In contemporary society, the problem of restoration of old works of art will always remain a hot-debatable one. Hundreds of attempts are having been made by restorers and art historians to come to an agreement on the extent to which the works of art should be restored and the way how it should be done. As Mike Daley of ArtWatch UK claims, there always exists “the temptation for all restorers … to prettify and to introduce their own tastes and interpretations” (BBC News), whereas the original value of this or that work under restoration can be lost forever if the authors of this introduction and interpretation fail to keep to the artist’s style.
In this respect, the debate around restoring Michelangelo’s David for his 500th “birthday” in spring 2004 is a rather exponential one. The case aroused the row between restorers and art historians against each other over the best way to preserve the statue. James Beck, an artist, art historian, and founder of ArtWatch International argued that the clean-up is harmful to destroying the history of the masterpiece (NewScientist.com). Going by this artist’s position we also believe that old works of art should be conserved. Beck claims:
We must conserve our rare works of art, maintain their integrity and their life, but we shouldn’t change their imagery without very serious philosophical debate – even if they have been abused in the past. At some point, you have to begin again with a tabula rasa. You have to say, OK, this is the object that has come down to us. Let’s all get together as a society and decide what we want from our past. Do we want our past to look like our present? Once we’ve come to a decision, we can work towards it. But at the moment the aims are haphazard because this debate has never taken place (NewScientist.com).
Still, we believe that these are artists and scientists who are responsible for making this crucial decision. They should combine both the modern tendencies and the old achievements of the great artists following their original intentions. Conservatism should go along with modernism causing no harm to great masterpieces.
Works Cited
Beck, James. “Restoration Drama.” The New York Review of Books. 1992: 39.19. Web.
“Outcry Over da Vinci Restoration Plan.” BBC News. 2001. MMIII. Web.
“Restoration Tragedy.” NewScientist.com. 2008.
“Restoring David.” ACFNEWSSOURCE. 2005. CBS Radio Network. Web.
“Sistine Chapel Restored.” BBS News. 1999. MMIII. Web.