ETHICS AND PRACTICES OF MEDIA ART CONSERVATION, A WORK-IN-PROGRESS (VERSION 0.5)

Introduction

Since the 1970s, media art has become a category in itself, with a growing number of artists experimenting with technology. We can define and categorise media art in different ways: by its technological and artistic context; in the context of fine art as opposed to film and information and communication technology (ICT); and by its temporal character, as opposed to the traditional understanding of fine art disciplines. We could also define media art as a broader category that embraces various electronic art forms such as video art (the oldest and most well known example), media art installations, computer-based art, (digital) performances, net-based art, etc., and combinations of all these. What all these art forms have in common is their technological nature, which result in specific vulnerabilities in terms of contexts and technologies and a shortened lifespan.

The use of ephemeral materials or of rapidly ageing media technologies affects the material stability and, frequently, the meaning of media artworks. It is characteristic of media art is that there is a carrier (of the signal and the information), which can only be made visible with the help of playback equipment, displayed on or via display devices (monitors, beamers, etc.), and, occasionally, related signal processing or control equipment. In all cases all the components of a media artwork are interdependent: a media art installation can only be displayed if the monitors and the other devices are still functioning. The equipment is thus not only crucial for display, but also for preservation and digitisation; transfer to a different format will be impossible without suitable equipment. Whether the manner of presentation requires specific technical equipment or not depends on the artist. In spite of all (conservation) efforts, all of this technical equipment will eventually become obsolete due to the fragility of its components and ongoing technological advances. This obsolescence of physical storage formats and presentation equipment is the most appealing challenge in the conservation of media art. PACKED vzw¹ and the Netherlands Media Art Institute (NIMk)² focus on this technological dependency in their research during the Obsolete Equipment project³.

Since the end of the 1990s, media artworks and the obsolescence of the associated equipment have received considerable attention in conservation research and literature. Two divergent approaches can be distinguished: the ‘purist/original-technology-at-all-costs’ approach, and the ‘adapted/updated-technology-approach’. Both approaches are valid but a suitable approach somewhere between these two has to be found. It would be an error on the part of collecting institutions to give up too quickly on old technology. Decisions have to be made about the value of that technology for the work. Some of the issues involved are:
• What is important to preserve, and how should it be preserved?
• What are the essential aesthetic and technological elements that absolutely need to be preserved if the artwork is to retain any integrity in the future? And how should they be preserved?
• If essential technological elements cannot be preserved, can they be replaced, and how?
• What is essential to establishing the origins and authenticity of the work?

Questions covered in the Obsolete Equipment project include:
• Do we have to accept a greater degree of loss than contemporary art conservation is used to if we want to deal with the increasingly ephemeral technological components of media artworks?
• What decision-making models and guidelines are available for the preservation of media artworks that are threatened by the obsolescence of the playback and display equipment, and for the preservation of the necessary equipment?
• What are international best practices for the preservation of media artworks and for the preservation of necessary equipment?
• What are international best practices for the migration and emulation⁴ of media artworks that are threatened by the obsolescence of the playback and display equipment, and for the preservation of necessary equipment⁵?


1. Ethics of media art conservation

In fine art conservation, the main ethical issue is that all conservation activities should be faithful to the integrity of the original art object, respecting both the authentic, original appearance of the work and the artist’s original intention. Most ethical codes specify different kinds of integrity: physical, aesthetic and historical. The first refers to the material components, the second describes the ability of an object to create an aesthetical sensation for the viewer, and the last describes the history that has imprinted on the object⁶. These concepts of integrity (appearance and intention) are the greatest and most urgent issues confronting the field of media art conservation.

Uniqueness and Authenticity
The most widespread conception of a work of art is that it is a unique object. Media art challenges this conception, since the uniqueness of the physical manifestation is not applicable to video art, or to other forms of media art. A media artwork is certainly unique and authentic but its tangible form as such is not – the (analogue) video signal and the (digital) computer code can be copied: video is a technically reproducible medium with masters, sub-masters, copies, etc. Furthermore, most display equipment is mass-produced and is not necessarily unique unless it has been modified by or for the artists. In times of mechanical and digital reproduction the notion of a unique artwork is no longer seen to be relevant by a significant sector in contemporary art, namely media art.

In the case of Das Ende des Jahrhunderts (1985), by Klaus vom Bruch, the video Azimuth included in the work is not only a part of this installation but is also a video
work in itself that has been acquired by a number of collections⁷.

