Plan de Actividades para desarrollar la metodología cooperativa

9.2.1 The heritage “experience”.Europe is fascinated – some would say, excessively so – by its past. An important aspect of most cultural policies is heritage. By this should be understood the totality of what survives from our

cultural past – the best of European music, theatre and literature as well as the visual arts and architecture. It is one of the key means by which societies and individuals assert and celebrate their identity. To ensure the continuing performance of Racine and the reading of Dante is a part of maintaining our idea of ourselves. As we have shown, much public investment in the arts is directed to the task of keeping alive Europe’s rich heritage in the performing arts – that is to say, the classics of drama, music and dance and the infra- structure including libraries, cultural centres, theatres, concert halls, etc. This chapter focuses on a narrower definition – that is, the identification, preser- vation, conservation, development and communication of the international, national, regional and local physical patrimony. It covers the moveable and immoveable heritage and, for our purposes, the museums sector. “The her- itage,” as Pierre Nora observed, “is what is still visible of a world which has become invisible.”1_{One of the most remarkable developments since the end}

of the second world war, and even more so in the last twenty years, has been a quite unprecedented interest in almost every aspect of the preservation, interpretation and exploitation of the world’s stock of individual historic build- ings, cultural ensembles such as historic townscapes and cultural landscapes, museums, galleries and collections.2 _{It is a universal phenomenon, but one}

example will illustrate its scale. The former Soviet Union was immensely proud of the fact that official museums increased from less than fifty at the time of the Russian Revolution to more than 1 500 by the late 1980s; a survey in 1987 showed that this seriously understated the truth, for it was discovered that there were in fact 14 000 unofficial museums, mainly established by individ- ual enthusiasts.

9.2.2 Underlying these developments is a long-running debate on the pur- poses of the preservation and exploitation of heritage, the roots of which can be traced back to the origins of the modern museum. Andrzej Rottermund identifies them as being “ideas of progress and evolution current in the sec- ond half of the nineteenth century, their strong relationship with nationalistic ideals, and with the methodology of exact and natural sciences current at the time [...] some museum objects [became] a kind of relic, and museum tourism a modern form of pilgrimage.”3_{The idea of the museum as essentially a cen-}

tre for specialised scholarship, to which a respectful public is admitted almost on sufferance, has been challenged in recent years by a more people-orient- ed approach, which sees the heritage as a flexible means of exploring the mul- ticultural nature of contemporary society. According to this view a museum is a resource to help people come to terms with changing social values. “A museum of the future must pay greater attention to the differences between

In from the margins

1. Quoted in Munoz, Marie-Claude, Conclusions and recommendations of an international sem- inar on The cultural heritage and its educational implications: A factor for tolerance, good citi-

zenship and social integration(Brussels, 28-30 August 1995). Council of Europe, Strasbourg. 2. This chapter is indebted to Patrick Boylan’s background papers, “Europe’s built environment and movable heritage”, and “The heritage dimension in late 20th century culture”, commis- sioned by the European Task Force. Council of Europe. Strasbourg, 1994.

3. Rottermund, Andrzej, “Museums – Questions about their future”. International Cultural Cen-

tre, No. 4,June 1994 – May 1995, Cracow. 4. Ibid.

visitor groups. Museum ‘services’ should be more diversified than they are, mainly by broadening the range of subjects and by taking account of the vari- ety of demands, level of knowledge and interests of different groups.”4

9.2.3 Every year millions of people visit Europe’s historic cities, ancient monuments and living history museums. From being a pastime for the edu- cated, cultural tourism has become a satisfying and absorbing component of mass culture. However, in some parts of Europe there is another side to the story. We live in an expanding historically-bound culture in which tradition and the past have become a commercialised plaything of the future. The late twentieth century physical heritage “explosion” is the product of new ways of commodifying our origins, which some welcome as making heritage more accessible and others deride on the grounds that it is “vulgarising” the past and turning it into “tourist kitsch”. History, or at least what is marketed as history, has thus become one of the most important products on sale in the late twentieth century world. An industry has emerged which absorbs con- siderable public and private resources; “Instead of manufacturing goods, we are manufacturing heritage, a commodity which nobody seems able to define, but everybody is eager to sell.”1 _{Entrepreneurs, it is argued, have}

appropriated from the museums sector the role of selling us a “packaged” version of the past: why settle for historical accuracy when you can have an “experience”? This popularisation of heritage has attracted its critics for whom it reflects disenchantment with the present and a symptom of nation- al decay and “the exhaustion of heritage’s grand narratives”2_.

