Preventive Conservation and Preservation of Works of Art: Environmental Conditions and Museum Spaces in Portugal

The issues of preventive conservation and preservation of artworks, with a special focus on environmental conditions and museum spaces in Portugal, are the theme of the doctoral dissertation by Luís Efrem Elias Casanovas, an author with a vast published work on preventive conservation. With a preface signed by historian José-Augusto França, this publication starts from the premise that the conservation of collections is a cultural option and a priority objective of museological practice. As the author describes, “aiming to clarify the problem of environmental conditions in Portugal, we began our journey, seeking to understand what has happened from the beginnings of conservation to today, the origin of the problems, the reasons of the past and the present.” In this way, the reader is guided through the path taken over time, from preventive conservation to the preservation of collections, passing through the analysis of the constraints imposed by environmental conditions, museum buildings, and the external climate, concluding with an in-depth study of the Portuguese case.

Author: Luís Efrem Elias Casanovas

Year of publication: 2008
Publisher: SCML
ISBN: 9789727971817