Since the cameras and monitors used in black-and-white... (2002), by Nan Hoover, were purely functional and mass-produced, the function of the equipment could be mapped without discernible change, and since the equipment is hidden from the viewer it could be replaced by equipment having the same functionality⁸.

While fine arts preservation often deals with objects, material and the notions of authenticity and originality, media art preservation is not primarily concerned with physical manifestation; instead, we deal with increasingly ephemeral technological components and this is reflected in the refreshing strategies that are developed and implemented. Furthermore, the original authentic state often varies greatly, either because variance is sometimes part of the concept, or over the course of subsequent presentations. The question is, what kind of authenticity is preferable: conceptual authenticity faithful to the artist’s intention, or contextual and functional authenticity based on the original context and function of the work? The most common concept of authenticity in fine art conservation is based on physical integrity.

The starting point for the research in the case of Project I-’90 (1989–90), by Peter Struycken, was authentic presentation, i.e., a re-installation using identical components to those used in the original installation. This approach to re-installation was not realisable in practice because on the one hand, a significant proportion of the variables relating to the equipment are unknown and, on the other, some of the equipment, specifically the slide projector unit, no longer exists. For a presentation where the media authenticity has to be preserved, (some of) the original equipment is replaced by similar, but not obsolete models. The missing links in the complete authentic version must be determined again – insofar as it is possible, in consultation with the artist – and this information can serve as installation instructions for future presentations. Technically speaking, this version is realisable; artistically there are some problems in establishing the relationship between the deterioration of colour and the meaning of Struycken’s work. While a certain degree of deterioration is acceptable with many other film- and slide-based artworks, it is problematic in this work by Struycken where colour is the central theme. The colours of slides and films in Project I-’90 have to be as close to the original as possible. Using digital techniques to process the original material was the only workable way of restoring the colour balance to the films and slides. Furthermore, the possibility of exactly positioning the images from the slides on the filmstrip was lost during the transfer from analogue to digital production techniques. However, preserving authenticity and meaning while respecting the artist’s intentions has remained problematic. In this re-installed version the work is not defined by its media and associated equipment, but as a projection, regardless of the way in which this projection is realised. In practice this will mean some form of video projection (yet to be tested). Peter Struycken has a distinct preference for this form of re-installation, which is in fact a classic emulation⁹.

For Dennis Oppenheim’s installation Circle Puppets (1994) the support [equipment] was not an important factor in the identity of the work and he considered the TV monitors and DVD players as tools, the originals of which do not have to be preserved (...)¹⁰.

Traditional fine art preservation concepts of authenticity and uniqueness are reconsidered for media art preservation. Inspired by the Variable Media Network (VMN)¹¹ and DOCAM¹², an entirely new framework and vocabulary have been introduced using notions such as ‘medium independent’, ‘variable’, ‘behaviour’, ‘migration’ and ‘emulation’¹³. As Pip Laurenson points out, ‘Discussions about authenticity and time-based media artworks will become more prevalent in time'¹⁴. A recent alternative to the concept of ‘authenticity’ is the notion of ‘historically informed performance’. Johannes Gfeller is one of the media art conservation researchers who work with this notion¹⁵. ‘Historically informed performance’ (HIP, also referred to as period performance, or authentic performance) is a widespread approach, or movement, in music performance. In performance studies it is seen as a discipline related to all forms of authenticity, and it examines how music was performed at the time it was composed¹⁶. It is interesting to think about an equivalent approach for media art.

Artist’s intention and signature
Closely related to the guiding conservation principles of respecting authenticity and integrity is the notion of the artist’s intention and signature. When replacing (obsolete) equipment it is crucial to deal with issues relating to active artistic involvement, modifications by the artist, and specifications about the equipment used by the artist. During the last decade it is has become common practice to consult and interview artists when preservation problems relating to damage and obsolescence arise. Laurenson advocates redefining the notion of artist’s intention in terms of ‘work-defining properties’: ‘The kinds of things that might act as work-defining properties of a time-based media installation are plans and specifications demarcating the parameters of possible change, display equipment, acoustic and aural properties, light levels, the way the public encounters the work, and the means by which the time-based media element is played back. The artist might explicitly provide work-defining instructions to the museum or designate a model installation from which the key properties of the work can be gleaned.’¹⁷

Mon.-Sun. (1996) and Bach Two Part Intervention (1998) by Jonathan Horowitz were made specifically for VHS tapes, which, because they are also a sculptural component of the work, cannot be replaced. The museum should be supplied with files and instructions on how to print out the labels so that by following these instructions the integrity of the work is retained. Of course all the components have to be kept: a ¾” TV from the time the piece was made, the custom-made TV stands, and so on. The equipment is part of the piece. If all of this material is available, it should be possible to make new VHS tapes and labels, but the artist is unsure if all of these are at the museum.¹⁸

