The challenges of contemporary conceptions of the artwork A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment

202 Pages·2011·1.55 MB·English

H W A
ARMING ORKS OF RT
The challenges of contemporary
conceptions of the artwork

I S K
RIS TAVROULA APELOUZOU

A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of
the requirements of the Royal College of
Art for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

D 2010
ECEMBER

T R C A
HE OYAL OLLEGE OF RT
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Copyright Statement
This text represents the submission for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
at the Royal College of Art. This copy has been supplied for the purpose of
research for private study, on the understanding that it is copyright
material, and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without
proper acknowledgement.

Author’s Declaration
1. During this period of registered study in which this thesis was prepared
the author has not been registered for any other academic award or
qualification.
2. The material included in this thesis has not been submitted wholly or in
part for any academic award or qualification other than that for which it is
now submitted.
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AKNOWLEDGEMENTS
In many ways it feels as though all the people who have ever taught me and diversely inspired
me, have somehow contributed to the genesis and development of the ideas expressed here. It is
therefore many to whom I owe the completion of this thesis, but I would especially like to thank
the following:
My supervisors Prof. Jonathan Ashley-Smith and Prof. Nick Zangwill – thank you for taking me on
as your student and thank you for your invaluable help, advice, and guidance throughout my PhD
years. Each of you in his way, has developed my way of thinking and kept me motivated so that I
could realize this research the way that I had imagined it. It has been a privilege knowing you,
working with you, and learning so much from you both.
All the people in the RCA/V&A Conservation Department - many thanks to Alison Richmond for
your confidence in me and my work, and your constant attempts to include me in the
department’s culture. For easing the financial burden for this research, I thank the RCA and the
Friends of the V&A. I would also like to express my gratitude to all those who so willingly devoted
their time to talk to me about their views and experience and especially to Derek Pullen, Patricia
Smithen, Rachel Barker, Agnes Brokerhof, Alison Bracker, and Vivian van Saaze.
My former tutors Prof. Briony Fer and Prof. Tamar Garb – thank you for broadening my horizons
and helping me to bridge art history and conservation. Dr. Dimitris Charalambous – thank you for
your guidance in my first steps towards conservation theory and ethics, and thank you for your
insistence that I pursue research in the field even further.
Prof. John Hyman – without you this research would not have even started. Thank you for urging
me to come to the UK, for introducing me to the beautiful world of philosophy, for all your
support in my quest for a suitable institution to host my research, and for suggesting me to Prof.
Zangwill. Thank you for your friendship and for so many things.
My dear friends Hara and Sophia, and my beloved Ritsa – you have stood by me and helped me
through the hardest of times; I am so lucky to have you. My dear Dimitra and Christina, thank you
for your love and your patience, for being there for me and for keeping things real! My Dimitri -
thank you for making life outside the PhD beautiful.
Mom and dad… how can I ever thank you? This is for you, with all of my love.
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ABSTRACT
The aim of this thesis is to consider the role of conservation in response to the theoretical and
ethical challenges posed by contemporary art phenomena. This is pursued through the
investigation of various theoretical conceptions of artwork ontology, of artwork and heritage
identities, and of the ways in which these articulate the concept of ‘harm’ and the principle ‘do-
no-harm’ in conservation ethics. The thesis focuses on the harms that may be brought about to
artworks by conservators by committing wrongs or injustices in decision-making processes due to
the inadequacy of conservation’s conceptual frame for guiding decisions. The perceived
complexity of emerging conservation challenges has led to a widespread recognition that
traditional conservation ethics cannot be reconciled with the demands of contemporary art
forms. Against this, it is argued that the conception of conservation as a system, and the
suggested subsumption of key concepts defining the object of conservation and evaluating
conservation practice under broader ones, provide an adequate conceptual frame. The new frame
incorporates the particularities of both traditional and contemporary art phenomena, as a unified
methodology for conservation decision-making.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction 9

