AIC's 47th Annual Meeting

University museum is a central part of informal education institute in China. According to preliminary statistics students account for a very large proportion of museum visitors, they pay a visit with the definite intention of learning new knowledge and history. The Museum of Archaeology and Art of Jilin University adheres to the concept of “visitor-centered and serve the society”, it exhibits the objects excavated by students of Institute of archaeology, Jilin University, which can date from 1972 and a large number of precious objects. As for this visitor-centered education institute, should the conservation guidelines be evaluated by students? Who are the vital visitors of museum and the educated? In 2009, China issued a Code for the design of museum lighting (GB/T 23863-2009), which divided museum objects into three categories, low, medium and high light sensitivity. For high sensitivity objects, the total amount of illumination should be less than 50,000 lux-hours per year, which limits the number of display days to less than 125 per year when the illuminance is 50 lux for 8 hours. For medium sensitivity objects, it should be less than 360,000 lux-hours per year. The Code for lighting design of museums also specifies that museums should limit UV radiation of natural light and artificial light to less than 75 µW/lm. With faithfully implement of this code, five years ago, the Museum of Archaeology and Art of Jilin University changed all of its light sources into LED, the lighting design basically meets the preventive conservation standards. However, the survey about the satisfaction of museum environment we conducted including 200 persons’ questionnaire and 45 persons’ face to face interview show the lighting environment cannot meet their standard, the museum definitely take good care of their objects, which is proved with data inspected by digital illuminometers inside the exhibition halls and display cases, but cannot provide high-quality light environment for visitors. The uniformity of illuminance, color accuracy, eyestrain due to dim lighting, discomfort glare, true-color representation of the objects are all the elements the visitors complained about, they expect more from conservators to make a balance between conservation and comfortable sensation, our university museum is served as educational institution and necessary supplement of school education, should the visitors’ opinion be valued when we are making a preventive conservation guidelines? Low-level illuminance cannot be the only thing we remember about preventive conservation, we still have a lot to do, and we don’t have to do it as the sacrifice of the deterioration of objects. With the adjustment of lighting direction, with design of lighting color, with the combination of natural light and artificial light sources, with the introduction of motion-sensor lights, with the real care for our visitors, we can make a better preventive conservation guidelines.