FuturoCONTEMPORANEO

Materials, methods and references
for the conservation of 20^th and 21^st century art 

Cycle of training Seminars
22^nd September - 26^th October 2006

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A survey promoted by Regione Veneto in collaboration with Fondazione Querini Stampalia and carried out between 2003 and 2004 within the panorama of over three hundred museums has revealed an unexpected result, as "unexpected" as any museum that wants to see itself as being "contemporary"* should be.

So, those who presumed that our region’s consideration of art from the nineteen hundreds to recent days mainly consisted of sporadic appearances linked to temporary exhibitions (local or international), will have been pleasantly surprised by the publication originating from the survey, seeing a much more diversified reality: in addition to the few, more famous locations that host renowned permanent collections there are also a great many museums that hide an "underground" heritage that documents, from varying angles, the artistic evolution of the 20^th century.

The lack of exhibition space, underlined by the directors and conservators during the survey, has forced many museums to make the choice of leaving works of art in deposit, with not only the risk of them remaining obscure or even forgotten, but also seeing their correct conservation being put at jeopardy. Contemporary art, for its intrinsic experimentation of technique and use of different materials, in effect requires special measures both to ensure its storage in environments suited to its conservation and the recourse to specialist personnel.

In an attempt to offer a free service to whoever may find themselves with the responsibility of preserving these collections and offer contemporary art a life in the future, Regione Veneto in collaboration with Fondazione C.U.O.A. has promoted a course dedicated to exploring conservation materials and methods for 20^th and 21^st century art through a selection of the many examples of work projects, in order to create a reference of some of the main protective actions achieved in our region. Thanks to the scientific collaboration of the renowned restorer Antonio Rava and the support of a representative committee of the institutions involved in the initiative**, the primary intention of the course is to present itself as a chance for operators to meet those who, under various levels of responsibility and professional role and with different cultural origins, are united by the task of conserving art of the nineteen hundreds in situations that are often far from encourage the respect of a correct maintenance plan.

In order to offer the course work a useful tool for the comparison and analysis of the different aspects of difficulties faced in conservation policies set down by museums of the Veneto, a research study has been carried out under the initiative where directors and conservators were sent a questionnaire to document the most recent restoration projects classified according to the different types of property, the reasoning behind the projects and any elements that would normally be a basis in programming routine and extraordinary conservation actions. The data gathered is grouped and anonymous and will be available to the course attendants in order to provide factual data on the topics under discussion.

The exchange of experiences and thoughts that we hope will be developed between speakers and participants as the course goes on will be equally useful in verifying the opportunity of continuing the initiative, thereby permitting us to develop topics that were not handled in this session or proved to be worth further discussion at a later stage. For this purpose, Fondazione C.U.O.A. will be providing on its homepage a special on-line platform to exchange information, circulate the educational material produced for the course and start up a discussion forum. One of the most significant goals for the future and one particularly felt by the scientific committee of the course is to arrange a permanent on-line information space on the management of contemporary art – from acquisition to protection, from valorisation to communications – that may act as a first approach for operators in the sector (museum directors and conservators, restorers, managers of educational services), for collectionists and others who need to find institutional support in their business activity, whether public or private, tied to contemporary art.

The "tutoring" format given to the course has allowed us to expand participation in the last three days to representatives of museums in the Balkans with collections and activities related to contemporary art. Thanks to the contribution of the Regional Management for International Relations and the collaboration of Venice Office of Unesco (Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe), this course has allowed the Veneto take part in a pilot project whose scope is to present through training sessions the cultural activities of given Italian regions concerning contemporary art. After a stopover in Umbria and Tuscany, the directors and restorers of the museums of Belgrade, Sarajevo and Scopje will come to the Veneto in October to take part in the last three seminars of "futuroCONTEMPORANEO" that will be held in the highly suggestive and stimulating city of Venice, a perfect example of continuity between past and present.

The course will be concluded with a seminar, hosted in the Venetian offices of UNESCO and open to all, that will offer a chance to exchange opinions on the importance of the role of tutor played by both public bodies and the research and cultural world to ensure that all those who in their lives, whether for passion or for work, deal with 20^th and 21^st century art, feel less isolated in guaranteeing contemporary art its due standing in history and a right to a future.

*C. Bertola, The contemporary museum seen as the museum of the unexpected in "A possible vocation. Contemporary art in Veneto museums", by C. Bertola and M. Savaris, Regione Veneto, 2005

** Chiara Bertola (Fondazione Querini Stampalia), Aurora Di Mauro (Management of Cultural Property, Regione Veneto), Antonio Rava (restorer, Studio Rava, Turin), Angela Roncaccioli (Fondazione C.U.O.A.), Anna Maria Spiazzi (Superintendence for Artistic and Ethnic- Anthropological Historic Heritage for the provinces of Venice, Belluno, Padua and Treviso)

Regione Veneto – Management of Cultural Property
AURORA DI MAURO
ph. + 39 041 2792700 – fax +39 041 2792685
musei@regione.veneto.it 

Fondazione CUOA – Public Administrations Division
FRANCESCA MENEGHINI
ph. +39 0444 333755
fmeneghini@cuoa.it