Crestron and Art Preservation

When you think of how Creston can be used to manage a large, luxury home, you think of many things. High end home movie theaters, lavish backyards, and custom automation beyond even the homeowners imagination are all staples of our powerful Crestron automation systems.  One thing many luxury homeowners fail to take into account when being consulted about a new Crestron system is their collection of fine art. Artwork of all kinds is a popular investment for many wealthy clients and today we will be talking about how we can use Crestron automated lighting systems to preserve the life of this fine art without the end user having to lift a finger.

Where traditional lighting systems will give unneeded light exposure on valuable artwork. A dedicated Crestron artwork lighting system is designed to accent art with the highest quality light while preventing damage and unneeded exposure. Exposure to light can result in cumulative and permanent damage to light-sensitive objects, and even low light levels over a long period of time can cause equal or even greater degradation as intense light for a short period. This damage to a piece of artwork can occur because light is radiant energy that causes irreversible change, either through radiant heating or photochemical action. Art can be damaged by radiant light in a variety of ways including color fading, yellowing, and embrittlement. Since this type of light damage is both cumulative and irreversible, it is incredibly important to monitor and limit the duration and intensity.

To solve this problem, GMI builds isolated lighting control for art fixtures which is designed specifically for art preservation. We use several types of light meters that measure both foot-candles (a measure of light intensity) and microwatts per lumen (a measure of visible light emitted). The lights themselves can also be equipped with  films and filters that significantly eliminate the UV part of the spectrum. Similar to the main lighting system, artwork lighting can be set on a custom timing system so that artwork is only lit when it needs to be based on time of day or occupancy of room. This panelized lighting will also reduce wall clutter and is controllable from any of your Crestron Touch Screens or hand held remotes.

Any owner of fine art will tell you that it is an investment worth protecting at any cost. GMI and Crestron work together to install and program custom lighting solutions to ensure your art collection maintains its value and beauty so you can rest easy.