The owner buys a bronze sculpture in Antibes and it arrives on the passerelle in a wooden crate. Nobody has told you what it is worth, where it goes, how it fixes down, or what happens to it when the boat is in a beam sea. Until somebody documents it, that sculpture is both a very expensive object and a loose heavy hazard.
Know what you have
Art on a superyacht is frequently worth more than the interior around it. The interior team is usually the department that touches it most and knows least about it.
- Build an art and high-value inventory: photograph each piece from several angles, record artist, title, medium, dimensions, location, fixings, condition and any maker care instructions, and note its condition with close-ups of existing damage.
- Cross-reference the inventory with the insurance schedule. Items above the agreed value often carry specific conditions — how they are fixed, transported, stored and who may handle them.
- Keep certificates of authenticity, provenance and valuations with the management company, not loose in a drawer.
Handling
| Rule | Why |
|---|---|
| Clean hands, no jewellery, gloves where specified | Skin oils and rings damage gilding, bronze patina, paper and lacquer |
| Two people, planned route | Most damage happens in transit, not on the wall |
| Carry by the structure | Never by a frame corner, a limb of a sculpture, a handle or a rim |
| Never touch the surface | Especially paint, patina, gilding and glazing |
| Never clean art | Dust the frame or the plinth. Conservators clean art |
- Move nothing on your own initiative. Repositioning a piece for a party is a decision for the Chief and the Captain.
- At sea, art must be secured as designed — magnetic mounts, security fixings, storage brackets. Loose or lifted art in a seaway is both a loss and an injury risk.
- Before rough weather or a yard period, high-value and fragile pieces come down, get wrapped in the correct materials (acid-free tissue, breathable wrapping, purpose-built crates) and go into their storage location. Log it.
Documenting and reporting
- Any contact, knock, scratch or change of condition is reported the same day, with a photograph and a factual description.
- Do not clean, touch up, re-hang or "sort" a damaged piece. Even a fingerprint on a bronze patina can compromise a conservation report and an insurance claim.
- Condition reports at handover — when a piece arrives, is moved ashore, comes back from a loan or exhibition, or is handled by a contractor — protect the boat and protect you.
Onboard Notes
- Guests and their children will touch art. Politely and quietly manage the space; do not lecture. If something is genuinely at risk, tell the Chief.
- Silk, paper, photography and works on paper are destroyed by UV and humidity. Watch light levels and the AC in art spaces.
- Never let a contractor move a piece to get at a bulkhead. Interior moves it, or nobody does.
- If you break something, say so immediately. Concealed damage found later is a career-ending event; honestly reported damage is an insurance claim.