Lori,

I would imagine the gatorfoam is 1/4" thick. If so, your composite group would be 7 1/2 inches thick. My first thought would be to make two panels of 1/8" baltic birch plywood, which comes in 5'x5' sheets. Glue 1x3 clear pine around the exterior perimeter to stiffen them. A central strip may be needed as well. With these placed on either side of the panels, the composite thickness will be 9 1/4 inches (7 1/2 + 3/4 + 3/4 + 1/8 + 1/8). You can then use more baltic birch cut to appropriate width on the four narrow sides, screwed into the 1x3 pine of the large panels. This should not add all that much weight, and will protect from bumps and abrasions. If more strength is needed, you can use 1x10 clear pine instead of the baltic birch for the narrow sides. Of course, be sure that the back side of the gatorfoam panels are against the plywood to minimize damage to the images. Good luck!

Marc

American Conservation Consortium, Ltd.
     4 Rockville Road
     Broad Brook, CT 06016
     www.conservator.com
     860-386-6058

*Collections Preservation Consultation
*Conservation Assessments & Surveys
*Low-Tech Environmental Control
*Moisture Management Solutions
*Collections in Historic Structures
*Conservation Treatment of:
     Furniture
     Painted Wood
     Horse-Drawn Vehicles
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Marc A. Williams, President
     MS in Art Conservation, Winterthur Museum Program
     Former Chief Wooden Object Conservator, Smithsonian Institution
     Fellow, American Institute for Conservation (AIC)

----- Original Message -----

From: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">Lori Fisher

To: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]

Sent: Monday, January 22, 2007 4:31 PM

Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Photo panel storage/protection

Hi,

We have almost 30 photo panels sized around 4' x 5' that we re-hang from the ceiling every year at our major annual fundraiser. Most of these are on gatorfoam, which are highly susceptible to crunched corners. I need to find an economical way to protect the panels during storage and transport so that the edges aren't damaged and the photo sides aren't scratched. We transport the panels to our fundraiser site using a large van, so anything I create will need to be light enough for one or two people to load and move. I've looked into artist portfolios, but none are big enough. We've used large pieces of cardboard taped together to protect the panels, but tape is dangerous around the photos, particularly when unwrapping them. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance,

Lori

Lori A. Fisher
Director of Programs and Collections
New Hampshire Political Library/Franklin Pierce Manse
P.O. Box 2512
Concord, NH 03302-2512
Phone: (603) 225-4617 ext. 10
Fax: (603) 225-0540
E-mail: [log in to unmask]

www.piercemanse.org
www.politicallibrary.org

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