The artist’s interview has become a vital tool in the conservation of contemporary art. It is now best practice to conduct such an interview at the moment of acquisition or when issues relating to obsolescence or re-installation arise¹⁹. The artist is consulted ever more frequently and is asked to authorise decisions about re-presentation and conservation. One could even go a step further and state that a growing number of presentations and re-presentations become collaborative projects between artists and the curator and/or conservator and that, in some cases, this collaboration already starts when work on the project begins. As media art is often a collaborative effort, artists should not be seen as being the sole author of the work; the interview should therefore include their assistants, programmers and in the case of co-production, the curators too.

Artists’ intentions and their opinions on conservation are important but not sacred. In practice an artist’s views evolve and current solutions could alter their earlier work, and some artists prefer to conserve their work using methods a conservator might not agree with. It is the role of the conservator to understand what might constitute an authentic media artwork and ensure that such a presentation is possible, whether the artist cooperates or not.

Functionality and Significance
As a media artwork can only be full experienced while it is functioning, properties relating to use, context and concept have to be taken into consideration – display without functionality would result in a great loss of meaning.

In the case of Insert Coin (1999), by Hans Op de Beeck, it transpired that an important component of the original installation was missing: the custom-made operating system that controls the incoming and outgoing signals²⁰. The absence of this component meant that the work stopped functioning at a certain point. Hans Op de Beeck updated the entire system (a programmed Flash card player, monitor and electronics) to make the work functional again. Unfortunately, referring to the original version was no longer possible, as the original components are no longer available. In addition, the original version was not well documented by its owner and its caretaker.21

For digital works, technologists suggest the ‘solution’ that we merely need to copy a file onto a new physical storage medium before the old medium becomes obsolete. This was already common practice with analogue video and film. Nowadays we can recopy a digital file onto a new medium without any loss of information. This concept of ‘Refreshing’ involves periodically moving a file from one physical storage medium to another to pre-empt the physical decay or the obsolescence of that medium²². The common practices and guidelines that have been formulated over the years as well as experience gained are consulted when translating the video signals. The preservation criteria for display and playback equipment are still being formulated, however. Two key approaches have been suggested to deal with the problem of transferral: migration and emulation.

In the case of Panta Rhei (1988), by Ricardo Füghlistahler, the defective monitor can either be repaired, be replaced by exactly the same brand and type of black-and-white monitor, be replaced by a similar type of black & white monitor, be simulated by a similar type of colour monitor, or even be emulated with the aid of modern techniques. Each of these options has different consequences that must be taken in consideration.
Repair: repairing the broken monitor remains true to the original equipment used by the artist. But repairs are not always possible, and even if they are, they can result in a loss of quality or differences when the video material is played back.
Replacement: replacing the broken monitor with exactly the same brand and model remains true to the artist’s intentions. This monitor can be modified in the same way as the original. If replacing the broken monitor with a comparable black & white monitor is close to the artist’s intention, the replacement must be adapted to match the modified broken monitor. In both cases there could be a difference in quality or appearance compared to the other monitor, meaning that perhaps both monitors should be replaced.
Migration: by replacing the broken monitor with a similarly shaped newer colour monitor, you distance yourself somewhat from the artist’s intention. The differences in appearance and the quality of the image displayed on a colour monitor and on a black & white monitor would necessitate exchanging the other (still functioning) black & white monitor as well.
Emulation: replacing obsolete techniques with modern equipment that retains the original look and feel. If there is a difference in quality or appearance, perhaps both monitors should be replaced. In the Panta Rhei case study, the broken monitor could be repaired. There was no loss of quality during playback of the video material compared to the second monitor used in the video sculpture.²³

Despite all efforts, current technological equipment will wear out and become obsolete, which means that decisions have to be made whether and how to update the equipment. Laurenson proposes an approach that involves assigning significance to display equipment, its relation to the work’s identity based on conceptual, aesthetic and historical criteria, and the role the equipment plays in the work. Identifying functional significance is seen here as an initial step to understanding the importance and use of the equipment.²⁴