Part I 14

A. Conservation and its principles 14
1 Precursors of conservation 16
2. The Rise and Development of Conservation 19
3. Professionalization, key concepts, and Codes of Ethics 25
4. The traditional notion of conservation 31
B. Contemporary art phenomena 34
1. Traditional conceptions of the artwork 34
2. The conceptual in art 36
C. Description of the problematic situation 39
1. From object to concept 39
2. From original to no original 41
3. From perpetuity to ephemerality 43
4. From unique to variations 45
5. From heritage to potentially heritage 46
D. Conservation challenges 48
1. Conceptual lags 48
2. Substitution and recreation seem unethical 50
3. Conservation itself is questioned 53
E. The state of the art 56
F. Towards integration 61
1. Integration versus segregation 62
2. Systems approach 67
3. Systems approaches in conservation 73
4. Tracking the second loop 75

Part II 77

A. Conservation in context 77
1. Preservation as a moral duty 78
2. Aspects of preservation 80
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a. Creation 81
b. Dissemination 82
c. Conservation 83
3. The aim of conservation 85
B. The conservation system 89
C. Conceptual frame 92
1. The scientific character of conservation 94
D. The conservator 99
E. Technology support 101
F. Artwork 102
1. Material and immaterial tensions 103
a. Essence and phenomenon 103
b. Appearance and structure 105
2. Artwork ontology 107
a. Physical particulars and abstract entities 109
b. The link to conservation 114
3. Artworks in space-time 118
4. Artwork and heritage as overlapping identities 121
5. Artwork identity 125
6. The axiology framing heritage identity 128

Part III 131

A. Harming works of art 131
1. Harms and goods 131
B. The concept of harm 135
1. Derivative sense 135
2. Interest set-back 137
3. Wrongdoing 138
a. The heritage is the artwork 139
i. Substitution and recreation 139
ii. Indeterminate ontological status 144
iii. Parts and wholes 146
iv. Issues of identity 149
v. Restrictions of the artwork 151
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b. The artwork is heritage 153
i. Death of artworks 153
ii. Unjust hierarchy of heritage values 156
iii. Integrity versus significance 157
iv. Due respect 160
v. Narrow frame for decision-making 163
C. Conservation’s lack of requisite variety 164
D. Remodelling the conceptual frame 165
1. Foundations 165
2. Theory 166
a. Identicity 166
i. The specific artwork 167
ii. The specific heritage-artwork 169
b. Vlave 170
c. Do-no-vlave 172
3. Methodology 174
E. Implications for the role of the conservator 177
1. Conservation, not creation 178

Conclusion 180

List of References
Further Reading
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LIST OF DIAGRAMS

Diagram I. Double-loop feedback 75
Diagram II. Aspects of heritage preservation 81
Diagram III. The conservation system 91
Diagram IV. The Domain of Science Model 95
Diagram V. Conservation’s normative frame 98
Diagram VI. Integrity versus significance 160
Diagram VII. Conservation’s revised normative frame 175

