INTRODUCTION
Libraries, particularly those with rare book, manuscript, and archival holdings, display materials in exhibitions to showcase significant materials and to highlight valuable research resources. Exhibitions draw upon library collections to illustrate the importance of cultural heritage materials and to illustrate the power these items have to facilitate scholarly inquiries that emerge through research across broad holdings. Yet, no matter how extensive the collections, exhibitions regularly prompt libraries to borrow materials from other organizations, or to participate in loan arrangements for exhibitions at other libraries or museums, to complete or enhance exhibition narratives. Exhibitions offer libraries and lenders an opportunity to further institutional missions. Through loans, together each promotes their collection while supporting scholarship and appreciation of cultural heritage holdings with a wider audience.
Libraries face increasingly tighter financial constraints, which impact and limit the scale of exhibition programs. Unlike museums with dedicated registrar staff, participating in loans adds responsibilities to the workloads of library staff and presents extra expenses for fine art packing, transportation, and insurance. Loan costs can be considerable expenditures that administrators scrutinize and often challenge. In response to budget constraints, exhibition curators tend to limit item selections to exemplary materials that they cannot substitute or omit from the overall exhibition project.
While protecting collection holdings is always important, it is of paramount significance to protect displayed materials, especially those on loan, because of the potential public relations implications losses would have during the run of an exhibition. Moreover, in the context of a formal exhibition loan, protecting materials is legally compulsory, and failing to protect materials has lawful ramifications and additional media repercussions.
While disaster management is not a panacea, thorough contingency planning helps libraries and other cultural heritage institutions care for materials, including those borrowed for exhibition loans. This chapter gives librarians, archivists, private collectors, and students information and guidance on how to address the needs of materials loaned for exhibition display into disaster management policy work. This chapter outlines proactive ways to incorporate contingency planning principles into the management of exhibition loans. The chapter provides guidance on how to fully review and assess loan requests, specify insurance coverage, document physical conditions, properly register loan documents, and respond to emergencies involving loaned materials. In addition to a detailed discussion on how to incorporate disaster planning practices into the loan process, the chapter includes templates for condition and incident reports, guidance on developing internal loan review procedures and loan policies, and disaster response checklists for lenders and borrowers.
BACKGROUND
From a legal perspective, formal written agreements obligate institutions borrowing materials to care for materials on loan, including care initiated in contingency responses, yet the body of professional library literature does not directly provide comprehensive assistance on how best to administer exhibition loans with disaster planning protocols in mind. Frequently, library staff administer loans as an additional task assigned to a person involved in exhibition planning, preservation, or departmental administration. Librarians managing exhibition loans can benefit from the professional standards and best practices developed by museum registrars and collection managers who manage loans as their primary professional pursuit.
Furthermore, libraries insure materials on loans differently from their main holdings, and loan materials may present legal indemnity issues. The body of professional library literature does not directly enumerate these matters, yet librarians managing exhibition loans must understand these concerns and know how to address them.
Overall, there is scant information in the professional literature that addresses the unique considerations exhibition loan material presents in disaster management. Although materials loaned for exhibition commonly include valuable and often irreplaceable materials, the topic of how to address and incorporate the needs of these materials into contingency planning largely goes overlooked. However, one can obliquely synthesize information about legal considerations, insurance, indemnity, and loan registration best practices from museum and legal textbooks such as The New Museum Registration Methods (Buck & Gilmore, 2010), A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections (Malaro & DeAngelis, 2012), and Art Loans (Palmer & Bently, 1997). Proven sources such as these from other professional fields can provide librarians working with exhibition loan materials valuable information and instruction on how to care for materials and comply with legal agreements.
