THE ART OF CARING
Pandora Mather-Lees looks at how a little bit of art appreciation and knowledge can go a long way to avoiding some embarrassing situations due to bad cleaning practices or avoidable damage
W
hen a captain unwittingly unwrapped a Christo & Jean Claude masterpiece and threw
the ‘wrapping’ down into the engine room he could have had no idea this would cause his owner to utter cries of despair upon embarkation.
As Captain of a superyacht, priorities centre around health & safety, itineraries, upkeep and maintenance of the exterior,
interior, environment and crew on board, not to mention the important aspects of ensuring the owner’s requirements are met to the highest standard possible.
The additional burden of responsibility for specialist interior assets is now becoming part of the overall responsibility and it is not just related to paintings. Some vessels have hundreds of pieces and there is often limited inventory to say what exists, background documentation or importantly, knowledge about how to care for it.
The Christo artwork anecdote shows why learning a little art appreciation could go a long way towards avoiding embarrassing moments, discomfort and financial loss. Yachting crew cannot be expected to have such depth of knowledge, but questions should be posed and had there been good co-ordination between the supplier, the shipper, the owner and those on board, undoing paper and string that was part of the fabric of the work itself
might not have happened. Many of the accidents that happen to art on board are because those around it are unaware and generally not exposed to fine art at close quarters. They do not necessarily know who the artist is or characteristics of their practice and this stretches to understanding questions of value and also understanding the superyacht owner as art collector. Owners will fall into different categories and where some will simply say “let’s get another one, or I don’t want it any more”, others will be distressed to have a prized piece not displayed to its best advantage. Whichever it is, avoiding incidents remains paramount.
Avoiding damage
Damage on board can generally be averted through practical training. The instance of a Jan Frydrych crystal sculpture which was chipped when a stewardess placed it on the floor, to be knocked by an unsuspecting guest, is a case in point. Crew should avoid moving or touching art works as much as possible and ideally conduct a risk assessment when they do. Additionally, cleaning should involve the least invasive methods first, prefaced by careful observation and review of documentation. At the onset of a piece coming on board, there should be a consultation and communication as to what it is, how it should be cleaned, stored, moved and displayed.
Cleaning with care Dry over wet methods are important with cleaning and avoiding chemicals is paramount. This cannot be repeated enough because cleaning agent damage recurs again and again. How often do
38 | SPRING 2019 | ONBOARD
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