2. On Changes and Challenges²⁵

The only accurate way to test if we have understood, documented and transferred the constituent parts of a work of art and the work itself is by re-installing the work. The general approach, therefore, is to conduct case studies and interviews with artists and other key figures involved in the work. This approach was also adopted for the Obsolete Equipment project, which conducted more than ten video-based case studies and interviews in its first year. Included in the research for the case studies are the artist or culture of production, the collection or work of art (history, creation, context), and descriptions of the anatomy, character and identity of the artwork that are in line with the artist’s intentions. These case studies also define the appropriate approach and the desired result. Important questions that were asked included: How are the problems related to this work defined, what solution/approach is proposed, and what is the result of this approach in relation to the definition of the problem? When answering these questions, areas of special interest such as storage, obsolete equipment, risk analysis and documentation arise. These questions indicated a logical route to follow. Following this route highlights the core problems and areas requiring attention. Fundamental to the route is the full realisation of the character of video and multimedia artworks. This awareness influences the way such artworks are approached during their lifespan, and fosters the awareness that special care is required when it comes to (collecting and) storage, obsolescence, risk analysis, and documentation.²⁶

Collecting and storing (obsolete) equipment
The importance of collecting and storing equipment has been underestimated for far too long. Although storing is the usual museum conservation approach, it has never been common practice to collect all the related equipment for media artworks. Frequently, all the equipment required for an installation is no longer available and/or the equipment pool is used to display a number of artworks. Furthermore, there is often a lack of proper storage facilities and documentation. Their vulnerability, along with rapid technological changes, makes functioning equipment scarce. Over the last few years the lack of dedicated equipment and knowhow about how to deal with it has been recognised and addressed on a growing scale. It is preferable to collect and store equipment that could be related to the artworks in a collection. Gfeller mentions two approaches to collecting and storing equipment:
• Storing the original equipment;
• Storing generic equipment typically used to present video artworks from a certain time period²⁷.
This equipment can be used for presentations and research, as a reference when defining an artwork’s original appearance, and as starting point for emulation. Collecting relevant as well as dedicated equipment is seen as a way to gain more insights into how artworks were produced and presented; this is one of the main questions when it comes to preserving media artworks for future generations. A collection of representative cameras, players, recorders, computers, monitors, etc., is difficult to realise and manage. An important resource such as this has been realised for research purposes and incidental presentations at the Bern University of the Arts (BUA) and the ZKM (Centre for Art and Media) in Karlsruhe.

One could state that all the material belonging to a media art installation can be an inseparable part of the artwork. The visual material itself, the playback and projecting equipment, the original cables, sync devices, plugs and monitors could be essential to its re-installation. It must be possible to link all these component parts together, and register and document each of them with a condition report, which also specifies their location in the depot. This is extremely important, as it simplifies identifying which objects belong to a specific work of art.

The significance of the equipment can be extracted from the meaning and value of the work. The case studies and interviews revealed that, in general, not all the equipment has the same value for the meaning of a work of art. Information carriers, playback equipment and cables can often be replaced. Monitors appear to have the most bearing on the appearance of the artwork.

In the case of Bert Schutter’s Mill x Molen (1982) no original equipment was saved. The hanging construction (a metal scaffold) and the documentation were still available but all twelve Sony PVM-2730QM cube monitors and the U-matic syncstarter were no longer part of the collection-owner’s holdings. After the Netherlands Office for Fine Arts (now the Netherlands Institute for Cultural Heritage, ICN) acquired the work in 1990, all the equipment was transferred to Montevideo (now NIMk), after which NIMk transferred all equipment to Beam Systems in the first decade of the 21st century. Problems arose from the incorrect storage of materials, including the scattering and even the loss of several components. Twelve monitors had to be hired for the re-installation of Mill x Molen. It was not possible to hire them from one company; in fact, two rental companies struggled to meet the request. Unfortunately, even if only one of the monitors breaks down it will result in the loss of the visual appearance and experience of Mill x Molen. It is reasonable to expect this to happen within the next few years. The monitors determine both the aesthetic look of the installation and its historicity – the appearance of the installation is determined by the size and position of the monitors within the metal scaffold, as well as by the high quality of the screens. Sony monitors of this type are no longer produced. The best conservation strategy for Mill x Molen is to acquire and store twelve monitors, with a few in reserve. A documented technical analysis of the functionality of the monitors would offer the possibility of safeguarding the functioning of installations in the future, even if the preserved monitors were no longer working²⁸.

Collecting equipment includes collecting spare equipment and spare parts, proper storage and regular maintenance. Best practices for storage and maintenance are brought together as part of the Obsolete Equipment project²⁹. The issue of storing equipment is an institutional problem. The participating institutions either have no – or only occasional – opportunities to specialise in this. Moreover, the quantity of necessary equipment will be such that it will exceed the storage capacities of the individual institutions, and the necessary knowhow is only occasionally available. During the Obsolete Equipment project the desire was repeatedly expressed to collectively store (historical) equipment, and preferably in one location. This seems to be the most viable solution at the moment.

