ICCROM NEWSLETTER December 2008 English edition 34 CONTENTS Cultural Heritage and Communication ........................................1 News and Events ..................................................................................3 Building Knowledge: Fifty Years of Training at ICCROM .........6 An Integrated Approach to Conservation and Management of Heritage ..................................................................8 A New Headquarters’ Building for ICCROM ................................9 Training on Archaeological Conservation in Southeast Europe: an Approach to the Preliminary Condition Assessment .....................................................................10 ICCROM History Poster ....................................................................12 ATHAR Programme: Special Projects ..................................................14 One Day Workshop for Children and Conservation .............15 UNESCO-ICCROM Partnership on Endangered Collections ...........................................................................................16 Safeguarding Sounds and Images ..............................................18 ICCROM Library: Selected New Acquisitions ..........................20 INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR THE STUDY OF THE PRESERVATION AND RESTORATION OF CULTURAL PROPERTY Programmes Staff The articles in this newsletter reflect Office of the Director-General Office of Communication and Information the range of programme activities Mounir Bouchenaki, Director-General Robert Killick, Manager carried out by ICCROM during 2008. These activities take place Bruno Pisani, Manager of Finance and Mónica García Robles, Web Administrator worldwide in a variety of forms. Administration They involve courses, meetings, M. Anna Stewart, Coordinator, Training, seminars and publications on a Maria Teresa Jaquinta, Liaison Officer Information & Fellowships wide range of topics, as well as (Cooperation with Italy) technical advisory missions and Elisa Ortiz, Administrative Assistant other forms of support to Member Pilar House, Personal Assistant to the DG States. Sabina Giuriati, Information Systems Clerk Sites Unit The ICCROM programmes that Joseph King, Unit Director Documentation, Library and Archives were recommended by Council and Paul Arenson, Manager approved by the General Assembly Zaki Aslan, Project Manager, ATHAR for the 2008-2009 Biennium are as María Mata Caravaca, Archivist follows: Ken Kanai, Project Manager Margaret Ohanessian, Library Assistant • Conservation of Collections Gamini Wijesuriya, Project Manager • Conservation of Built Heritage Gianna Paganelli, Library Assistant • CollAsia 2010 Baba Keita, Project Specialist, AFRICA • Africa 2009 2009 Nicolina Falciglia, Technical Assistant • ATHAR • Latin America Valerie Magar, Conservation Specialist Christine Georgeff, Technical Assistance • Forum Service/Library Assistant Elena Incerti Medici, Senior Administrative Assistant Administration and Logistics Bruno Pisani, Manager of Finance and Marie-France Adolphe, Administrative Administration Assistant, AFRICA 2009 Roberto Nahum, Information Systems Rahel Wolde Mikael, Administrative Administrator Assistant, ATHAR Alessandro Menicucci, Head of Accountancy Sonia Widmer, Administrative Assistant Anna Berardino, Financial Clerk Collections Unit Catherine Antomarchi, Unit Director Maurizio Moriconi, Accountancy Clerk Katriina Similä, Project Manager Cristina Parrini, Accountancy Clerk Aparna Tandon, Project Specialist Enrico Carra, Head of Logistics José Luiz Pedersoli, Conservation Pietro Baldi, Logistics Assistant ICCROM NEWSLETTER, 34 Scientist DECEMBER 2008 Giuseppe Cioffi, Driver & Messenger Isabelle d’Ailhaud de Brisis, ISBN 92-9077-214-X Administrative Assistant ISSN 1010-2639 © ICCROM 2008 Isabelle Verger, Administrative Assistant Cover photograph: Sir Bernard Feilden lecturing in the historic city of Champaner during the 1987 Bangalore Seminar, Public Works Department, India. 1 Cultural Heritage and Communication Mounir Bouchenaki (ICCROM) The spectacular development of new The networking of the library services information and communication technologies and the opportunity to gain online access to at the end of the twentieth and the beginning bibliographic records has given an extra boost of the twenty-first centuries has given rise to this service. Acknowledged to be one of the to questions about the place that cultural world’s best-endowed libraries on every subject heritage will occupy in a world in which dealing with cultural heritage conservation and modern societies are increasingly making use restoration, its function was enhanced during of those technologies. Conventional media the 1970s and 1980s by producing abstracts have had to adapt to the digital