What happens when those living alongside historical monuments—churchgoers, farmers, workers, custodians, local officials, non-human entities—see these sites as theirs? Through what sources and scholarly approaches can we recover their voices and their role in the state-led activities of restoration and preservation of architectural monuments?

This conference explores the debates, conflicts and role of local communities in the heritage politics starting from the mid-19th century and focusing especially but not exclusively on Central and Eastern Europe. It also seeks to understand the role of non-human actors, such as plants, animals, natural formations, weather and the different, more-than-human perspectives, they bring to the process of heritage making. The conference is based on the premise that local communities played an unrecognised role in official heritage policies, through resistance, negotiations, adaptations, and the use of traditions and knowledge. Architects and commissions frequently relied on the knowledge and testimonies of these communities, acted in accordance with their desires and employed them on works of restoration or preservation. At the same time there was often a sense of struggle over the heritage. For example, communities opposed the modifications to their monuments while architects and state institutions had to also prevent transformations, replacements or demolition by the locals. The conference seeks to balance the disproportionate attention that state actors and elites have received and analyse what has been the role as well as the influence on those for whom the monuments were part of their daily lives.

The conference is hosted by the Masaryk University, Department of Art History and it is part of the project The First Histories of Architecture and the Creation of National Heritage in South- Eastern Europe (1860-1930). A Transnational Approach (GN22-19492I) led by Dr Cosmin Minea.

The conference takes place at the Masaryk University Brno, Czechia, on 6 November. The deadline for submission of abstracts of up to 300 words including a short biography is 11 April. They should be sent to cosmin.minea@phil.muni.cz. Selected participants will be notified by 22 April. Some travel and accommodation costs may be covered for participants without access to institutional funding.

Read more: https://arthistory.phil.muni.cz/news/call-for-papers-who-owns-heritage