BPG Housing of Oversized Prints and Drawings

Book and Paper Group Wiki > Housings > Housing of Oversized Prints and Drawings

Wiki Contributors: Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco - Legion of Honor please add your name here

Copyright 2025. The AIC Wiki is a publication of the American Institute for Conservation (AIC). It is published as a convenience for the members of AIC. Publication does not endorse nor recommend any treatments, methods, or techniques described herein. Information on researching with and citing the wiki can be found on the Reference and Bibliography Protocols page.

Cite this page:

American Institute for Conservation (AIC). "BPG Housing of Oversized Prints and Drawings." AIC Wiki. June 12, 2025. https://www.conservation-wiki.com/wiki/BPG_Housing_of_Oversized_Prints_and_Drawings.

Delta cabinet contains art in 48" x 72" folders made of lig-free type I .010" folder stock (Conservation Resources.) The sheets are joined with linen tape to create folders. Note that 48" x 72" is the largest sheet of this type of material available without a mill run.


This 80" x 110" cabinet houses prints and drawings between sheets of folder stock (obtained through a special mill run.) At 6" deep, these drawers are way too deep for sensible access.


Artworks larger than 80" x 110" in either dimension are housed on rolls. Industrial shelving units were constructed, at a modest price, to fit in a formerly un-used slim space.


Boxes are constructed of single-ply acid-free corrugated cardboard by museum technician Don Larsen. The design was modeled on boxes made at the Guggenheim for the storage of oversized photographs. A 6" diameter acid-free cardboard tube (Archivart) is used for most objects. This dimension was chosen in order to minimize the size of the boxes yet not cause too great a curl to an object in long-term rolled storage. Ethafoam yokes suspend and secure the tube. The artwork is covered with Tyvek® and secured with double-sided Velcro® One-Wrap® straps (Gaylord.)


Box corners are constructed by peeling off a layer of the corrugated board. Achival quality PVA is used to secure the corner. A bone folder smooths the flap to secure.


Large framed works of art on paper stored on racks are protected from light exposure with custom box covers that slip onto the framed object. Corners of the box covers are made in the same way as the custom boxes for rolled storage.