Conservators and the selfish artifact

[Dennis Piechota]

We often say the best treatment is preventive and that the artifact should determine its treatment.

With respect to the latter, isn't that similar to Richard Dawkins' idea in The Selfish Gene that our genes use us to preserve them. Or Samuel Butler's idea that an egg is its way of laying a hen. Or Daniel Dennett's quote, "A scholar is just a library's way of making another library."

If so then are we conservators just vehicles for artifacts to preserve more artifacts?

It's hard to take such animism seriously but it does highlight a related thought. However we serve the immediate preservation needs and near-term uses of particular objects in a collection we often pass that collection on as if it is unaltered. Thinking of the collection as the object this places the conservator as the agent of a special form of slow incremental change; we create new 'collection-objects' as we carefully treat its members.

This reminds me of a final quote, Referring to how we've all grown up with the famous Gilbert Stuart painting a tour guide at the Metropolitan Museum of Art was overheard to say, "This may not be what George Washington looked like then. But this is what he looks like now."*

*from The Information by James Gleick, a good read.

Dennis

Dennis Piechota

Archaeological Conservator

Fiske Center for Archaeological Research
UMass Boston
Office: 617-287-6829

ALTCONS Group Admin

an Alternative Conservation Discussion