In Europe, urban art is in a kind of limbo. On the one hand, the general public has long been uncertain about considering it a form of art in its own right. On the other hand, urban art has not received the attention it deserves, even from those working in that sector. However, urban art is now gaining increasing importance and the affection of citizens. Nevertheless, the issue of conserving urban artworks has not yet been systematically addressed. The goals of the CAPuS project are the development of guidelines for the protection and conservation of contemporary artworks that belong to street and urban art and the introduction of an innovative training module in higher education institutions. Through the close cooperation among researchers, educators and business people, operational protocols will then be introduced for specific interventions on this kind of artworks. Firstly, the project features an initial phase of structured dialogue with the artists and the formalization of artworks. The second phase will continue with the analysis of the artworks' constituent. This phase actively involves exchanges between teachers, students and researchers. The first result of this synergy is the rationalization of the types of artworks. Within the third phase, the profitable synergy with the companies will finally take place. This is when specificconservation methods and products will be developed and will be drawn up into conservation guidelines. Internship opportunities for students at companies involved in the project are also envisaged. The results of this research are open-access and will constitute the basis to create an innovative formative module to be introduced in higher education institutions. A pilot course will be taught during the project’s lifespan and an e-learning course will be implemented.
The challenge of the CAPuS project was to make a substantial contribution to the formalization of possible strategies for the conservation of urban art by involving in the partnership and during the project all possible stakeholders.The main goals of the project were: 1) the definition of guidelines and protocols for the protection and conservation of contemporary public art and 2) the development of education and training opportunities in that field.
Contemporary public/urban artworks certainly have a great impact on communities, whether they are spontaneous manifestations of social discontent, or works commissioned as part of urban regeneration or social inclusion projects. Before the CAPuS project, although there had already been some experiences both in terms of scientific research and conservation interventions, the initiatives aimed at safeguarding and conserving public works of art were still sporadic and uncoordinated.
<< Background >> Contemporary public/urban artworks certainly have a great impact on communities, whether they are spontaneous manifestations of social discontent, or works commissioned as part of urban regeneration or social inclusion projects. Before the CAPuS project, although there had already been some experiences both in terms of scientific research and conservation interventions, the initiatives aimed at safeguarding and conserving public works of art were still sporadic and uncoordinated. << Objectives >> The challenge of the CAPuS project was to make a substantial contribution to the formalization of possible strategies for the conservation of urban art by involving in the partnership and during the project all possible stakeholders.The main goals of the project were: 1) the definition of guidelines and protocols for the protection and conservation of contemporary public art and 2) the development of education and training opportunities in that field. << Implementation >> The working methodology developed to achieve the project results was based on:- the analysis of the socio-cultural context of the artworks- the analysis of the needs expressed by the community, by funding bodies of public art works and by those responsible for their maintenance- the attention to economic, environmental and social sustainability criteria- the use of innovative technologies (for the analysis of the state of conservation) and materials (for the conservation intervention). << Results >> - A digital repository containing a wide range of information and documentation on the studied artworks- Conservation guidelines- CAPuS e-learning platform- Guidelines on training for professionals- Illustrated multi-lingual glossary- The documentaries 'Time Has Not Helped', discussing scientific and practical research that has to precede conservation works on outdoor sculptures, and "Conversations on Conservation of Art in Public Spaces", containing inteviews to Street Art-related artists