Observations about heritage

Over the past forty years, concern with the conservation of the character of areas of architectural or historic interest has arisen in response to the ‘excesses’ of post-war development and the associated loss of much of importance in the towns and cities of the world. Following 19th century concern at the lack of protection for individual buildings and monuments the present concept of listed buildings and their protection was first introduced into the UK under the Civic Amenities Act, 1967, but has subsequently followed in many other countries in Europe, Asia, America and Africa since.

As highlighted by OWHC, Council of Europe and EUROCITIES advocates the involvement of communities as an important approach to the conservation, management and promotion of urban heritage. OWHC calls for the provision of oppor¬tunities of engagement and cooperation with and for local communities; having the understanding that urban heritage can act as enabler of sustain¬able development by providing direct and indirect benefits to the daily lives of the cities’ inhabitants.

Harrington (see reference below) asserts that the desire to preserve the past is not a modern phenomenon. However, by the 20th century, the time had come for the internationalisation of heritage concerns and practices.

Heritage listing of buildings and places the world over has the ability to capture intrinsic cultural values from current and previous eras and present them to visitors and users

Yesterday I attended a seminar in Pyrmont NSW entitled “Sustainability Live”.

Paolo Ceccarelli from Department of Architecture, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy maintains that there is a widely shared opinion that many theoreti­cal and methodological principles developed over the past decades by Western culture and applied all over the world, should be reconsidered. There is also an in­creasing awareness that alternative ideas and practices de­veloped by…

There is nothing worse than faux heritage. On the one hand, it is demeaning in that it attempts to borrow from history something which does not belong in the present

There are some common tips to help renovators of heritage places carry out building work sympathetically.

There is a perennial divide between heritage conservers and commercial interests.

Cultural built heritage embodies a multiplicity of values and significances

On a recent visit to the ‘National Gallery Singapore’ this year, I was pleased to enjoy the successful conversion of this stately building from its former use