Among the pieces of received wisdom challenged at the Museums Association's recent one-day lighting conference was the idea that low lighting levels and the 50 lux limit set for susceptible artefacts do any good. This limit for light fugitive materials, designed to reduce the damage done to light-sensitive objects, was enshrined almost half a century ago in Garry Thomson's book The Museum Environment and has become the standard. But it is 'a fallacy that light levels below the recommendations quoted in LG8 or other guidance are safe,' said lighting consultant Stephen Cannon-Brookes (pictured speaking above). Any exposure to light for any length of time does some harm to some items and it is better to see them properly, albeit briefly, than doom them to gloomy obscurity and gradual decay. 'Both excessive illumination and insufficient light for viewing are wasteful,' he said.
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