Hospitality

The Art of Securing Exhibits and Visitor Insights

Organization: Detroit Institute of Arts

Location: Detroit, Michigan, United States

Customer need: Property and asset protection

Detroit, Michigan, United States, 2024

Detroit Institute of Arts monitors its priceless collection with 550+ discrete Axis modular cameras and sensors. The advanced security system enabled the museum to mount a prized Van Gogh exhibit without extra insurance indemnity.

Creating a positive visitor experience

The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) has been a mainstay of the Motor City’s art scene for well over a century. Its vast collection exceeds 65,000 objects dating from early civilizations to contemporary sculptures and paintings. Protecting the artwork displayed across its 100+ galleries has been a delicate balance.

“We don’t want to intimidate visitors,” says Eric Drewry, Director of Protection and Group Services at the Detroit Institute of Arts. “We want them to enjoy their museum experience. At the same time, we can’t forfeit our responsibility to safeguard displays worth billions of dollars.”

DIA reached out to Art Sentry, an Axis technology development partner and specialist in museum security systems, for a suitable replacement for their failing analog camera system. Faced with preserving the historic integrity of a building that, in part, was never designed to support cabling and cameras, Art Sentry looked to a deploy surveillance solution that was minimally intrusive, yet highly sensitive to attempts to touch the artwork.

Two cameras mounted by stone work at museum

To that end, Art Sentry implemented a modular surveillance system that integrated the Art Sentry Video Management platform with Axis modular cameras. The AXIS F34 Main Units support up to four highly discreet AXIS F10 Sensor Units from a single IP address, which greatly reduced DIA’s camera licensing fees. When needed, the quad-view system would be supplemented with additional AXIS M30 Network Dome Cameras. Not only did the multi-stream solution provide maximum coverage in each gallery, it gave DIA the flexibility to move or redirect sensors to accommodate new gallery exhibits.

“The small form factor of the AXIS F34 fits really well for museum surveillance,” shares Rob Palmer, Managing Director for Art Sentry. “The technology is inconspicuous, highly adaptable, and extremely reliable, which is essential when you’re protecting valuable works of art.”

The Axis sensors integrate with Art Sentry’s Object Protection analytic software that uses a combination of motion detection and virtual crossline detection to create an invisible protection zone around each work of art. If someone breaches the zone, a pre-programmed message or audible tone sounds. Live video of the incident automatically streams to the museum’s security center where the video is archived and reviewed in real time to determine if security staff need to intervene.

Sharing the surveillance burden

“Employing automated correction means DIA security doesn’t have to be everywhere at once,” says Dan Lazuta, Director of Sales for Art Sentry. “It’s been a real force multiplier for the museum.”

Eric Drewry adds that, “Deterring physical contact using tones and recorded messages has been better psychologically than having a security guard reprimand a visitor. We don’t want to single out or embarrass anyone, though we know there will be times when guards will have to intercede to avoid damage to a piece.”

Drewry notes that security staff seem less stressed since the new system was installed. “Before we had this new system, security staff were wholly responsible for protecting the collection,” shares Drewry. “Now when they go on patrol, they can feel confident that the sensors will catch anything that happens when they’re not in a gallery. The system also gives them the freedom to engage with visitors in a more positive way instead of always correcting their behavior.”

Since the system’s installation, Drewry reports that visitor complaints about security staff interactions have been significantly reduced.

Mounting a prized Van Gogh exhibit

When DIA mounted its landmark exhibition Van Gogh in America to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first acquisition by a public institution of a painting by the renowned Dutch Post-Impressionist Vincent Van Gogh, providing heightened security was paramount. “A majority of the 74 paintings, drawings and prints were on loan from other institutions and private collectors,” explains Drewry. “Some of their loan conditions were that our security cameras continuously livestream and record at extremely high frame rates and that we retain video for the entire four months of the show.”

To secure the loans, the museum needed to prove it could always maintain a direct line of sight on those objects and incorporate advanced analytics to protect them from damage.

The Axis / Art Sentry solution that was deployed provided such high-level safeguards that the insurance company underwriting the museum didn’t require an additional rider to indemnify the multi-billion dollar Van Gogh in America exhibit. “That speaks volumes about our return on investment for this technology,” says Drewry.

As it turns out, the four-month long exhibit was the most well-attended special show in DIA’s history. “About 230,000 people from all over the world came to see it,” reports Drewry. “The galleries were so jam packed we had to extend our operating hours so that everyone would have an opportunity to see it.”

Quad view monitor of camera video at DIA

Mapping hotspots for intel

To prevent future damage to objects and artwork, the museum continuously analyzes the video to determine the cause of zone violations – be it from proximity or gesturing. “We use the information to implement tactics to fix those issues,” states Drewry. “We might decide to install some sort of physical barrier or ask docents or security guards to spend a little more time in high-incident locations.”

Many of the insights gleaned from the video have proven invaluable to the museum’s curators. “Using Axis’ heatmapping program we’re able to show curators how visitors are moving through galleries, what artwork is drawing the most attention, where visitor traffic is most congested,” shares Drewry.

Sometimes heatmaps reveal a few surprises. There have been times when curators have designed exhibits to highlight what they anticipated would be a most popular only to discover a lesser-known piece was grabbing more attention. “Curators are using the heatmaps and video to help them decide future actions like whether to post additional signage in a gallery, move pieces around, or encourage more frequent docent interaction to help visitors more fully appreciate what they’re viewing,” says Drewry.

Moving beyond the galleries

While protecting artwork is a primary focus for the museum, DIA also deploys Axis cameras and analytics outside the building to protect visitors and detect suspicious loitering. For instance, several quad-sensor AXIS P37 Panoramic Network Cameras provide 360-degree coverage of the parking lots while AXIS Q60 PTZ Network Cameras equipped with the AXIS Perimeter Defender analytic allow security to detect potential vandals and autotrack anyone loitering where they shouldn’t or randomly approaching doors and windows, especially afterhours.

“These cameras give us much better coverage with fewer cameras than we had with our old camera system,” says Drewry. “We can see better, even in the dark, thanks to the Lightfinder technology Axis embeds in the cameras.”

Drewry acknowledges that the Axis/Art Sentry solution has proven to be a multi-faceted tool for the museum. As a high-profile target just minutes from the Canadian border, the Detroit Institute of Arts relies heavily on the Axis/Art Sentry solution to help protect its property and assets. But on another level, because the system is continuously capturing business intelligence, the organization gains valuable insights into how they can best elevate the visitor experience.