5/7/2023 0 Comments Glass table tool roomTheory and practice are contradicting resulting in two opposing movements, an on-going debate between restoring and preserving. In the dawn of the 21st century restoration practice appears more extreme and bold than ever, targeting materiality as topic of discussion and questioning. Moreover, the principle of reversibility suggests that every intervention should give the possibility for future removal, either due to the development of new technologies or in case it proves inadequate or fails.ġ.1 Materiality debate: restore or preserve? On the one hand, the stratification of the building should by no means be concealed and on the other hand the new materials should not be disguised, enabling an honest dialogue between the old and new, the past and present. Contemporary conservation philosophy, as stated in the Charter of Venice (ICOMOS 1964), aims to actions that should be distinguishable in order to reflect their time and avoid falsified interpretation of the original structures. 7) but to maintain all those values embedded in heritage settings and create a sense of belonging and familiarity, as aspects of our collective memory which enrich our present life.Īny physical interventions or treatments should only serve as means to achieve this purpose. From castle ruins and vernacular architecture to archaeological sites, the aim is not only to preserve building stock, scientific testimonies of the past or “conserve material for its own sake” (Avrami et al., 2000, p. historic, social, aesthetic) shaped throughout the multiple layers of history, and trigger our emotions to form what we acknowledge today as cultural significance. Structures that have survived over time are imbued with values (e.g. The conservation of our built heritage, in other words the architectural conservation, is an inseparable part of our cultural and national identity and ensures its existence to the future. Finally, a methodology is developed to relate the glass products, available in the market today, to the possible consolidation treatments in respect to the degree of intervention and representativeness, stressing the potential of using and considering glass as a promising restorative material. The paper explores the feasibility of this concept addressing aspects of structural compatibility, reversibility and aesthetics, through a review of realized examples. The emerging technologies have set the ground for using glass in a structural way minimizing the need for substructure and maximizing transparency, while protecting the sensitive historic materials. The inherent transparent properties render glass a distinct material that enables the simultaneous perception of the monument in both its original and ruinous state. Nowadays, aspects of materiality and aesthetics appear as integral parts of the restoration practices, indicating new materials and technologies in the form of ambiguous gestures rather than absolute and permanent manifestations that prevail over the historic structures. Current restoration and conservation treatments with traditional materials bear the risk of conjecture between the original and new elements, whereas the high consolidation demands often result in visually invasive and irreversible solutions.
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