Disaster planning resources tailored for libraries and cultural heritage institutions, such as Disaster Response and Planning for Libraries (Kahn, 2012) and Disaster Management in Archives, Libraries and Museums (Matthews & Knowles, 2009) provide instruction on overarching contingency planning principles and issues, but not a robust and comprehensive treatment of disaster planning considerations for materials loaned for exhibitions. Within the larger body of disaster planning literature, ample information exists on how to create contingency management policies, procedures, and training materials specifically to accommodate the needs of library and archival materials in library facilities. One can reexamine the growing body of disaster management literature to help librarians prioritize response, address proactive planning needs, and prescribe detailed response procedures specifically for loaned materials.
Pulling together information from across varied cultural heritage management sources and legal texts provides librarians with instructions on how to cover the specialized needs of materials borrowed for display within the context of modern library disaster plans. In caring for items loaned for exhibition display, librarians minimize risk and better protect valuable and often high profile holdings.
COMPREHENSIVE CONTINGENCY PLANNING FOR LOANED ITEMS ON EXHIBITION DISPLAY
Perils and Risks Facing Loaned Materials
The range of potential perils for materials on display is typically greater than those for materials held behind the scenes in secured storage spaces. In addition to building-specific threats, such as fires and broken pipes; regional risks such as hurricanes and floods; materials on display have higher public visibility making the materials more vulnerable to theft, vandalism, and judicial seizure. Additionally, although materials loaned for display can often be very highly valued, unique, and historically significant, most disaster plans do not specifically speak to the issues exhibition loans present, and this leaves institutions vulnerable to risk and potential loss in the event of an unforeseen incident.
Moreover, sudden losses that may occur during the highly visible window of an exhibition have the potential to catch the attention of the media, and could irrevocably strain or damage the relationship between borrower and lender. Beyond the loan, high-profile losses could quickly damage a borrower’s reputation as a careful custodian of cultural heritage materials. This blemish could thwart approval of future loans, and, perhaps negatively color perceptions potential donors may hold about the library. It is of the utmost importance to address, proactively, the concerns loan materials present during contingency planning to minimize risk and limit exposure so a library can best care for cultural heritage materials.
During a loan, a borrowing institution legally pledges that it will assume full responsibility for the safekeeping of loaned materials and provide the same level—if not higher level—of professional care it does to materials in its formal custody, and that it will consistently exercise best practices in registration, handling, and display (Malaro & DeAngelis, 2012). As provisional caretakers, borrowers have a duty to keep lenders fully informed of the status and physical condition of borrowed materials. The loan is an opportunity to showcase a lender’s generous participation in cultural heritage exhibitions, and the borrowing institution has a professional responsibility to protect fully loaned materials and to prepare response plans in the event of a calamity.
Without apologies, a potential lender may decline participating in loan arrangements, and has the prerogative to agree to arrangements only to their point of comfort. A lender is free to make stipulations to loan contracts, and should feel confident with how the borrower will handle the materials from the point of departure through return. It is through the generosity and collegiality of lenders that cultural heritage institutions are able to expand and complete exhibition storylines. This collaboration promotes scholarship and artistic appreciation to wider audiences.
Disaster preparedness and response policies that examine and address risks in light of exhibition loans can help libraries minimize potential loss of loaned exhibition materials in the event of an emergency. Ideally, disaster management pursuits should begin during the loan review stage. Libraries that participate in loans need to have guidelines set in place to evaluate a proposed borrower’s ability to provide appropriate care for materials borrowed for exhibitions. These guidelines will scrutinize the request, assess the institution, examine insurance provisions, as well as evaluate procedures that guide registration best practices, including contingency response procedures.
Reviewing and Evaluating Loan Requests with Disaster Planning Protocol in Mind
Libraries reduce exposure and risk by limiting lending to cultural heritage institutions with professional staff experienced in caring for artifacts, loan registration, and disaster response, and by documenting these restrictions through institutional loan policies[1]. Formal loan policies define the scope and limitations of a library’s loan program, and libraries commonly post them on their public websites. These guidelines indirectly support disaster management efforts by preempting loans that present undue risks or liability exposure. Formal loan policies are useful to cite when declining loan requests from individuals or unsuitable organizations.
An institutional loan policy should include a statement about an institution’s overarching mission and rationale for participating in loans. For instance, a policy might state that items from the library’s permanent collection may be available for temporary exhibition loans to promote scholarship and aesthetic appreciation at cultural or educational institutions. This broad statement signals to prospective borrowers the types of exhibitions the institution supports. Similarly, the loan policy should state the limitations of lending to cultural or educational institutions that meet conditions stated on the institution’s loan agreement form. The policy should note that the library will review the prospective borrower’s facility, programs, and staffing to ensure the borrower can provide appropriate care to the materials. Additionally, the policy should advise that the library reviews the item’s physical condition to determine whether an item is fit to loan, and that the library may decline loan requests if the item is needed onsite for research use during the loan period. The policy should note that borrowers bear costs of loan-related expenditures such as insurance, crating, fine art transportations, courier expenses, and any associated loan administration fees the institution charges.
The institutional loan policy should provide prospective borrowers with instructions on how to submit letters of request, and note the information to include in the application. The policy should list the contact person, or position, to whom prospective borrowers should direct loan-related inquiries. In efforts to prevent hasty letters of request, it is helpful to make a statement on the timeframe needed for review. The formal loan request should detail the information needed to process the request such as the proposed loan period, the exhibition title, the name and affiliation of the curators, and a full citation of the item requested, including a description of the displayed page for books or multi-part items. Importantly, instructions should require potential borrowers to include a copy of their institutional facility report with the letter of request. Moreover, some institutions find it helpful during the review process to learn about print publication and web exhibition plans, and may instruct prospective borrowers to include information in their formal request about publication planning or associated image reproduction needs.
Evaluating the Request
In addition to a formal loan policy, libraries should adopt written internal procedures to evaluate loan requests and apply disaster planning thinking to that review process. These guidelines help libraries thoroughly weigh risks when deciding whether to participate in a proposed loan.
To evaluate a loan request, first review the merits of the exhibition in the broad sense. Consider if there is anything controversial about the exhibit topic or organization that may reflect negatively onto the library or solicit unfavorable media attention. If the materials would be used to demonstrate a divisive issue that could elicit a public response, evaluate whether participation presents any increased risk for loss caused by human responses such as arson or vandalism.
After considering the theme of the exhibition, review the collection files. Verify that there are no restrictions placed on the item and that a donor did not make stipulations concerning public display. Take this opportunity also to review fully the item’s provenance and to insure that the library holds clear title. If there is a loss, clear title is required to settle a claim. During in-coming loan reviews, research whether a third party can make an ownership claim. For all loans, borrowers should have access upon request to an item’s complete provenance history to evaluate whether there is any risk of legal confiscation during the loan. Additionally, if the loan is international, a full provenance history is required for immunity from seizure applications by the US State Department as well as most foreign governments.
If there are no ownership or provenance issues, consider the particular item requested. Reflect on whether the item is of seminal importance to the institution’s collection and whether it would be inappropriate to make it available for loans. Also, inspect the material requested to determine if the item is stable enough physically for transport and display. Consider whether the length of time the item will be on display presents concerns for its long-term condition. To inform this decision further, review the piece’s circulation and display history. For conservation reasons, items displayed recently or used heavily in the past may present problems. Reflect upon whether another exhibition would harm the piece physically. For security concerns, review whether the item has features that would make it vulnerable to theft, such as autographs, engraved plates, or gilding. Moreover, consider whether the borrowers are promoting the exhibition in a manner that may call attention to an item’s market value and make it a target for theft.
When considering loan requests, it is prudent to conduct independent research. Determine whether the requested material is widely held or available elsewhere. If other copies exist, examine why the library’s copy is necessary for the exhibition.
Evaluating the Borrower
After evaluating big-picture considerations and determining that the item is suitable for loan, it is important to review closely the institution requesting materials. Gather as much information as needed to assess fully a borrower’s ability to provide care appropriate for the material during a loan.