Learning from the Abode of Chaos : institutions, stakeholders and contemporary challenges of conservation doctrine

Abstract

The Abode of Chaos is a complex and atypical site located in Saint-Romain-au-Mont-d'Or, France. Dating back to the XVIIth century, the site, composed of vernacular buildings and the remains of a Protestant temple demolished following the Edict of Nantes, has been the subject of a creative process for the past twenty years aimed at transforming it into a sort of “mirror of the anthropocene”. Its owner, hierry Ehrmann, has been recording the often tragic events of our world in real time, through sculptures, installations, murals or injuries inflicted on existing buildings. For the past fifteen years, the site has been threatened with disappearance by the municipal authorities, who refuse to recognise its artistic or heritage character and oppose it to town planning regulations. However, the site is very popular with a wide and diverse public. The Abode of Chaos is therefore an interesting case to ask the following question : “Does current conservation theory strike the right balance between stakeholder rights and heritage rights“?