From here you can keep up to date with our latest news. You can also download our latest newsletter and gain more information about a news item by clicking on the photographs.
Where Pop meets Culture 17 May 2011
On 29 April 2010 we reported on the closure of the Holburne Museum in Bath. Now, the museum has reopened after an £11m refurbishment including a new extension designed by Eric Parry. While the work took place, we removed and stored the Holburne's permanent collection and have recently returned it to the museum.
We also collected and delivered the personal collection of artwork by Sir Peter Blake for the opening exhibition, 'A Museum for Myself'.
Hope for Watts 17 May 2011
Another gallery due to reopen on 26 June is the Watts Gallery in Compton. This was first opened to the public on 1 April 1904 to display the work of Victorian artist George Frederic Watts.
The collection consisting of over 6000 objects including 250 paintings, 800 drawings and watercolours, some 130 prints, 200 sculptures and 240 pieces of pottery was removed, stored and reinstated by OES. Two sculptures, each weighing three tonnes, required an innovate approach.
Some sort of official art employment 13 May 2011
In 1939 Spencer urged his dealer to find him 'a war job, some sort of official art employment'. The result was one of the most remarkable artistic records of the Second World War.
Collecting Spencer's 'Shipbuilding on the Clyde' and installing the drawings and paintings in the Stanley Spencer Gallery in Cookham is not as critical as building a wartime ship, but it was official art employment for OES. We also packed and removed the permanent collection.
Sponsoring twentieth century art 4 April 2011
An image of the late Elizabeth Taylor was projected onto a building in Southampton as part of an Andy Warhol exhibition sponsored by OES.
Organised through the Artist Rooms initiative by the Tate and National Galleries of Scotland, the exhibition aims to bring art to new audiences. With nearly two hundred other Warhol works on show across two of the city’s galleries: Southampton City Art Gallery and the John Hansard Gallery it should achieve its objectives.
Challenge your preconceptions of what watercolour is 3 March 2011
OES has a long association with the Tate and recently coordinated the loan of works for a Tate Britain exhibition presenting a fresh assessment on the history and future of watercolour.
So that famous and lesser-known works by artists ranging from Turner and Thomas Girtin to Anish Kapoor and Tracey Emin could be viewed side by side, OES collected nearly 200 pieces and delivered them to the gallery. In August, it will be our job to ensure they are safely returned.
Modern British sculpture on the move 3 March 2011
When the Royal Academy's Great British Sculpture exhibition closes in April, OES will be poised to take some significant sculptures home.
Just as much effort goes into returning a loan as acquiring it, especially when the cargo is sculpture and the destinations range from the Empire at its peak to modern day London. Our international expertise coupled with our experience of moving immense sculptures won us this prestigious contract.
'Tennyson' back in his place 22 November 2010
"If thou shouldst never see my face again, pray for my soul." When Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote these words he could not have imagined how pertinent they might be to his own monumental statue.
Two years ago, this was removed from the The Watts Gallery and stored in a purpose built, accessible crate. But "More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of" and the poet's three tonne sculpture is now safely back in the gallery ready for its re-opening next Spring.
OES's Crowning glory 13 August 2010
A ceremony marking the acquisition of Oxford Exhibition Services by the Crown Worldwide Group took place on Wednesday 4 August 2010.
The deal will enable OES to continue to develop and improve both it's international and domestic operations with the backing and investment that a global business can provide. Crown Fine Arts will benefit from strengthening its service offering in the UK's fine art transportation and logistics market.
Royal seal of approval 12 July 2010
Kensington-based Leighton House, one of the most remarkable buildings of the 19th century, re-opened in May following extensive rennovations.
Whilst essential repairs and new fire detection equipment and a heating system were fitted, OES took the high value and prestigious Leighton works on holiday to the Villa Stuck in Munich. Then, they travelled onwards to the London Art fair before returning home in time for the visit of HRH the Prince of Wales.
Mummy waits 2,500 years for CT scan 23 June 2010
The Oaks hospital in Colchester had a rather unusual patient one Wednesday afternoon in June - a two-and-a-half-thousand-year-old Egyptian mummy. Accompanied by OES art handlers, Lady Ta-Hathor stopped off for a scan on her way to Ispwich.
Cared for at the Colchester Castle Museum since 1871, Lady Ta-Hathor and her coffin now have a permanent home in the Egyptian gallery at Ipswich Museum and researchers have detailed CT images to examine.