LIST OF FIGURES

Fig.1 Pairs of antithetical concepts 63
Fig.2 Conceptions of traditional and contemporary artworks 63
Fig.3 Conceptions of Drawings and Felt Suit 64
Fig.4 Conception of the Canon 65
Fig.5 Four-dimensional objects occupy time like events do 118
Fig.6 Heritage-artworks may gain or lose properties over time,
but so long as they are artworks, they are necessarily heritage 124
Fig.7 An artwork may be considered heritage only for certain periods
of time during its lifespan, over which artwork and heritage identities overlap 125
Fig.8 Gradation of negative effects 136
Fig.9 Breadth of concepts 137
Fig.10 In traditional art, the life of the material exceeds that of the artwork.
In contemporary art, it is the life of the artwork which exceeds that of the material 141
Fig.11 Hypothetical authenticity puzzle 142
Fig.12 ‘Artwork’, i.e. Felt Suit, and ‘heritage’ coincide in the Tate suit.
The Tate suit has retained only its heritage status, while the artwork
continues to exist in or through the other editions 149
Fig.13 Shifts of perspective within conservation 166
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INTRODUCTION
Conservation has reached today a turning point in its trajectory caused by a multi-faceted
problematic situation. The accumulation of challenges, which seem to have grown exponentially
with the advent of modern and contemporary art, has led to the belief that conservation is
approaching a paradigm shift and that the role, aims, and purposes of conservation in society in
general need to be reconsidered and redefined.
There is wide recognition within the conservation community that there is a problem in
reconciling traditional conservation ethical rules and principles with the practical demands posed
by the nature of modern and contemporary art forms. Conflicts of values, inadequacy of concepts
and principles to guide action, and lack of a strong body of theory against which to measure
failure and success of interventions are all part of what may be called the ‘contemporary art
problem’. This situation is what is generally considered to be the major conservation problem
regarding the treatment of contemporary art phenomena.
This problematic situation has been the topic of numerous conferences and publications
presented over the last few years, such as: Modern Art: Who Cares? (Amsterdam, 8-10 September
1997); The Object in Transition (Los Angeles, 24-26 January 2008); Art d'aujourd'hui - Patrimoine
de demain (Paris, 24-26 June 2009); and the Inside Installations Project (2004-2007). While these
attempts have provided significant insights, they have not yet managed to resolve the problem.
Triggered by the perceived discrepancy between desired consequences and actual results of
conservation activity regarding the treatment of contemporary art phenomena, this thesis
contributes to the situation by offering a possible means to solve the contemporary art problem.
The title of the thesis indicates the main question it aims to answer, i.e. what are the theoretical
and ethical challenges posed to conservation by contemporary conceptions of the artwork, in
terms of harming works of art? It also indicates the central hypotheses which instigated the
research, namely: a) that the investigation of artwork ontology will yield useful distinctions and
outcomes, which are not consciously or consistently being considered in conservation decision-
making; b) that it is worth examining the concept of harm and the principle do-no-harm as these
have been systematized in other fields, such as law, in order to determine whether and what they
can offer to conservation; and c) that the perceived complexity of the situation requires that the
various factors involved be examined holistically, i.e. in their interactions and totality.
Conservation could very freely be defined as the activity responsible for ensuring the longevity of
cultural heritage, which includes an abundance of artworks. Though usually associated with the
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hard sciences and with direct intervention on materials, conservation activity has further
implications for meaning, value and identity. Knowledge of the object of conservation
intervention is what enables the correct evaluation of the effects of conservation decisions and
actions. Conservation is also an activity that is framed by a set of values and principles, expressed
in various national and international Codes of Ethics. These are meant to guide decisions in
conflicting situations, where the issues that arise do not concern so much what conservators can
do, but rather what they should or should not do.
This thesis explores the manner in which works of art exist, and it exposes the implications that
this has for conservators. It finds that there is a conceptual lag between traditional conceptions of
artwork ontology adopted by conservators and conceptions to which contemporary art
phenomena seem to point. It finds some of the reasons behind the pronounced tensions between
the material and the immaterial in modern and contemporary art. And it finds that artwork and
heritage are distinct identities and each may require different conservation approaches.
The thesis further finds additional dimensions of possible harm to artworks that may be caused by
conservators. It examines the ways in which the concept of harm is employed in other fields and it
finds that conservators may harm artworks not only on a material level, but by committing
wrongs or injustices in decision-making processes. It claims that such harms usually stem from
ignoring two facts, namely that the heritage object is a work of art, and that the artwork under
conservation is a heritage object. The legal formulation of the do-no-harm principle is further
explored and it is found that this formulation contributes to conservation by forming the basis for
the re-definition of more specific conservation concepts and guiding principles and of the ethical
responsibilities and role of the conservator. Only harm caused or avoided by conservation
decisions and actions is discussed. This excludes all other harms to artworks which may be caused
by other heritage professionals, the public, vandals, natural forces, the passage of time, and so
on.
It is argued that the solution to the contemporary art problem may be provided by thinking
holistically, and in terms of integration instead of segregation. Integration is achieved through the
adoption of systems approach and through the ‘subsumptive transformation’ of concepts. A
systems approach is the most suitable to lead to a correct and full comprehension of the whole
range of investigation in all its dimensions. The subsumption of key concepts defining the object
of conservation and evaluating conservation practice under broader ones provides a sufficient
conceptual frame, incorporating the particularities of both traditional and contemporary art
phenomena.