After successful completion of the course, students are able to recognise and understand aspects of monument preservation and heritage studies that are relevant to practice. They are able to research the tasks set, apply the acquired specialist knowledge and write expert reports on monument preservation.
Learning the basics of inventory, understanding the legal framework, strengthening argumentation confidence and communication (reports and expert opinions for the attention of the public and decision-makers).
In the summer semester 2022, the following topic will be covered in the exercise Monument Preservation / Monument Studies II:
Focus from monument values to expert reports
In fulfilling its task, monument preservation can rely on a solid set of methodological tools, as well as legal framework conditions that have been in place since 1923 in the form of the Austrian Monument Protection Act. The assessment of a building's worthiness of protection is based on the determination of values and is carried out in application of certain criteria: according to the Monument Protection Act, the worthiness of protection of a monument can exist on the basis of historical, artistic and/or cultural significance. This significance is recorded and argued in expert opinions, which demand unquestioned integrity and independence from the experts. These expert opinions serve not least as a basis for assessing the permissibility of subsequent interventions on the monument, and their preparation is thus a responsible task.
The aim of the exercise is to build on the knowledge gained in the seminar Monument Studies I (251.706) and to get to know the function(s) of an expert opinion. The focus is on questions regarding the structure, content, argumentation and conclusions. In the course of the semester, the students work in groups to prepare an expert report on a selected building in Vienna.