9.2.4 Not everyone feels this way. Raphael Samuel considers “heritage baiting” a form of social condescension. “It is a favourite conceit of the aes- thete that the masses, if left to their own devices, are moronic; that their plea- sures are unthinking and their tastes cheap and nasty. Theme parks – doubly offensive because they seem to us to come from America and because they link history to the holiday industry – are a particular bugbear for the critics.”3

A more constructive and optimistic view is that such developments represent something more fundamental than the result of new ways of marketing her- itage and more related to new perceptions, images and meanings of Euro- pean history. They help communities to refine their collective sense of them- selves, enabling them to reinterpret the past in order to come to terms with the bewildering changes of the present and a vertigo-inducing future. Indeed, it is generally acknowledged that the renewal of heritage and cultural tourism gives citizens in democratic societies the chance to educate themselves about their ancestors’ achievements and errors from which they derive contempo- rary benefits (or, sometimes, detriment). Education and pleasure need not be incompatible.

9.2.5 There are concerns of a different scale about the way in which false and potentially dangerous histories and heritage myths have, if not actually

Cultural transformations

1. Samuel, Raphael, Theatres of memory. Virgo. London, 1995. 2. Hewison, Robert, The heritage industry. Methuen. London, 1987.

3. Samuel, Raphael, “Theme parks –why not?”, the Independent on Sunday newspaper. Lon- don, 12 February 1995. Adapted from Theatres of memory, op. cit.

created, then at least contributed significantly to, the promotion and trans- mission of aggressive nationalism in many parts of the world this century. Pro- fessor Milena Dragicevi´c-Sesi´c of Belgrade has drawn attention to the role of what she terms “kitsch history” and heritage myths in the conflicts which have devastated much of the former Yugoslavia, paralleling the role that cul- ture played in the promotion among the general public of nazi values in Ger- many. Criticisms are also voiced of the negative gender and class stereotyp- ing in much of the commercial heritage sector, and indeed in some of the non-commercial facilities. Few museums or “heritage centres” in former imperial states have much to say about their region’s or country’s role in the seventeenth to nineteenth century slave trade and its fundamental social, economic and political consequences.

9.2.6 The idea of conservation has its prehistory, stretching back to debates during the French Revolution about the possible preservation of his- toric monuments and collections and to the medievalism of social reformers, such as John Ruskin and William Morris. Public enthusiasm for heritage grew with the arrival of mass transportation in the second quarter of the nineteenth century, with steamships and long distance railways.

9.2.7 The international community has taken an interest in the impact of military action on heritage from the end of the last century: two Hague Con- ventions of 1899 and 1907 offered a measure of protection during times of war.1 _{A more recent stimulus was the destruction caused by the twentieth}

century world wars. Town centres and individual buildings have been replaced with replicas as in the ancient core of Warsaw, Buda Castle in Budapest, the medieval Guildhall and many historic churches and Livery Halls in the City of London and the painstaking recreation of the Semper Opera House in Dresden.

9.2.8 It is ironic that some of the demolitions caused by post-war com- mercial redevelopment are already being corrected. A remarkable instance is the construction of an accurate replica of important Roman fortifications which were removed in 1968 to make way for a modern tourist resort in Lloret de Mar in Catalonia. On a larger scale, environmental degradation in the his- toric centre of Prague is now being remedied by major restoration works. 9.2.9 Much of Europe’s heritage is rural and many thousands of archaeo- logical sites in the countryside are recognised to be highly important parts of the cultural economy. Obvious examples include the myriad classical sites in Italy and Greece, Hadrian’s great Roman wall in England, prehistoric caves in France and Spain and the neolithic stone circles of Stonehenge and Avebury in England, the standing stones of France, Ireland, Scotland and the Scandi- navian countries and medieval ruined churches and castles across the conti- nent.

In from the margins

1. Hague Convention Concerning Bombardment by Naval Forces in Time of War, 1899, and the Fourth Hague Convention on the Laws and Customs of War on Land, 1907.

9.2.10 An interesting development has been the recreation of ancient lifestyles, as in the Iron Age “living history” villages of Denmark and England, and even their contemporary preservation, as in the remarkable Hortobágy National Park in Hungary where a social system (large-scale cattle ranching and animal breeding) as well as an environment is being preserved. In a sim- ilar vein, “living” museums attempt to recreate old industrial ways of life. Industrial heritage is being preserved and celebrated as part of economic regeneration schemes. Projects can be found in many European countries, especially in areas of urban decline following the closure or contraction of tra- ditional industries

9.2.11 Unesco has played a major role in advising on the restoration and preservation of major heritage sites and encouraging member states to adopt international standards for their protection, and also assisting countries to promote and monitor the sites on its World Heritage list. Similarly, the Euro- pean Union has provided some financial underpinning for European heritage, museums and related training.

