Reflections on a biographical approach to contemporary art conservation R. Van de Vall, Maastricht University T. Scholte, Cultural Heritage Agency S. Stigter, University of Amsterdam H. Hölling, University of Amsterdam

Elements of an installation dispersed … 2 Photos: Van Abbemuseum …. and installed

3 “The moment the artwork leaves the artist’s studio and enters a collection are significant marks in time that are generally used as a touchstone for decision-making in traditional art conservation. For contemporary art, however, there can be more moments and situations that define the artwork just as well, making the aim of conservation practice shift in focus: ensuring the artwork’s progression in time rather than its conservation.” Sanneke Stigter

4 Ph.D Research by Sanneke Stigter Installation in Kröller Müller Museum, 1995 Joseph Kosuth, Glass (one and three), 1965 Installation in Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, 2002

5 Installation in Kröller-Müller Museum, 2010 Physical transformation – recovering conceptual potential in 2002 and 2010

Biographical approach  Investigate – often unexpected – changes in the biography of artworks and of their individual elements …  … as a heuristic model to compare to the works and better understand the complex nature of (for example) installation art  Identify what, when, by whom and why decisions have been made, include uncertainties of deliberation  Methodological instrument for progression of the works 6

“In doing the biography of a thing, one would ask questions similar to those one asks about people: […] What has been a work’s career so far, and what do people consider to be an ideal career for such things? What are the recognized "ages" or periods in the thing's "life," and what are the cultural markers for them? How does the thing's use change with its age, and what happens to it when it reaches the end of its usefulness?” 7 Igor Kopytoff on biography:

Historical perspective 8 Biographical approach In search for chronological order of events between past and present In search for singular potential oneness between observer and original material Original material as neutral point of historical reference In search for unexpected, decisive moments of change in a work’s ongoing life In search for interaction between material elements, context and human interaction to be performed Few or none original materials, instead: re-installation and documentation

Why Biography ? Q: Is it an anthropomorphism to attribute ‘life’ to an artwork? A:  Used by conservators to describe intangible qualities  Awareness of normative dimension of conservation to prolong the life of an artwork Q: Concept of biography still suggests an organic or functional whole possessing singular identity? A:  Latour and Lowe: Trajectory 9

10  Concept  First appearance  Contract  Acquisition  Re-installed 1, 2,..  Storage state  Treated part 1, 2,..  Event 1, 2,..  Reproduction n...  Documentation n…  Publication n ….  Afterlife  Etcetera …… “A given work of art should be compared not to any isolated locus but to a river’s catchment, complete with its estuaries, its many tributaries, its dramatic rapids, its many meanders and of course with its several hidden sources. To give a name to this catchment area, we will use the word trajectory.” Trajectory by Bruno Latour and Adam Lowe

11 Nam June Paik, Noah’s Ark, 1989, Coll. ZKM Installation at the White House Gallery, Hamburg, 1989 Installation at Multimediale 2, Karlsruhe, 1991 Ph.D Research by Hanna Hölling Installation at ENWB, Karlsruhe, 2008 Change as a consequence of musealisation after seventeen years of storage and after the artist’s death – the ‘afterlife’ of Noah’s Ark

12 Community-and-art project about craftsmanship and trade in Seoul Drifting Producers by artists’ group flyingCity Ph.D Research by Tatja Scholte

13 Interweaving the art-and-community project into the museum ‘life’ of the installation?

Art-and- community project Seoul Installation (wood etc) Seoul Acquisition and re- installation by Van Abbe- museum Re- installation (wood etc), Kassel & Istanbul first exhibit Seoul art- and- community project Workshops in Seoul and elsewhere (not in Eindhoven) Performances in Seoul Workshop etc. in Eindhoven ? Installation (metal etc) Seoul Conservation in Van Abbemuseum Re- installation ? Storage in VAM present future Biography of Drifting Producers, elements distributed in space and time

Outcomes New Strategies group 2013 – PhD projects and 1 postdoc completed Synthesis on Biographical Approach by Renée van de Vall Cross-over between contemporary art conservation and other areas of cultural heritage, e.g. archaeology and ethnographic collections. Discussion on biographical approach and ‘managing change’ 15

16 Acknowledgements: Netherlands Organization for Scientifc Research (NWO) Deborah Cherry, University of Amsterdam, New Strategies in Conservation group IJsbrand Hummelen, RCE, New Strategies in Conservation group Vivian van Saaze, Maastricht University, New Strategies in Conservation group Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, Karlsruhe Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven