Call for papers--Symposium on wood and furniture conservation

Call for papers
11th International Symposium for Wood and Furniture Conservation
Amsterdam, November 2012.

The theme will be Reproduction and Reconstruction in Furniture
Conservation.

The furniture conservator is regularly called in to make a piece of
furniture usable or complete again. This may involve replacing
deteriorated or missing parts. In this work there can be an overlap
between techniques used in the original manufacture of an object and
those used for its repair. Considering all the different crafts used
in furniture making this can be quite a challenge. Conversely, there
may be sound reasons for not using the same techniques and materials
as used originally.

    What are the most appropriate techniques and materials?

    Should we use the same traditional materials and techniques or
    modern materials?

The use of traditional techniques and materials for a replica is
often a unique 'learning experience' to the conservator and may lead
to insights in the fabrication of the original.

On the other hand there is a bewildering amount of moulding and
casting materials available to today's conservator that may offer an
alternative approach to the conservation of the object.

    How can one make a sensible choice based on key features like
    chemical or temperature effects, dimensional changes,
    permanence, cost, and health and safety?

Going even further; for objects too fragile to be touched 3-D
scanning and 3-D modeling techniques may seem an option, but what
are the practical aspects one should be aware of?

Not only does the process cover a wide range of techniques and
materials to master, the principles or motivation behind
reproduction and reconstruction may also differ depending on
display/interpretation context, and curatorial intentions and
imperatives.

    What can be the guiding principles for producing a replica?

    What are the most relevant ethical considerations?

There is an obvious difference between the exact copying of a
missing casting or moulding and the total replication of an object
based on an historic design or sketch. The functional nature of
furniture, and related objects, creates a very different dynamic as
compared with the conservation of, for example, fine art objects.

    How much interpretation is permissible in the process of
    reproduction?

We are looking for:

    A selection of talks giving an overview of techniques and
    materials available to and used by furniture conservators for
    replication and reconstruction.

    We also hope to hear about the underlying principles of what
    makes a good replica.

    Ethical considerations and problems encountered during
    reproducing could give interesting talks.

All abstracts should be 250-300 words, include the title, the
authors' names, professional titles and affiliations and submitted
for consideration to: info<-a t->ebenist< . >org

Deadline for abstracts and posters May 1, 2012.

Presentations will be 20 minutes in length and papers will be
published after the conference in the Ebenist Postprints.

Authors will receive a response after May 15, 2011.

Draft manuscripts will be required by July 1, 2012.

Final manuscripts will be due at the symposium in November 2012.

Please feel free to contact us directly by email to discuss ideas or
topics.


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 25:28
                 Distributed: Sunday, December 11, 2011
                       Message Id: cdl-25-28-012
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