Suggested Tools for the Curator

Things in my personal tool box:

A tool belt–absolutely necessary when hanging a show!  Plus, you feel boss walking around in it.

Hammer–goes without saying.*

Nails of various sizes–I have three different sized nails for the various sized work.  I also have sets of picture hangers; the single nail set usually does fine for most hangings, but if the piece is overly large and heavy, I recommend two three-nail hangers. *

Sandpaper and fast drying drywall–of course, this depends on your wall.  Ours is a matte finish, with “sheep’s wool” benjamin moore paint.  The sandpaper and drywall are to, of course, fill in the holes left by nails.

Yellow Chalk–useful for marking where the nail will go.  Wipes off easily, and a light coat of paint will cover it’s mark better than a pencil mark.*

Masking Tape–I use this to mark the spacing between 2-d works.  Comes off easily without marring the wall.*

Tape Measure–Also, goes without saying.  I have three tape measurers in the gallery–one that lives in my tool belt, one that lives in my tool box, and one that lives on the desk for customers’ use.  Customers use tape measurers to personally measure pieces they are interested in purchasing.*

These are your enemy.

Picture Wire and Eyelet Hooks–not every artist understands how necessary it is to properly wire their canvas works.  You can hang a canvas on two evenly hung nails, but wire adds security to the piece, especially if you have busy receptions.  Nothing worse than a painting “jumping” off the wall in a crowded room.  **

–Pieces that have sawtooth hangers are NOTORIOUS for “jumping off” walls, particularly if you’re hanging another piece next to them.  If your artist absolutely cannot do without this evil device, then do all your placement & measurements for the pieces, and REMOVE the work before hammering next to it.  You don’t want to damage someone’s work or someone else’s future investment!

Level–Absolutely necessary.  Level the work after it’s hung, BEFORE setting the next piece; an unlevel painting can throw off your measurements by a couple of inches, which makes for a visually unsettling display.  Level after hanging each piece, before measuring for the next piece, and re-level after getting everything hung.*

OTHER NEEDED ITEMS: Three different ladders–the step ladder, the six footer a-frame, and the 10 footer a-frame ladder.  Additional bulbs for your light fixtures, soft cloth (I use rags made from an old sweat shirt)*, windex, paper towels, and lint rollers.  A screwdriver–I have one that is both phillips & flat head in one.  Screws of various sizes.  Electric drill (luxury item!).  Push pins, and binder clips.  A razor blade and straight edge are important as well.  We have a hand truck (luxury item!) for heavy sculptures and for easily moving pedestals.

*Denotes items suggested for tool belts.

**Tutorial on wiring canvas coming soon.

*Ms. Wakefield admits levels are often her impulse purchase of choice.  She cannot tell you how many pocket levels she owns.

Ledging–Useful for Large Paintings

Work by Atlanta artist Jeff Surace

Ledging, a term for the technique of hanging paintings of differing sizes as if they were resting on a ledge, is very useful for large vertically oriented paintings. In this particular show, the tallest painting, on the left, was about 6 feet in height   The advantage of ledging these paintings meant we had space for the additional aesthetic of  “Element”, which was also the title of the show.  We used a local sign store, and I worked with the marketing coordinator on color & wording.  The local sign store installed the vinyl lettering, which easily peeled off once the show was done.

SUGGESTED TOOLS: Tape measure, masking tape, large nails OR three-nail hangers.  Masking tape, level, step-ladder.

SUGGESTED METHOD: Decide placement of work, and in-between spacing.  Set the largest piece first, at a height appropriate for the wall and your audience.  Once you’ve set and leveled the largest piece, measure up from the base of the floor to the bottom of the painting; mark this with masking tape for the next piece.  Mark the measurements for the next piece using masking tape, and measure the amount of space from the top of the painting to the height of the wire–this is where your nail will be.  Set your nail in the wall within the measurements of the piece, and set your piece.  Level, double-check the height in relation to the first piece, and adjust if necessary.

Continue with following pieces.  If you’re using a vinyl sign, as shown, take measurements of the space for your or your marketer’s use in developing the sign.  I recommend using local businesses, as they will professionally install the product and, in our case, have a quick turn-around.

*Check out more of Jeff Surace’s work.

*Ms. Wakefield is the beyonce of curators with her ability to make up descriptive terms.