Australia ICOMOS

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Australia ICOMOS
Founded1976 (1976)
TypeProfessional Body
Location
ServicesConservation and protection of cultural heritage places in Australia
Website australia.icomos.org

Australia ICOMOS is a peak cultural heritage conservation body in Australia. It is a branch of the United Nations-sponsored International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), a non-government professional organisation promoting expertise in the conservation of place-based cultural heritage. [1] Its secretariat is based at the Cultural Heritage Centre for Asia and the Pacific at Deakin University.

Contents

Formation and role

Australia ICOMOS was formed in 1976 and is one of over 100 current ICOMOS national committees. ICOMOS was formed in Paris in 1965, following acceptance of Venice Charter 1964, which itself grew out of Athens Charter 1933, led by modernist architect Le Corbusier in regard to urban planning. ICOMOS soon became one of three UNESCO advisors on the assessment of sites proposed for the World Heritage List, along with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) (1948- ) in Switzerland, and the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Material (ICCROM) (1956- ) in Rome, Italy. [2] [3]

Membership of Australia ICOMOS comprises over 650 members, managed by an executive committee of 15 people who are elected from the membership. Several Australia ICOMOS members are also represented on various ICOMOS International Scientific Committees, and expert committees and boards in Australia. [4] It plays an important role in coordinating advocacy activities to raise the profile of Australia's cultural heritage. [5]

The first meeting which led to the formation of Australia ICOMOS was in Melbourne on 20 October 1976, and the first ICOMOS conference was held in Beechworth, Victoria, in 1978, where they devised a committee to work up a local version of the Venice Charter. The actual ICOMOS meeting where the committee's draft was provisionally endorsed was in the town of Burra in 1979. [1] [6] [4] Australia ICOMOS played the pivotal role in developing the Burra Charter:Australia ICOMOS Charter for the Conservation of Places of Cultural Significance (1979) regarded as the best-practice standard for place-based cultural heritage management in Australia, which has influenced subsequent heritage legislation and conservation guidelines and practices in Australia. [1] [7]

Australia ICOMOS has also been responsible for producing the 'Heritage' chapter in national State of the Environment Reports (SoE), to advise the Minister for Environment on ...the current condition of the Australian environment, the pressures on it and the drivers of those pressures. [8]

Australia ICOMOS organises an annual national conference on themes relevant to conservation and heritage in Australia and South East Asia, often on a specific heritage and conservation theme for example on the Australian Capital City, Canberra's, 100th anniversary in 2012. [9]

A collaboration between the Chinese government, the Getty Conservation Institute, and Australia ICOMOS has seen the export of Australian conservation expertise in developing China Principles, ...the Middle Kingdom's statement of conservation philosophy and method that is based on Australia's highly regarded Burra Charter. [10] Australia ICOMOS and the Burra Charter have also been held up as a world standard in Malta. [11]

Historic Environment

Australia ICOMOS publishes Historic Environment (ISSN 0726-6715), a triannual peer-reviewed academic journal covering cultural heritage and heritage conservation, [12] [13] first published by the Council for the Historic Environment, from 1980 to 1991, then by Australia ICOMOS and the Council for the Historic Environment in 1992 and by Australia ICOMOS alone from 1993. [14] Editions are often on a specific heritage and conservation theme, for example 'Canberra's 100th anniversary' in 2012, [9] and 'Extreme Heritage' which deals with ... managing heritage in the face of climatic extremes, natural disasters and military conflicts in tropical, desert, polar and off-world landscapes. [15]

The journal is the pre-eminent publication on place-based heritage conservation in Australia, is allied to the international organisation ICOMOS, it is cited extensively in conservation literature, records the major heritage conferences in Australia, and has been in publication for over 30 years. [12] [13] The journal aims to bring together ... dynamic, critical interdisciplinary research in the field of cultural heritage and heritage conservation. The journal has an editorial committee of five with lead editor Dr. Tim Winter in 2013.

The journal is accessed online via State Library of New South Wales, [16] and indexed through various index services including RMIT's Australian Heritage Bibliography [13] and the Australian Public Affairs Information Service (APAIS). [17] It is held in over 80 libraries worldwide including all of the Australian State Libraries and major Australian and New Zealand university libraries, [18] and was ranked 'A' by the Australian Research Council Excellence in Research for Australia classification scheme. [12] [19] Australia ICOMOS also publishes the Australia ICOMOS Newsletter (ISSN 0155-3534) on a regular basis.

