'To live is to change' : tradition, narrative and community in the conservation of church buildings
Living things change. From Ruskin onwards, reference has been made to historic buildings as âlivingâ, and current guidance in England defines conservation as âthe management of changeâ; in practice, however, conservation processes often appear to resist change. While acknowledged in legislation, the difference between historic monuments and living buildings that remain in active use is often blurred; for the latter, the demands of the present and future necessarily play a more prominent role than for the former. In pre-modern cultures it is the dynamic processes of an ongoing tradition that safeguards this balance of past, present and future. Tradition is characterised by temporal continuity rather than the radical discontinuity proclaimed by modernity and assumed by much conservation theory, and is essential for a âbalanced heritageâ of people and place. In this thesis English parish churches are used to explore the relationship between communities of tradition and their historic buildings from two angles â firstly, a critique of the permissions process through an examination of key documentation and, secondly, the lived experience of five communities who have attempted, with varying results,
Walter, Nigel
'To live is to change' : tradition, narrative and community in the conservation of church buildings. Living things change. From Ruskin onwards, reference has been made to historic buildings as âlivingâ, and current guidance in England defines conservation as âthe management of changeâ; in practice, however, conservation processes often appear to resist change. While acknowledged in legislation, the difference between historic monuments and living buildings that remain in active use is often blurred; for the latter, the demands of the present and future necessarily play a more prominent role than for the former. In pre-modern cultures it is the dynamic processes of an ongoing tradition that safeguards this balance of past, present and future. Tradition is characterised by temporal continuity rather than the radical discontinuity proclaimed by modernity and assumed by much conservation theory, and is essential for a âbalanced heritageâ of people and place. In this thesis English parish churches are used to explore the relationship between communities of tradition and their historic buildings from two angles â firstly, a critique of the permissions process through an examination of key documentation and, secondly, the lived experience of five communities who have attempted, with varying results,
live change tradition narrative community conservation church_building living thing change onwards reference_make historic building live current guidance england define conservation_management change practice however conservation process often_appear resist change acknowledged legislation difference historic monument live building remain active use often blur latter demand present_future necessarily play_prominent role former pre_modern culture dynamic_process ongoing tradition safeguard balance past_present_future tradition characterise temporal continuity rather radical discontinuity proclaim modernity assume much conservation theory essential balance heritage people place english_parish church use explore_relationship community tradition historic building angle firstly critique permission process examination key documentation secondly live_experience community attempt vary