The Holburne Museum, Bath 29 April 2010
Oxford Exhibition Services is delighted to have become a founder member of the Holburne Museum's Corporate Membership programme. The museum is undergoing a major restoration project including the construction of a spectacular modern extension.
OES has been very involved in the project and looks forward to assisting with reinstating the collection in 2011. Photo shows founder corporate members with Holburne Director Dr Alexander Sturgis (far right).
A temple to creative failure 29 March 2010
Michael Landy, best known for destroying all of his possessions in his 2001 installation 'Break Down', has been out and about with OES collecting "creatives failures" for his 'Art Bin' project at the South London Gallery.
Landy (left) explained that he hired a specialist fine art vehicle because the works should be treated with respect - at least until they were consigned to his 600m3 bin for the disposal of art works.
The logistics of genius 9 March 2010
OES had a very busy schedule transporting the paintings of Sir Joshua Reynolds to Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery for the largest exhibition of his work ever held outside London.
The paintings came from private lenders in the south west and art institutions as far apart as The Scottish National Gallery of Art, the Courtauld Institute, Eton College, the Royal Collection, Waddesdon Manor and the National Trust’s Saltram House.
A private affair 9 March 2010
In October 2009 Oxford Exhibition Services welcomed invited visitors to its new high security storage vaults at Dean Hill Park.
The Open Day included a private viewing of an exhibition of works from the Artists Pension Trust (APT) collection which is stored by OES. Uniquely, APT enables artists to lodge works with them as a contribution towards their pension fund while still making them available for loans to exhibitions throughout the world.
Antiquaries of Britain 11 February 2009
This touring exhibition for the Society of Antiquaries of London brought together a fascinating variety of antiquities from the 11th to 19th centuries including a lock of hair belonging to Edward IV, a caske designed to hold the remains of St Thomas Becket, shields, an 18th century ballot box and many paintings.
Throughout 2009 we were responsible for packing, transporting and installing the collection at each venue and for storing it inbetween.
An enormous undertaking 11 February 2009
Following building work at The Herbert Art Gallery in Coventry, its entire collection has now been reinstated by OES.
One painting (3020mm by 5825mm) was too large to be removed and so we stored it in a wheeled crate as builders worked around it. The temperature and any vibration inside the crate was recorded every day; when it was unpacked the valuable 17th century painting was found to be in good condition for re-hanging and unveiling.
Over the hills and far away... 11 February 2009
Sometimes, our work takes us abroad. On this ocassion, to Italy with a consignment of work from the Royal Academy of Arts for the Andrea Palladio exhibition that we later took to Barcelona.
The two-day journey took us through the Alps and over Mont Blanc. Upon arrival, it was a straighforward yet physically demanding matter of getting the crates up three flights of stairs whilst keeping them straight - old buildings don't always have lifts!
Seeking art handlers 3 November 2008
We are always interested in hearing from experienced and skilled art handlers / drivers to join our team. This is an eclectic mix of people with complementary skills who all share an empathy with art. Many are practising artists, musicians and craftsman.
To be considered for a place on the OES team, contact Michael Festenstein outlining your interest in art handling. Please also indicate if you have previous experience.
Moving the dinosaur footprints 25 June 2008
The management of a project has rarely taxed our resourcefulness and ingenuity more than the handling of 168 million-year-old dinosaur footprints. Embedded in limestone in a working quarry, the footprints were ‘dug out’ and are being stored in their own microclimate within OES’s secure warehouse.
Watch this space for the latest twists and turns of this fascinating, and sometimes controversial, project.
Improving access to our services 18 April 2008
OES has always been committed to providing the highest levels of service to our clients and it is with this in mind that we re-designed our website to be more accessible and more search engine friendly.
It includes a password protected client area where trusted clients can get more detailed information about, for instance, part loads, crating and vehicle specifications. Please ask your OES contact for a username and password.
Expanding our operations 18 April 2008
On the international front, our accreditation as a bonded warehouse has enabled us to move into the handling of art fairs, as works protected by customs bonds can be removed from the warehouse for a period of ninety days.
In October 2007 we imported and installed work for galleries from around the world exhibiting at the Frieze Art Fair in Regents Park. This year we are helping to make the 2009-10 Fair a success.
Reducing our carbon footprint 18 April 2008
We are committed to providing more environmentally friendly art deliveries and have acquired a Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) powered vehicle. M60 can operate within the capital’s Congestion Zone and is ideal for servicing museums in the centre of London.
In the near future, we will also be fitting particulate traps to the exhaust pipes of all our fleet. These filters reduce emissions of soot allowing vehicles to operate within the Low Emission Zone (LEZ).