Keeping History, Art Alive with AC

For the most part, the benefits of AC are fairly self-evident. By now, we are all familiar with the most obvious advantages of air conditioning when it comes to our comfort and health; when it’s hot outside in the summertime, AC helps us to regulate body temperatures by keeping a cool indoor climate, preventing us from overheating. On the hottest July days, we might not be able to survive without the help of AC.

But the human body isn’t the only thing that suffers when exposed to heat; sensitive pieces of prized artwork also also depend on ice cold air conditioning when they need to look and feel their best. Museums have a reputation for being quiet and cold - but now thanks to a broken AC system on top of recent slashes to the budget at the Borghese Gallery, this famous Italian museum now only meets half of that criteria.

Air conditioning in a museum works to preserve paintings in a similar way that a refrigerator works to preserve your food; cooler temperatures are essential for maintaining the colors and textures of the paint on the canvas, thus prolonging the lifespan of these already historic works of art.

Elisabetta Giani, expert from the Superior Institute for Conservation and Restoration, told the Telegraphthat temperatures higher than 86 F inside the museum could deform or damage the precious art works on display in the Borghese Gallery. Giani is also concerned because rather than fix the AC to save the art, museum officials have decided instead to keep the windows open.

Opening the door won’t keep your food from spoiling when your refrigerator breaks, especially in the midst of the summer. The same applies to artwork in an overheated museum.

With the increasingly hot weather outdoors this season coupled with the high volume of traffic inside the museum - some exhibits see as many as 20,000 visitors a day, bringing in enough human body heat to warm things up fast - opening the windows certainly won’t be enough to stave off damaging high temperatures.

Without air conditioning, the Borghese Gallery risks losing priceless pieces of history, including Raphael’s Deposition of Christ; Titian's Sacred and Profane Love; Madonna and Child with St. Anne by Caravaggio; and the gallery's namesake statue of Paolina Borghese by Antonio Canova. With the stakes this high, it would be wise to install new AC, ASAP!

Don’t make the same mistake as our friends at the art museum in Italy - you do yourself more harm than good by going without AC to “save money.” With an efficient cooling system, you get the best of both worlds: climate control at an affordable price!