Course detail

The Cult of Monuments

FA-CLM-TEAcad. year: 2024/2025

This seminar explores the transformation of the idea of historic monuments from the nineteenth century until today while analyzing various approaches to historic preservation and the tools for monuments’ representation. The course focuses on the seminal theory of modern monuments as framed by Austrian art historian and preservationist Alois Riegl and its transformation over more than a hundred years. Students will examine the historical, cultural, and technological shifts that have influenced architectural thinking and the methods applied in monument preservation from the early twentieth century until today.

Language of instruction

English

Number of ECTS credits

2

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Guarantor

MArch Nikola Beim

Department

Department of Theory (UT)

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

The seminar will be based on a lecture given by the instructor. Each lecture will be followed by a section where students present the reading assigned for the given week followed by the discussion of all students. Students should read all of the assigned texts for each class and be prepared to raise relevant questions and participate in the discussions.
Attendance and class participation is mandatory. Students are expected to be conversant in the readings prior to class discussions.
The students will be expected to complete the weekly readings, conduct one presentation, participate in class discussions, and complete the final written assignment in a timely manner.

Aims

  • Understand key preservation theories and their historical context.
  • Analyze the impact of historic preservation movements.
  • Explore tools (from analog to digital) employed for monument preservation and representation.
  • Develop critical thinking and research skills in architectural history, theory, and preservation.

Study aids

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

Allais, Lucia. Designs of destruction: The making of monuments in the Twentieth Century. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2018. (EN)
Arrhenius, Thordis. Fragile Monument on Conservation and Modernity. London: Artifice, 2012. (EN)
Carpo, Mario. “The Postmodern Cult of Monuments.” Future Anterior 4, no. 2 (2007). (EN)
ColumbiaBooks on Architecture and the City, 2016. (EN)
Forster, Kurt W. “Monument/Memory and the Mortality of Architecture.” Oppositions 25 (1982). (EN)
Choay, Françoise. The Invention of the Historic Monument. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. (EN)
Koolhaas, Rem, Jorge Otero-Pailos, and Jordan Carver. Preservation is overtaking us. New York: (EN)
Norberg-Schulz, Christian. Architecture: Meaning and Place: Selected Essays. New York, NY: Rizzoli International Publications, 1988. (EN)
Olin, Margaret. “The Cult of Monuments as a State Religion in Late 19th Century Austria,” Wiener Jahrbuch Für Kunstgeschichte 38, no. 1 (1985): 177–98, https://doi.org/10.7767/wjk-1985-0107 (EN)
Otero-Pailos, Jorge, Erik Langdalen, and Thordis Arrhenius. Experimental preservation. Zürich, Switzerland: Lars Müller Publishers, 2016. (EN)
Riegl, Alois. “The Modern Cult of Monuments: Its Character and Its Origin,” Oppositions 25 (1982). (EN)
Ruskin, John. The Seven Lamps of Architecture. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1884. First published in 1849 in London: Smith, Elder, and Co. (EN)
Vidler, Anthony. “Air War and Architecture.” In Ruins of Modernity. Durham NC: Duke University Press, 2010. (EN)
Witt, Andrew. Formulations: Architecture, mathematics, culture. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2021. (EN)
Young, Michael. Reality modeled after images: Architecture and aesthetics after the Digital image. New York, NY: Routledge, 2022. (EN)

Recommended reading

Not applicable.

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme N_A+U Master's 1 year of study, winter semester, elective
    2 year of study, winter semester, elective
  • Programme B_A+U Bachelor's 4 year of study, winter semester, elective
    3 year of study, winter semester, elective
    specialization --- (do 2022) , 3 year of study, winter semester, elective
    specialization --- (do 2022) , 4 year of study, winter semester, elective

Type of course unit

 

Seminar

26 hod., compulsory

Teacher / Lecturer

MArch Nikola Beim

Syllabus

Part I: The Modern Cult of Monuments

  1. Introduction: Development of Historical Monument
  2. Alois Riegl and the Cultural Context of fin-de-siècle Vienna
  3. Relation of Art History and Preservation in Riegl’s Theory
  4. The Modern Cult of Monuments

Part II: The Cult of Ruins

  1. 5. Anamnesis of the Cult
  2. Return to Memory and Monuments
  3. The Cult of Ruins
  4. Application of Age Value in Architecture

Part III: The Digital Cult

  1. Monuments in the Digital Age
  2. Transformation of Riegl’s theory into Digital
  3. Digital Documentation Instruments for Preservation
  4. Representational Shift of Monuments
  5. Digital Preservation and Generative AI