Mentoring

Australia ICOMOS provides a mentoring program for cultural heritage students as well as architectural students who have completed subjects in architectural conservation [20] and the Australia ICOMOS Victorian Scholarships. [21] Australia ICOMOS projects extend to providing expertise and fundraising for restoration projects in the wider Asia and Pacific region, including the Streetwise Asia School Restoration Project in the Philippines. [22] Australia ICOMOS, and in particular, Richard Mackay AM, have been involved in conservation management advice for the World Heritage Listing of Ankor Wat in Cambodia for many years. [23]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Council on Monuments and Sites</span> Cultural heritage organization

The International Council on Monuments and Sites is a professional association that works for the conservation and protection of cultural heritage places around the world. Now headquartered in Charenton-le-Pont, France, ICOMOS was founded in 1965 in Warsaw as a result of the Venice Charter of 1964 and offers advice to UNESCO on World Heritage Sites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Historic preservation</span> Preservation of items of historical significance

Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philosophical concept that became popular in the twentieth century, which maintains that cities as products of centuries’ development should be obligated to protect their patrimonial legacy. The term refers specifically to the preservation of the built environment, and not to preservation of, for example, primeval forests or wilderness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cultural heritage</span> Physical artifact or intangible attribute of a society inherited from past generations

Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by society.

The Venice Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites is a set of guidelines, drawn up in 1964 by a group of conservation professionals in Venice, that provides an international framework for the conservation and restoration of historic buildings. However, the document is now seen as outdated, representing Modernist views opposed to reconstruction. Reconstruction is now cautiously accepted by UNESCO in exceptional circumstances if it seeks to reflect a pattern of use or cultural practice that sustains cultural value, and is based on complete documentation without reliance on conjecture. The change in attitude can be marked by the reconstruction in 2015 of the Sufi mausoleums at the Timbuktu World Heritage Site in Mali after their destruction in 2012.

<i>Burra Charter</i>

The Burra Charter is a document published by the Australian ICOMOS which defines the basic principles and procedures to be followed in the conservation of Australian heritage places. The Charter was first endorsed in 1979 as an Australian adaptation of the Venice Charter, but with the introduction of a new analytical conservation model of heritage assessment that recognised forms of cultural heritage beyond tangible and physical forms. The Charter was the first national heritage document to replace the Venice Charter as the basis of national heritage practice. The Charter has been revised on four occasions since 1979, and has been internationally influential in providing standard guidelines for heritage conservation practice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Heritage Convention</span> 1972 international treaty

The World Heritage Convention, formally the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, is an international treaty signed on 23 November 1972, which created the World Heritage Sites, with the primary goals of nature conservation and the preservation of cultural properties. The convention, a signed document of international agreement, guides the work of the World Heritage Committee. It was developed over a seven-year period (1965–1972).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property</span>

The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) is an intergovernmental organization dedicated to the preservation of cultural heritage worldwide through training, information, research, cooperation and advocacy programmes. It aims to enhance the field of conservation-restoration and raise awareness to the importance and fragility of cultural heritage.

Archaeology Under the Canopy is a conservation strategy developed by Dr. Anabel Ford for the preservation of pre-Columbian Maya monuments at the archeological site El Pilar, an ancient Maya center on the border of Belize and Guatemala. This style of conservation encourages the conservation of rainforest foliage for the protection of monuments and the strategic exposure of ancient structures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Values (heritage)</span> Criterion for assessing significance, prioritize resources, and inform conservation decision-making

The values embodied in cultural heritage are identified in order to assess significance, prioritize resources, and inform conservative-restorative decision-making. It is recognised that values may compete and change over time, and that heritage may have different meanings for different stakeholders.

The Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China is a conservation charter promulgated in 2000 by China ICOMOS with the approval of National Cultural Heritage Administration. It provides a methodological approach to the conservation of cultural heritage sites in China.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrzej Tomaszewski</span>

Andrzej Stanisław Tomaszewski was a Polish historian of art and culture, architect, urban planner and archaeologist, investigator of medieval architecture and art in Poland and abroad. He was considered one of the most important and influential international scientists in the preservation and conservation of cultural heritage.

Lisa Gervasoni is currently the Senior Stakeholder Policy and Advocacy Advisor at the Victorian Farmers Federation. Gervasoni is strategic planner, photographer and artist. She was born in Melbourne, Australia. Gervasoni is part of a long family tradition of working with heritage sites in Australia. She is a member of ICOMOS and was a 2-term member of their executive committee. She has been a keynote speaker in Victoria, Australia. Gervasoni was instrumental in getting Hepburn Pool listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.

