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1It is a great pleasure to introduce these papers from the Conference on Education and Research in Conservation-Restoration”, held at the University of Cambridge on April 13th 2016.  The one day meeting was hosted by the Hamilton Kerr Institute on behalf of ENCoRE, the European Network for Conservation-Restoration Education, and preceded the 11th ENCoRE General Assembly for representatives from the 40 members and associate members of the organisation.  ENCoRE’s mission is to link all the eligible Higher Education Conservation-Restoration institutions across Europe and to promote the highest standards in the education of the next generation of conservator-restorers.  The development of the research skills which are an integral part of this process was the focus of the presentations and posters at the conference, which proved to be an extremely interesting and thought-provoking event. We are very grateful to the staff of Ceroart for this opportunity to publish, and to Nico Broers for making it happen.

2Conservation-Restoration is a relatively young discipline, and as it comes of age, both as a profession and more recently as an academic field of study, it is imperative that students are equipped with the skills necessary to pursue research, as well as the other practical, ethical, and theoretical knowledge that is vital for professional practice.  Research in conservation is always grounded in the materiality of the object, or as a response to the requirements of its care, and this, coupled with the interdisciplinary nature of placing these research outcomes in context, leads to a very varied research landscape for young conservators to explore – the mapping of this landscape, and guidance to the many pathways through it, is the responsibility of C-R teaching institutions, and we hope that these papers will make a useful contribution to this work.

3At this time of change and uncertainty, it is more important than ever for the cross-border cooperation and support in the field of Conservation-Restoration to be strengthened.  The Hamilton Kerr Institute, now in its 41st  year, has a long history of bringing together painting conservation students and interns from across Europe (and beyond) and the educational experience that the Hamilton Kerr provides has benefited hugely from the resulting cross-fertilisation and interchange.  It seems very appropriate to have held this conference in Cambridge, a University and town which has long looked beyond the shores of the United Kingdom to work with institutions in Europe (and across the world) and we sincerely hope that this international collaborative approach will continue and strengthen into the future.

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References

Electronic reference

Rupert Featherstone, “Foreword”CeROArt [Online], HS | 2017, Online since 19 June 2017, connection on 30 September 2023. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/ceroart/5014; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/ceroart.5014

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About the author

Rupert Featherstone

Rupert Featherstone studied Natural Sciences and Art History at Cambridge, and then gained a Diploma in the Conservation of Easel paintings from the Hamilton Kerr Institute in 1984.  He then worked at the Royal Collection Trust, London, at St James's Palace and later at Windsor Castle, as Senior Paintings Conservator. He also spent three years in Kolkata, India, managing the Calcutta Tercentenary Trust’s programme of conservation and education in the Victoria Memorial Hall. He was appointed Director of the Hamilton Kerr Institute in 2008.

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Copyright

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The text only may be used under licence CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0. All other elements (illustrations, imported files) are “All rights reserved”, unless otherwise stated.

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