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Notes

¹ PACKED vzw (Platform for the Archiving and Conservation of Audiovisual Art) was founded as a platform for the development and dissemination of knowledge on the cataloguing, conservation and distribution of audiovisual documents relating to art. Link: http://www.packed.be
² Netherlands Media art Institute (NIMk). Continuing to build on its extensive experience in producing, collecting and presenting video and installation art, NIMk has – since 1992 – conducted an ongoing research programme into the preservation and documentation of media art. NIMk facilitates research into video art, installations and live art/performances in order to identify and understand which components of a media artwork have to be preserved, and the new methods, tools, language and services that have to be developed to deal with this. Link: http://www.nimk.nl
³ Link: http://www.packed.be/en/projects/readmore/obsolete_apparatuur/
⁴ In this essay the terms ‘migration’ and ‘emulation’ refer to updating technology with present-day equipment; the original look and feel of the work is retained with emulation, but not necessarily with migration.
⁵ Clearly, this essay builds on a large body of work already done in this area. Examples of research projects are included in the appendix.
⁶ Muñoz Viñas, S. Contemporary Theory of Conservation, Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2005.
⁷ From the case study report by researcher Dieter Vermeulen.
⁸ From the case study report by researcher Eve Dullart.
⁸ From the case study report by researcher Gert Hoogeveen.
⁹ Link: http://www.insideinstallations.org
¹⁰ Link: http://www.variablemedia.net/
¹¹ Link: http://www.docam.ca
¹² See the appendix for the use of these definitions in the Variable Media Initiative. Jon Ippolito, Caitlin Jones and Carol Stringari, et al. have written about these notions, including in: Paul, C. (ed.), New Media in the White Cube and Beyond Curatorial Models for Digital Art, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008; and Art Press 2 (12) 2009.
¹³ Laurenson, Pip, ‘The Management of Display Equipment in Time-based Media Installations’, 2004. Link: http://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/05spring/laurenson.htm
¹⁴ Gfeller, Johannes, ‘The Reference Hardware Pool of AktiveArchive at the Bern University Of The Arts: A Basis for a Historically Well-Informed Re-Performance of Media Art’, in: Reconstructing Swiss Video Art from 1970 and 1980, Zurich: JRP/Ringier, 2009, p. 166–74.
¹⁵ Members of this movement usually perform on period instruments, use older types of acting and scenery, and consult historical treatises, as well as additional historical evidence, to gain insights into the performance practices (the stylistic and technical aspects of performance) of a particular historic era.
¹⁶ Laurenson, Pip, ‘Authenticity, Change and Loss in the Conservation of Time-Based Media Installations’, 2004. Link: http://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/06autumn/laurenson.htm
¹⁷ From the interview with Jonathan Horowitz by researcher Dieter Vermeulen.
¹⁷ A book with the working title The Artist Interview for Conservation Practice with Scenarios, Guidelines and Examples will be published in summer 2011.
¹⁸ This was actually a router for the signals from the VHS players.
¹⁹ As explained by Rony Vissers.
²⁰ First outlined in ‘Preserving Digital Information, Report of the Task Force on Archiving of Digital Information’, by Donald Waters and John Garrett, commissioned by The Commission on Preservation and Access and The Research Libraries Group, 1 May 1996. Link: http://www.clir.org/pubs/abstract/pub63.html
²¹ From the case study report by researcher Evelyne Snijders.
²² Laurenson, Pip, ‘The Management of Display Equipment in Time-based Media Installations’, 2004. Link: http://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/05spring/laurenson.htm
²³ This title is derived from the chapter ‘On Changes and Challenges’ in Vivan Van Saaze’s Ph.D. thesis ‘Doing Artworks: Presentation and Conservation of Installation Artworks’, Maastricht: University Press, 2009.
²⁴ Formulated in the Imago Revised project (2009), an ICN/NIMk project that developed guidelines for case studies and obsolete equipment.
²⁵ From the interview with Johannes Gfeller by Rony Vissers and Emanuel Lorain.
²⁶ From the case study report by researcher Evelyne Snijders.
²⁷ See footnote 3.
²⁸ From the interview with Pip Laurenson and Tina Weidner by Emanuel Lorain, 2010.
²⁹ Interview for the article ‘How to Preserve Digital Art’ by Kendra Mayfield, in WIRED, 2002. Link: http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2002/07/53712. Although Rinehart focused on digital art in the interview, this statement applies to all media art forms, even early video art.