For architecture students, the Modern Movement is typically the most recent and most defined architectural style movement that history classes focus on. We appreciate the architects and artists of that time and respond to their buildings and ideas with reverence. Despite our appreciation for the buildings that came out of this era, conservation methods are meeting new challenges in conserving these buildings that have not aged well as they have reached their 50-year heritage protection eligibility. This is where the Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative (CMAI) comes in. A “comprehensive, long-term, and international program” that is part of the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI). CMAI aims to enhance conservation methods that in response to these aging buildings and create a knowledge data base of training programs and publications that reflect the advancement of these strategies.
More on the GCI and its initiative after the break.
The buildings of the modern era challenged the GCI’s present conservation methods because of the innovative construction methods and materials that set these buildings apart from their predecessors. In order to close this knowledge gap, the CMAI is due to complement GCI’s efforts of research and technique development to make these conservation efforts effective. To begin, the Getty Research Institute has compiled a bibliography on the conservation of modern architectural materials entitled Conserving Twentieth-Century Built Heritage: A Bibliography and is asking input from professionals in the field to further develope and reassess this already extensive collection. Comments and suggestions are also very welcome; CMAI@getty.edu.
