01722 742603
info@convenus.com
9-11th November 2022
Discovery Point, Discovery Quay, Dundee, DD1 4XA
We invite you to attend Sustaining Art: People, Practice, Planet in Contemporary Art Conservation, an in-person and streamed international conference taking place 9-11th November 2022 in Dundee, Scotland. During the conference we seek to address sustainability in its widest sense in relation to contemporary art conservation. In partnership with DJCAD University of Dundee, and in affiliation with The Dutch Foundation for the Conservation of Contemporary Art (SBMK) and the International Network for the Conservation of Contemporary Art (INCCA), it will be a forum to challenge assumptions, examine practices, and pursue equity and sustainability in conservation networks of care.
The conference will take place over three days with Day 1 focussing on ‘people’ Day 2 on ‘practice’, which will involve workshops and Day 3 on ‘planet’ which will open up wider conversations. A drinks reception and gallery tour will be held at Dundee Contemporary Arts on the first evening, an optional conference dinner will take place at Hospitalfield House in Arbroath (transport will be provided) on the second evening and DJCAD University of Dundee will host drinks reception on Day 3. On the Saturday a free tour of the Plastics exhibition at V&A Dundee will take place followed by an introduction to the public artworks, specially commissioned for the conference at the Sharing not Hoarding billboards by NEoN Digital Arts.
Conservation is a practice and profession of people and relationships in creation, presentation, and preservation of artistic, curatorial, preservationist, and archival practices directly affecting and reflecting the Planet. This conference asks questions of sustainability in relation to contemporary art and seeks to shift focus onto practices and performative qualities of contemporary networks and infrastructures in art by welcoming open and transdisciplinary conversations. This may involve highlighting issues and concerns, oversights and misunderstandings, as well as achievements and innovative practices, in order to find generative ways forward.
The conference itself seeks to operate as an example of event organisation and delivery prioritising decision making and processes that work towards achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Please click to see the full draft programme
Discovery Point,
Discovery Quay,
Dundee,
DD1 4XA
Discovery Point is the home of the RRS Discovery ship, a fitting venue for the conference, situated next to V&A Dundee.
This award-winning visitor attraction tells the story of the iconic ship ‘Discovery’ from her beginnings in Dundee, her amazing Antarctic expedition with Captain Scott and her voyages and uses thereafter. Through extensive galleries, video and film shows, interactives and artefacts, Discovery Point is a fascinating visitor attraction which conference attendees can visit free of charge.
The conference is for anyone interested and invested in the conservation and preservation of contemporary art. Artists, conservators, technicians, gallery managers, curators, practitioners, academics, art movers and historians are all welcome.
Format: The conference will be delivered in person and simultaneously online. Days 1 & 3 will take the form of a traditional conference with presentations and discussion. Day 2 will be dedicated to workshops both collective and breakout option. Please note that while we will endeavour to make the online experience as integrated as possible, there may be some workshops which may be difficult to translate to an online audience.
