Fort Myers Beach damage: Hurricane Ian’s storm surge impact
Hurricane Ian’s storm surge dramatically impacted buildings at Fort Myers Beach.
Loni Architects via Storyful, Storyful
Southwest Florida is home to more than 100 art galleries, museums and institutes.
And each year, these spaces prepare for hurricane season to ensure that their priceless historical artifacts and works of art are safe from storms.
The arts are vital to the region, as studies revealed last year. They tracked the economic impact of local theaters, museums, art galleries, orchestras and more.
Lee County’s nonprofit arts and culture industry generated more than $135 million in economic activity in 2022 and the first four months of 2023, according to the national study Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (or “AEP6”).
In Collier County, nonprofit arts-and-culture industry generated $147 million in economic activity in 2022, according to the national study Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (or “AEP6”). That was $40 million more than the last study conducted in 2017.
A ‘permanent responsibility’ to care for the art
Frank Verpoorten, executive director and chief curator of the Naples Art Institute, is the former chief curator of the Baker Museum at Artis―Naples and has extensive experience in curatorial and directorial roles. Verpoorten says that curators are in charge of managing collections, which includes keeping them safe.
“There’s a permanent responsibility that curators and museums have to take care of works of art in their custody,” Verpoorten said.
Matt Andes, chief curator at the Edison-Ford Winter Estates in Fort Myers, says that curators not only play a role in taking care of pieces in their custody but also protecting them for future generations to enjoy.
For example, the Edison-Ford estate site dates back to 1885, with the first building (Seminole Lodge) completed in 1886.
“Not only are we educators and exhibit developers, we really are the guardians protecting these historical treasures and resources,” Andes said. “It is my goal to continue to protect these for future generations.”
What does the process before a storm look like?
Courtney McNeil is director and chief curator for The Baker Museum at Artis―Naples. Currently, the Baker Museum has several visiting exhibitions, including Andy Warhol Portfolios from the Bank of America Collection. McNeil says that, while there is a difference between works on loan and those in the permanent collection, they are treated equally in the event of a storm.
“The only different ways we treat objects are based on their level of vulnerability,” McNeil said “Obviously any work displayed outside and inside works of art that are made of specific materials like works on paper, which would be particularly susceptible to mold damage.”
While vulnerability is one concern, Verpoorten says that the process for moving or removing works from a space depends on whether a work is on loan from a collection. Artwork in a museum’s collection is owned by the museum while artwork on loan is temporarily transferred from another institution or collector.
“It is your immediate responsibility to let a lender or lenders know about inclement weather and usually this is stipulated in a contract with the lender,” Verpoorten said. “If a museum is on loan from a collection or several collections, I can’t just go ahead and remove things myself.”
Unlike the Baker Museum or the Naples Art Institute, The Edison-Ford Winter Estates sits on more than 20 acres of land ― not to mention, the estates are adjacent to the Caloosahatchee River that is prone to flooding during storms. Most recently, the river flooded Fort Myers during Hurricane Ian in 2022.
“An art museum has the luxury if having modern buildings that have been adapted to code while a lot of the buildings we have here were built in the late 1800s and early 1900s,” Andes said.
Andes says that implementing the estate’s hurricane protocol is an extensive process, which includes removing historical furnishings, taking smaller items to a hurricane proof shelter, removing the antique automobiles from the garage and putting up storm shutters.
Does hurricane season impact how exhibitions are organized?
Verpoorten maintains that curators in areas prone to natural disasters, such as hurricanes or earthquakes, will often factor in risk when planning an exhibition. Curators must consider the cumulative insurance value and importance of the works.
“Any area in the U.S. that is prone to natural disaster learns to deal with the risk in seasons,” Verpoorten said. “What this means for us is that you would never plan such an exhibition during hurricane season. The risk factor is too great.”
When museums seek out collections for an exhibition, they must give lenders a General Facility Report. This document, which is drafted by the American Alliance of Museums, is a record of the institution’s physical specifications and staff practices. It also includes information about climate and weather-related risks, like if an institution is located in a hurricane zone.
Verpoorten also points out that, in Florida, more costly and resource-heavy exhibitions are usually planned for high season anyway.
“Whenever we had an exhibition on French Impressionism, no one would think about having the show from July till September,” Verpoorten said. “Not only would that be not wise in terms of attracting the most visitors, but you probably wouldn’t get it off the ground because your lenders would be reluctant.”
What happens when art is damaged in a storm?
Preventative measures do not always prove successful as natural disasters become more frequent and less predictable.
“A lot of these storms now can create damage in ways that we did not anticipate,” Verpoorten said. “We may focus on the strength of the storm but then we don’t realize that it’s real danger is in the fact that it will linger for 48 hours over the area.”
Viviana Dominguez, senior and chief conservator at Art Conservators Lab, has over 38 years of experience in art conservation. She has offices in both Miami and Naples. From the catastrophic 2010 earthquake in Haiti to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, she has seen it all. Dominguez says that in the event of a disaster, conservators follow a multi-step process including assessment and restoration.
“The first thing we need to do is an assessment of the situation,” Dominguez said.
The Art Conservators Lab specializes in emergency and natural disaster art recovery for institutions and private collections.
“For example, the collection may have been damaged with water, so the first thing we do is create room where the pieces can be put to dry as fast as we can because we want to prevent mold growth.”
The process can be complicated when artwork has been done with many different materials, which is why a conservator is essential in the process. For example, if the art is on paper in a frame, it cannot be dried inside the frame. Alternatively, in the case of a painting, it is better to leave it in a frame while it dries. These are small details that make a world of a difference for restoration of the artwork.
“In an ideal situation, that collection already has a plan in place,” Dominguez said. “What we call preventative conservation in this case is very important.”
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Dominguez believes that there is an increased need for conservators, especially in helping institutions prepare emergency response plans for storms. While most museums have emergency response plans, private collections are what Dominguez worries about. In fact, her goal is to organize a workshop open to the public to keep them informed about protecting their art.
“In the past few years, so many disasters have happened and people have lost their entire collections,” Dominguez said. “Not only because of the events of a hurricane but because of lack of knowledge on what to do once your pieces are wet.”
