Frontier/Fountain/River Mouth: conservation of contemporary art in the public space

ABSTRACT

Frontier/Fountain/River Mouth (2001) is an artwork conceived by the artist Carmela Gross located in Laguna, Santa Catarina, and that underwent renovations in 2019. Although there is no sculptural element, the work designs the landscape through the emptiness that it creates: it is the ground. Thinking about the ground as a basic and relevant element in artistic-urbanistic production also leads us to think about the theoretical basis necessary for a correct approach to the problems of conservation, whether in art, architecture or even on an urban scale. The article seeks to reflect on the preservation of this work and on how its preservation can contribute to thinking about other elements of the landscape in which it is inserted and which it conforms. Conservation, by definition, begins with the recognition that is made of a particular work. The course of the analysis comprises an introduction to the mentioned work; the resumption of two exhibitions by the artist that inform us about relevant aspects for its preservation; the reasons that led to the restoration of the square in 2019; and the discussion about the project and the interventions carried out in that space. Finally, it is important to note that such issues are debated in a proper field, whose name is Conservation (“restauro” in most Latin languages), regardless of the degree of intervention, indicating alternatives for a more responsible design approach. The text is built on bibliographical and documental sources and on direct dialogue with those involved, in addition to visits to the mentioned work.

KEYWORDS:
Preservation; Conservation; Contemporary art; Carmela Gross; Laguna