For display the height of a piece would be a more relevant measurement in terms of ceiling height. And like libraries, for artwork or any other object or archival material, height is an important factor in finding storage.
Cheers,
Christine Pittsley
On 17 Feb 2012, at 10:10, Johanna Goldfeld wrote:
Hi listers,
Does anyone know (or have a theory about) the rationale and/or history behind the museum convention of listing the dimensions of artwork as "height by width" (rather than "width x height")?
The standard in printing and paper is "width x height," so as a designer working with museums I find myself frequently having to "translate" dimensions, when speaking with curators and printers.
I've done a bit of research so far, and have found that h x w has been used by museums and architects for hundreds of years. However, paper, printing, and technology (most of our graphic design software and screen sizes) use width x height. I wonder how far back THIS convention can be traced.
I was planning to write about this for my next e-newsletter, but had no idea it would be such a complex mystery!
I look forward to your insight!
Johanna
--
Johanna Goldfeld Design, LLC
Graphic and Exhibition Design
Tel: 718-789-1238
Visit my website: www.jgoldfeld-design.com
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