Conserving (with) David Lynch. A Treatment Conditioned by Communication

Abstract

ABSTRACT A chance for cooperation between artist and conservator appeared during the exhibition of David Lynch's works in the Centre of Contemporary Art in Toruń. This case considers Lynch's diverse materials, secret techniques, and desire to repair his own works, with just the assistance of a conservator. The author's decision to take part in the first non-traditional artist's interventions started the communication. The collaboration enabled the recognition of original materials and artists' aesthetical expectations – and as a result, proper conservation treatment, based on built trust and mutual knowledge exchange. Assisting in the artist's repair allowed a conservator to treat subsequent works using ethically acceptable conservation methods, to recognize, research, and document materials and techniques, and to define the artist's preferences for future treatments. This case study provides a framework to approach an artist's active presence as a precedent; their impact on the conservation process should be helping to create an inclusive, dynamic, and flexible process, most effective when remaining open-ended. This article presents the axiological shift of declaring the artist as the most important decision-making voice and considers the ethical consequences to both conservation practice and the artworks themselves if such an inclusive process were to be embraced.