Call for papers: Historical Lab 4 "Raw materials and Art Nouveau" in Aveiro

In the framework of the project "Art Nouveau & Ecology" supported by the programme Culture 2007-2013 of the European Commission, The Réseau Art Nouveau Network, as a network of cities aiming to preserve, study and promote Art Nouveau at a European scale, organises a one-day symposium on January 26th 2013. The theme of this symposium is «Raw materials and Art Nouveau».

Subject:

The ideal of beauty and modernity that conduct Art Nouveau, associated with social concerns, a search of comfort and better hygiene, led the architects of that time to use a variety of construction materials and techniques.

Many of these materials used in construction or finishing no longer exist or are rare, prohibited for commercial exploitation or simply disappeared.

The restoration of the rare and delicate materials of Art Nouveau forced the restorers to face serious dilemma: how to preserve the authenticity of this art without falling into the rough copy or fac simile?