Ian Stapleton is an Australian heritage architect and a partner at Lucas, Stapleton, Johnson and Partners Pty Ltd. a heritage architectural firm in Australia. Stapleton has carried out and contributed to heritage projects throughout Australia, including the Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf, Walsh Bay Redevelopment, the Sydney GPO and Officials’ houses at Port Arthur, Tasmania. He is also active in the National Trust of Australia, the NSW Heritage Council and Australia ICOMOS. Stapleton has also published works on Australian architectural styles and is a visiting lecturer at various Sydney schools of architecture and building.

James Semple Kerr was an architectural historian and heritage practitioner in Australia, who was prominent in the drafting of the original Burra Charter and its subsidiary documents, and developing standards for conservation practice, particularly in relation to conservation assessments and management reports such as conservation management plans. Kerr's influence in the conservation movement is most notable for his publication of the Conservation Plan, which has guided building conservation in Australia and around the world.

The Conservation Plan is an important publication written by James Semple Kerr in 1982, and revised many times. It was a landmark in Australian conservation. The document "...outlines the logical processes of the Burra Charter, and how to prepare a Conservation Plan to guide and manage change to a heritage item appropriately. Subtitled, "a guide to the preparation of conservation plans for places of European cultural significance it has guided building conservation in Australia and around the world.

The Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) is a professional body in the United Kingdom which was formed as a charitable trust company in 1997 by members of the former Association of Conservation Officers. The object was to widen the scope of the profession from those mainly concerned with the statutory regulation of the historic environment to all those who practice professionally in historic and built environment conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes</span>

The International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes (ISCCL) is a committee of scientific experts on cultural landscapes that works, as a part of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), to develop international guidance on cultural landscape documentation and management, and to prepare expert recommendations for prospective World Heritage nominations. The committee functions as a joint effort with members from both ICOMOS and the International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rasool Vatandoust</span>

Abdolrasool Vatandoust Haghighi was born in Isfahan, Iran, on July 17, 1947.

Sharon Sullivan is an Australian archaeologist, advocate of Indigenous Australian rights, and author of five books on heritage management. She is best known for her work in establishing protocols and programs for cultural heritage management in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phoenix Central Park</span>

Phoenix Central Park is a performing arts venue and private art gallery located at 37-49 O'Connor Street, Chippendale, New South Wales, Australia. The location is within the Chippendale Heritage Conservation Area (HCA), item ‘C9’ on Schedule 5 of the Sydney Environmental Plan (LEP) 2012. The site is also within the Chippendale Locality as described in Section 2.3.1 of the Sydney Development Control Plan (DCP) 2012.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Susan Thompson, Planning Australia: An Overview of Urban and Regional Planning (Cambridge University Press, 2007)
  2. ↑ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Advisory Bodies". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  3. ↑ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Our Partners". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  4. 1 2 Australia ICOMOS Website
  5. ↑ National Trust Australia, Media Release 3 August 2011 Archived 18 June 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ↑ Australia ICOMOS > The Burra Charter Full text of the 1999 revised version of the Burra Charter. Retrieved 16 August 2011
  7. ↑ Marta De la Torre, Getty Conservation Institute, Heritage Values in Site Management: Four Case Studies (Getty Publications, 2005)
  8. ↑ Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, Australia ICOMOS State of the environment 2011 workshop, summary notes DECEMBER 2011 Archived 22 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  9. 1 2 "ICOMOS National Conference, 'Imagined Pasts, Imagined Futures'". Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
  10. ↑ Robert Bevan, 'Selling heritage to China' The Australian June 02, 2011
  11. ↑ Samantha Fabry' Conserving local heritage through heritage management Times of Malta December 18, 2005
  12. 1 2 3 Australia ICOMOS publications
  13. 1 2 3 Australian Heritage Bibliography, RMIT, INFORMIT
  14. ↑ Historic Environment (Online) Australia ICOMOS. Published Carlton Vic. : Council for the Historic Environment, (Vic.), 1980–, On line access or on CD-ROM
  15. ↑ 'Extreme Heritage' Historic Environment Volume 23 number 2 2007
  16. ↑ State Library of New South Wales on-line access
  17. ↑ Australian Public Affairs Information Service (APAIS)
  18. ↑ OCLC World Cat
  19. ↑ "Researchers, ANU Research". Archived from the original on 24 October 2013. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  20. ↑ Australia ICOMOS mentoring scheme, University of Melbourne
  21. ↑ Winners of the Inaugural Australia ICOMOS Victorian Scholarship 2008 Archived 22 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  22. ↑ Australia ICOMOS E-Mail News No. 439 Jun 04 2010 'Successful completion of Streetwise Asia School Restoration Project in the Philippines' & 'Fund Raising for Streetwise Asia Fund Philippines School Restoration project No 2 – 2010 – 2011'
  23. ↑ LIVING WITH HERITAGE AT ANGKOR, Prof Richard Mackay, AM & Sharon Sullivan
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