International Study Day: Sites of Reproduction. Sculpture and Photography between Knowledge and Practice.

The study of tools and technical processes in art is undergoing a paradigmatic shift, with technical art history and media studies offering new perspectives. As attention shifts to the visibility of the use of artistic materials, techniques, and processes in art history, new questions arise about the complex relationships between knowledge and practical application that underlie artworks. Key working techniques such as measurement, transfer, shaping, and surface treatment have shaped not only the theory and practice of art, but also the self-image and training of artists. Notably, the intersection of sculpture and photography within the broader framework of reproduction techniques opens up new ways for art historical and photographic research.

Less attention has been paid to the sites of the recording and reproduction processes, which are characterized as specific and changeable production spaces, often functioning as laboratories with an experimental character. From a theoretical perspective of artistic practice in the studio, the following questions arise regarding the sites of reproduction: How and where is it made? How do equipment, furnishing, and spatial architecture affect the design and conception of 2D and 3D objects? And how do these dynamics in turn affect academic methods and discourses?

Based on these considerations, the study day will explore the interrelations between sculpture, photography, and technology, focusing on the connection between knowledge and practice. We will examine both the physical and virtual spaces in which reproduction occurs, ranging from studios and workshops to galleries and museums. The emphasis will be on the sites of action, as the studio, photo lab, or workshop – while generally adhering to industry standards – also reflects individual, tailored solutions. The physical engagement with tools, processes, or systems resulting from the application of scientific knowledge and technical skills has generally offered new possibilities for artistic creation and expression. At the same time, mechanization, machine invention, and digitalization in sculpture and photography raise critical questions about automation and authenticity or even authorship (including plagiarism), as well as the role of the artist in an increasingly technological environment. The chronological focus will be on the modern period, particularly since industrialization, when the relationship between art, technology and science was renegotiated within a new field of forces in which aspects of economic and media-immanent competition are central.

In cooperation between the Institute of Art History at LMU and the Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte (ZI), we aim at bringing together researchers and experts in the field to explore the significance of equipment, furnishing, and spatial architectures—both historically and in relation to current developments in the post-digital age. By moving beyond common discourses of tacit knowledge, we will focus on the practice and theory of objects and tools.
Supported by LMUexcellent as part of the Excellence Strategy of the Federal and State Governments by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Free State of Bavaria.

ORGANIZED by Buket Altinoba (Institute for Art History, LMU), Franziska Lampe and Christine Tauber (both ZI)

CONTACT: buket.altinobakunstgeschichte.uni-muenchen.de, f.lampezikg.eu, c.tauberzikg.eu
LMU München, Institut für Kunstgeschichte, Zentnerstraße 31, 80798 München
Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte, Katharina-von-Bora-Straße 10, 80333 München
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PROGRAM
Friday, 25th October 2024
13.00–13.30 | Reception
13.30–13.45 | Welcome and Introduction // Buket Altinoba & Franziska Lampe

PANEL I: WORKSHOP PROCESSES BETWEEN KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE
13.45–14.45
Anna Frasca-Rath, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg: Technology and Craft, Ancient and Modern, Men and Women. John Gibson’s Studio as unlimited Space of Knowledge
Véronique Wiesinger, Ministère de la Culture France, Paris: Is 3D Technology a Scourge or a Blessing for the Market of Sculpture from the 19th Century to the Present Day?

14.45–15.15 | Coffee Break

HANDS-ON-SESSION I: QUESTIONS OF DOCUMENTATION
15.15–16.00 | Roy Hessing (Photographer): Scientific Photography in the Gallery of Plaster Casts of Ancient Art, Munich (limited number of places – please register: f.lampezikg.eu)

PANEL II: SITES OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIMENTATION IN 2D AND 3D
16.00–17.00
Kelley Wilder, De Montfort University, Leicester: Calotype Knowledge, Calotype Practice: Photographing Sculpture and the Reading Establishment
Angela Nikolai, Naturalienkabinett Waldenburg/Berlin: Capturing Nature: 3D Techniques of Rendering Plants in the Teaching Aid Collection of Moritz Meurer

17.00–17.15 | Coffee Break

PANEL III: ARTISTIC REPRODUCTION: FROM THE STUDIO TO THE WHITE CUBE
17.15–18.30
Melissa Gustin, University of York, York: Reach Out and Touch Face: Scanning, Printing, and Feeling in the Gallery
Dennis Jelonnek, DFK, Paris: Photographic Reproduction and instructed Re-Creation. The Making of Marcel Duchamp’s ‘Étant donnés’ and its Guided Installation
Sabine Weingartner, AdBK, Munich: Michelangelo Pistoletto and the Technological Sublime as a Metaphor

Final Discussion

HANDS-ON-SESSION II: THE BUSINESS WITH REPRODUCTIONS
18.45 - 19.30 | Franziska Lampe: Photographic Reproductions of Sculptures at the Bildarchiv Bruckmann, Photothek, ZI Munich (limited number of places – please register: f.lampezikg.eu)

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Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte
Katharina-von-Bora-Str. 10
80333 München
Telefon: +49 89 289-27556
Email: infozikg.eu
https://www.zikg.eu/
Newsletter-Abo: http://www.zikg.eu/institut/newsletter