Relocating the NGV collection

The relocation of the collection from the St Kilda Road building, home to the collection for the past 35 years, has been a very big job involving many staff members as well as outside experts. One case of interest is the movement of two of the sculptures in the Lindsay Courtyard- the Rodin Balzac and the Moore Seated Woman. Both are cast bronze sculptures and were installed for the opening of the St Kilda Road building in 1966. No records have been found as to exactly how they were installed, or what secured them to their bases. Of particular concern was the Rodin which was attached to a large cast concrete base in a way that could not be determined. The Moore was on a base consisting of many individual blocks, and therefore, it would have been possible to disassemble the base, if necessary.

NGV Conservation staff examine Balzac's large concrete base

I had visited other installations of identical versions of our Balzac at Los Angeles and in Europe, but had been unable to find any information on how ours was attached. When it came time to move it, we held our breath while our contractor, Panna Cranes, gradually began to lift Balzac up from its base. When we were able to see beneath, we could observe two inverted "L" shaped metal clips which held the sculpture in place. It was a simple matter of sliding the sculpture sideways while keeping it slightly raised off the base in order to free it.

Balzac is gradually lifted up from its base

There are times when relief is palpable and this was one of those times. Had things been different, our last fall back position was the noisy, dirty and risky prospect of raising the sculpture and simply reducing the cement base to rubble with a jack-hammer - something none of us was looking forward to. Likewise, the Moore was also easily removed using the expertise of our crane operators and their special equipment. Both sculptures were on display at the McClelland Gallery for the period of the redevelopment of St Kilda Road and have since returned to the NGV since its re-opening in 2003.

Auguste RODIN
French 1840–1917
Balzac 1898, cast 1967
bronze
422.2 x 123.5 x 306.0 cm (overall)
Felton Bequest, 1963
1564-D5