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Author: |
Sanneke Stigter |
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Title: |
Between Concept and Material |
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Publisher: |
University of Amsterdam |
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Date: |
11 November 2009 |
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Content: short description of one of the PhD research projects within New Strategies in the Conservation of Contemporary Art
Between concept and material: conservation and museum practice in view of artworks by Ger van Elk, Jan Dibbets and Joseph Kosuth
Introduction
A conservation studio, a stereomicroscope and scientific analyses are not enough to manage the conservation of contemporary art. The specialization is liberating itself from the traditional conservation methodology and at a point of incorporating other research areas next to the established methods in technical research and conservation practice. New strategies are explored in the conservation of contemporary art. The choices made during conservation treatment and installation practices are not only reassuring the artworks preservation but are actually shaping the continuation of the artworks life at the same time.
This research focuses on the challenges, practices and the impact of conservation treatment and installation history of photography based contemporary/conceptual artworks by Ger van Elk, Jan Dibbets and Joseph Kosuth from the late 1960s, early 1970s. The selected case studies show a complex relation between concept and material, which becomes especially clear at decisive moments in their biographies. Reinstallation and presentation practices, relocation, artist’s intervention, replacement of parts, conservation treatment as well as acceptance of material change are all decided on to reassure the continuity of the artwork’s life in museum practice. The effect of these kinds of interventions will be analysed and possible future conservation strategies will be designed as well as performed as part of this research. The aim is to develop a more open and reflective approach of museum practice in conservation methodology, foregrounding the constructed nature of decision-making in conservation and installation practice.
A special focus is put on the material manifestation in relation to the idea and the experience of the artwork. Through a combination of historic research, material examination and analyses of museum practice, a secondary line of study is followed, reflecting on the developments in contemporary art conservation, highlighting different approaches, opening up a relatively new field in art historical research. The goals of this research are to define what the preambles are for each artwork to make them function; to value the artist interview with regard to the conservation object; to provide insight in museum practice and contemporary art conservation, discussing a more open and reflective approach in conservation foregrounding the constructed nature of decisions made during conservation practice.
Content
The traditional ‘freeze frame’ paradigm of Western conservation methodology, designed to preserve the authentic object in one material form in a supposedly perfect state, is not always in keeping with the artworks concept. Indeed to freeze an artwork in time could harm the true nature of art that is intended to change or that is immaterial in nature in it self. Conceptual art, time based art, installations, performance and interactive art are in need of conservation strategies that manage change and allow progression when required. In other cases change seems inevitable due to rapidly deteriorating components and replacement becomes necessary to prolong the artworks life. Indeed copying the signal or emulating a whole system in time based media artworks can be a necessary procedure to advance in time.
For a lot of contemporary artworks however there is no clear-cut distinction between 1) the freeze frame paradigm, 2) a conservation strategy designed around change as part of the artworks concept or 3) a conservation strategy designed to manage change because of the artworks material failure. Instead my thesis is that a combination of these approaches is found in actual conservation practice. However the argumentation for the choices made during conservation treatment or reinstallation practice are never really made explicit nor communicated widely. What is lost and what is gained remains unnoticed whereas this is what can be determining the artworks material state and future life. It lies in the intention of this research project to reveal these practices from behind the scenes museum practice and to study the impact on the artwork.
The selected case studies touch upon or address the different conservation strategies, as they can be positioned on the crossroads between concept and material values. They originated at the time and in the context of art that was presented during ‘When Attitudes Become From’ in 1969, regarded the first conceptual art show in Europe. The case studies bear material and sculptural qualities combined with a conceptual message; they address change and installation matters regarding site specificity; they contain ephemeral aspects in the form of photographic material and touch upon the issue of patina considering their age. Because of all these aspects decision-making on the conservation and preservation strategies is rocking back and forth between the freeze frame paradigm of traditional conservation ethics and new conservation strategies.
Apart from the content of the case studies the practice of contemporary art conservation itself will be studied, a slowly evolving and changing profession. This will be a secondary layer in this research that will be communicated simultaneously through the order in which the case studies are examined, starting with painterly and sculptural work by Ger van Elk, followed by installations of Jan Dibbets to finally conclude with conceptual artist Joseph Kosuth putting the conservators practice to the test.
Ger van Elk
Ger van Elk has a strong opinion about traditional conservation ethics, throwing the conservator’s point of view into perspective. A study of the conservation history of his work allows a comparative research on the conservation treatments performed by different conservators approaching the works from a different perspective: a photograph conservator, a paper conservator/artist’s assistant and a contemporary art conservator. This not only leads to interesting views on the lives of the artworks, but also illustrates what is important to the different conservators and their institutions as well as to the artist because of his involvement during some of the conservation treatments. In some cases the initial material manifestation, the originally used materials and techniques, has been completely put out of sight. What does this really mean to the artwork and to the artist’s oeuvre? How to value the artist’s opinion and how to balance the options in conservation guided by the code of ethics, largely based on objective material truth? The artist’s interview as a tool in conservation will be analysed.
Jan Dibbets
‘The shortest Day in the Van Abbemuseum’ by Jan Dibbets is chosen as a case study because of its drastic alteration early in its life. The work originated in 1970 as a site-specific real time based installation with a slide projection accompanied by photographs and now remains a singular photographic work on paper. The question is how this came about and what it means to the initial idea of the artwork. The possibility will be explored to re-install the work the way how it was once made, with the original materials still present. What would this mean in practice? What actually is the ‘authentic’ artwork? Recent reinstallation practices of other works by Jan Dibbets from the same period will be discussed comparatively. The idea of display copies and the function of the certificate will be studied, as well as the reinstallation practice itself, which will be compared with the other case studies and their context.
Joseph Kosuth
'Glass (one and three)' by Joseph Kosuth is the most conceptual artwork that is being studied within this research. The work is dated 1965 and constructed through the instructions on a certificate. The very essence of this work is opposing the whole museum structure – and it is on this very structure that the idea of conservation is based. Therefore working with this artwork is extra challenging. It is pushing our institutionalized art practice as well as the traditional conservation ethics to its limits forcing the conservator to look beyond the traditional paradigm in such a way that the practice of the profession has to be looked at from a different perspective. The conservation practice could very well be based on managing change, which will be studied in view of similar work in different institutions and collections. Actual conservation and reinstallation practice will be part of the research offering insight in the difficulties that become apparent while reconstructing the artwork.
Every artwork knows its own history with certain decisive moments when it is installed or while conservation treatment is being carried out, trying to define and present the work defining properties at its best. These passages in time could be considered part of the artwork and read as its biography redefining its content every time the artwork is presented and experienced. The question is what this means to the artwork and how this life or biography could be valued apart from the artworks first appearance or what was and is said or written about the artwork by different stakeholders. What do we learn from all its relations and how could this information be valued while conserving the artwork? Recognizing a continuous change in time contrasts with the idea of trying to find the one and only truth that would lead to the artworks original intention and its ‘authentic’ appearance, normally used as a touchstone for decision-making in traditional art conservation. In contemporary art conservation the term ‘conservation’ seems to become stretched out, incorporating new conceptions that will be explored within this research.