Name

Yasmin Amaratunga

Title of research project

Conservation theory, ethics, identity, values, decision-making, materiality, authenticity, entropy, inherent vice, contemporary art

Affiliation(s)

Courtauld Institute of Art

Supervisor(s)

Dr Aviva Burnstock, Head of Conservation & Technology, Courtauld Institute of Art

Dr Julian Stallabrass, Contemporary and Modern History of Art, Courtauld Institute of Art

Estimated date of completion

September 2013

Previous education and/or work experience

Master of Art Business, Sotheby’s Institute, University of Manchester, 2007.  Dissertation Published : The Effects of Conservation on the Value of Contemporary Art (2007).

Honours Bachelors of Arts Degree, Major in Art History, Carleton University, 2006. Focus on Contemporary and Modern Art History, and Post Modern critical theory

Abstract

My PhD research builds upon my Master of Art Business dissertation entitled The Effects of Conservation on the Value of Contemporary Art (2007). This project addresses ephemeral new materials, and how decay and the resulting conservation have the ability to impact the meaning and value of artworks within the context of postmodern critical theory. Building on conservation literature, I am currently addressing a critical approach to modes of display within the Museum that accommodate for inherent vice. I am evaluating the affects of these alternative ways of presenting works with reference critical theory, particular re-framing Modernist notions of authorship, authenticity, and value. My research aims to develop new conservation guideline principles for ownership and display, and provide an art historical context for the ongoing dialogue that is now accompanying ephemeral artworks.

Contact details

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it