9.2.12 Some serious policy issues arise from the irresistible march of the her- itage industry. First, Europe’s cultural heritage is not spread evenly across the continent nor are the resources to maintain it. Greece and Italy shoulder unique burdens; the report on Cultural policy in Italy comments: “Virtually anywhere you dig or build in Italy, you are liable to disturb the remains of past civilisation, usually in strata of continuous occupation. A survey carried out in 1972 on a sample of 8 000 towns revealed that 87% of them predated the fourteenth century [...]. Given the scope and unique scale of Italy’s patrimo-

nio and the difficulties which attend its protection and management towards the end of the second millennium, it is immediately obvious that the available resources could never be fully adequate [...]. The specially dedicated soprint-

endenza, which was established in Rome to deal with the devastating earth- quake damage to the archaeological, artistic and built heritage in Campania and Basilicata in 1981, is being wound up, having achieved barely 18% of its specific tasks over fourteen years, the resources allocated having been whol- ly unequal to the job.”1

9.2.13 Secondly, planning new museum and heritage facilities as part of economic development or tourism proposals calls for much realistic mu- seological and marketing research before their viability can be forecast with any degree of accuracy. For example, the growth in the number of maritime museums in some parts of Europe as a result of financial assistance for tourism infrastructure projects from the European Union’s European Regional Devel- opment Fund and Community Initiatives programmes have little relationship to demand.

9.2.14 Thirdly, there are well-documented examples of even modest, eco- nomically motivated museum initiatives facing strong opposition from the populations they serve. For instance, there have been objections to the

Cultural transformations

1. Cultural policy in Italy, Report of a European panel of examiners by Christopher Gordon, Euro- pean Programme of National Cultural Policy Reviews. Council of Europe. Strasbourg, 1995.

preservation of an abandoned historic industrial enterprise from the former workers themselves. Planners must work closely with the local community at all levels, in order to reflect as far as possible its hopes and aspirations. For many years the Council of Europe has been promoting the concept of inte- grated conservation, not only to bring the principles of heritage protection and management to bear on town and country planning by incorporating them in the decision making process, but also to encourage a multidiscipli- nary approach based on co-operation between all relevant interests. 9.2.15 Fourthly, the accurate recreation of the past is more easily said than done: reconstructions are often a useful way of finding out how a built envi- ronment functioned in the past and they satisfy a legitimate need to present history in an understandable way. However, there are cases where it is bowd- lerised and sentimentalised. How are the dangerous past working conditions, pollution, dirt and noise of a preserved, “living” coal mine to be evoked? If they are not, the visitor will be experiencing a lie.

9.2.16 The rate of expansion in the number and range of preserved build- ings and sites has grown exponentially in many countries during recent years. For instance, in the United Kingdom the number of historic and natural sites, monuments and buildings with some form of special legal or planning protection has risen from about 1 000 in 1945, and perhaps 10 000 in the 1960s, to something approaching a million at present. This is partly the result of more concerted action, but it is also attributable to a broadening of the def- inition of what constitutes “heritage” (which has been one of the Council of Europe’s policies since the European Conference of Ministers for Architectur- al Heritage met in Granada in 1985). However, though the preservation of historic built heritage should clearly be a priority both for public authorities and for private and public owners, and wholesale deregulation or removal of protection is highly undesirable, there is a need, nevertheless, for a proper balance between the past thirty years’ insistence on preserving almost every conceivable element of a perhaps newly invented “heritage” and the need to avoid fossilising (and possibly thereby destroying) historic city centres and other built environments perhaps some hundreds of years old. More- over, questions are already being asked about the viability of the present number of heritage attractions; new facilities in already well-provided areas may simply redistribute a level of attendances that is near or at saturation point.

9.2.17 Problems are exacerbated for governments by the damage caused to heritage by pollution and the often large investments that are required to address this. Most countries have national, regional or local strategies to com- bat aspects of pollution of their cultural heritage, though this is sometimes an adjunct to general environmental or health policies. The Committee of Min- isters of the Council of Europe approved a recommendation on the control of the physical deterioration of the architectural heritage in 19881_{and subse-}

quently the Swedish delegation proposed “model cities” as a basis for devel-

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1. Recommendation (88) 5 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to member states on the control of physical deterioration of architectural heritage accelerated by pollution. Strasbourg, 1988.