Creative Conservation: A New Approach for the Interpretation and Conservation of Memory

Abstract

This paper aims to present a new approach to conservation theory and practice: creative conservation. This approach has now been under development at the Polytechnic University of Tomar, Portugal since 2012. The creative conservation concept emerged while searching for new approaches to recovering, preserving, and communicating artefacts that were either severely damaged or decayed or otherwise thought lost and/or useless, endowing them with an afterlife and new meanings and significance. Despite their initial apparent uselessness, such artefacts can establish meaningful connections with a given community when invested with time, effort, and artistic creativity. Although creative conservation has already been applied in several conservation intervention projects, it remains undertheorised. This paper seeks to reflect precisely upon the practice and encourage conservators to embrace artistic creativity as a core human trait for nurturing the sustainable preservation of the past.

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