revolution from selected publications. This activity was and miniaturization, while the new forms of reinstated twenty years later thanks to funding communication via the Internet and satellite from the Getty Conservation Institute via TV, and ever-expanding access to high Art and Archaeology Technical Abstracts definition images, are modifying the whole (AATA). These abstracts, written in English media landscape. from conservation literature published in many Cultural heritage conservation professionals languages, have been warmly welcomed by are faced with establishing the degree to students and researchers alike. which this metamorphosis in the information The digital dissemination of information and communications media will impact on on ICCROM and the missions with which it their work, seeing whether it will improve has been tasked is one of today’s challenges. the dissemination of information about It was with this in mind that, in 2006, we cultural heritage, and, above all, whether it added a new search engine, implemented by can heighten sensitivity to protecting and Google, which has made it much easier to find enhancing it. items on the ICCROM web site. The free text As Lotfi Maherzi emphasized, ‘A number search includes the web site and associated of authors and researchers agree that a new pdf documents, and there is also an option to information age is in the process of rapidly search the library catalogue. replacing the industrial era…in this new Working and informing are an obligation phase, science and knowledge are becoming for every institution wishing to develop the critical vectors of the so-called “value- and ICCROM is no exception to this. Like added” economy. Global networks are no other governmental and non-governmental longer mere pathways for information, but organizations, it must provide information generate new knowledge which has a part on the rationale of its work and its linkage to play in the processing of products. This with the concerns of contemporary societies underscores the importance of non-material in which there is increasing interest in resources such as software, computer environmental conservation in general, and the applications, programmes and services: these conservation of cultural heritage in particular. become the new raw materials and the real What, then, should ICCROM be doing to wealth of the knowledge-based society.’1 develop communication and to put across One of the first challenges facing ICCROM its messages on its objectives and specific has been how to adapt its communication activities? In addition to the technical support tools and make its website easily accessible, provided by digital technology, the mass and enable it to serve both the community of media are obviously acquiring a leading role researchers and conservators working on the in an organisation like ICCROM. More than ten protection of cultural heritage and the public at years ago, ICCROM launched a project which large who are showing an increasing interest in had enormous resonance with the general the training of professionals and specialists in public, especially in Italy, directly appealing to this area of activity. the mass media with the slogan ‘Media Save Hundreds of hits are recorded every day, Art’. Schoolchildren were made aware of the demonstrating the importance of keeping a problems of safeguarding cultural heritage, vibrant channel open between ICCROM and all and several journalists were awarded the those who are interested in its work, in every ‘Media Save Art’ prize for the quality and the region of the world. impact of their articles on cultural heritage in 1World Communication Report. The media and the different parts of the world. challenge of the new technologies, published in 1997 Following this experience, which was by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and lauded at the time by UNESCO, we feel that we Cultural Organization, p. 11. should now find ways and means of pursuing ICCROM Newsletter 34, Dec 2008 2 the same communication process, because known, and consequently better supported by it can play a crucial role, first in making the its governing bodies. largest possible number of people aware It is true that it is comparatively easy to of the challenges constantly confronting attract the attention of the public and of cultural heritage, and then in urging decision- the authorities to address threats posed to makers to provide adequate funding for the nature and man as a result of climate change operations needed to safeguard that heritage. or increased pollution levels. But cultural Since 1995, ICCROM, together with the heritage is no less exposed to risks and to UNESCO Education Sector and the World irreversible degradation as a result of disasters Heritage Centre,