(Museum Closure Blog) The reason of the museum’s closure

We started this blog series, “Museum Closure Blog” to keep our valued customers updated even during the period of closure. The topics can be about the closure itself and the things that happened during the closure. In our first edition, we would like to answer the question: “Why is the Fukuoka City Museum closed?”

The Fukuoka City Museum is fully closed from November 30, 2020 to March 31, 2021 for partial renovation. The power systems and the toilets will be renovated within 4 months. The building of the Fukuoka City Museum was completed on March 1989 and used as the main pavilion of the Asian Pacific Expo Fukuoka 1989. The building was transformed into a museum after the event, and re-opened as the Fukuoka City Museum on October 1990. After 30 or more years since its establishment, the museum’s building and facilities have deteriorated with age. Although some parts have been revamped into energy saving facilities under the ESCO (Energy Service Company) project in 2002, the main electric system remained unchanged, and is now more than 30 years old.

The museum’s electric system receives high-tension current from electricity providers, and the voltage has been changed to make it adequate for museum use. The most important usage of electricity is to control humidity inside the museum. Humidity control is not only important so that our customers feel comfortable inside the museum, but it also keeps the collection in good condition in the exhibition and storage rooms. Have you ever had your lacquerware damaged by keeping them too dry? The same thing would happen to the museum’s collection if we don’t perform humidity control adequately.

It is very important for us to be extra careful in maintaining an optimum environment for our collection, to preserve them for successive generations. (Lighting can also be damaging to artifacts. To prevent decolorization or deterioration, the lighting in the exhibition rooms should be free from ultraviolet rays and the brightness should also be strictly controlled.). It would be disastrous for our museum if something goes wrong in the air circulation system of the storage rooms and exhibition rooms. It is very important for us to procure a stable electrical supply and to keep the air circulation system running. For this reason, we have emergency power generators to ensure that the electricity will again be running just 40 seconds after the start of a power outage, to restart air conditioning of the storage rooms and exhibition rooms immediately.

Our staff explaining the power receiving and transforming system in Backyard Tour in 2018.

 Our power receiving and transforming system have been running for more than 30 years while having it periodically checked and repaired, but finally, the time has come that we should change it to the new system. However, we should keep the air conditioning system working while the renovation is on-going so that we can keep the collection in a good condition.

To enable this, we should go through the following process:

#1. Install a temporary power receiving and transforming the system.

#2. Start using the temporary system instead of the conventional system.

#3. Remove the old system and install the new system.

#4. Start using the new system and terminate the temporary system.

#5. Remove the Temporary system.

The whole process requires four months, but it is necessary to protect our valuable collection.

We will be reopening next April after the partial renovation.

Although the result of the renovation is still yet to see, the museum’s most essential part has been already renovated by the time you visit us for the next time. We are looking forward to welcoming you at the revived Fukuoka City Museum in April!