Dear colleagues, friends, co-workers and lovers of monuments!

 

The specialized event of the scientific conference Bardkontakt - Issues of historical monuments centers enters the fourth decade of its series with this year's meeting. Thanks to the organizers and supporters, the "Scientific Conference Bardkontakt 2023" is part of the "Days of European Cultural Heritage" event.

 

In a person's life, turning thirty is usually associated with personal maturity, prudence, the stage of realizing dreams and fulfilling life goals. In the case of a conference like ours, the numerical designation of the order within this already traditional series is a confirmation of its permanent content relevance, community popularity among its participants, qualitative contributions and inspiring stimuli for the theory and practice of the protection and use of monuments. On behalf of the organizers, I would like to express my belief that this will be the case this year as well as in the future.

 

This year's theme of Bardkontakt follows on from the theme that will be discussed at the top international meeting of experts in the protection and use of monuments in Sydney, Australia at the beginning of September: the general assembly of the non-governmental organization ICOMOS (International Committee for the Monuments and cities) during the break caused by the Covid pandemic, it meets to discuss and globally guide the tasks in the field of monument protection in the coming period. "Monument Changes: Resilience - Accountability - Rights - Building Relationships"[1] are the themes of the associated symposium, which reflect the many changes of opinion and practice emerging around the world, but also bring positive messages about the role of our heritage in supporting rapid recovery and inclusive approaches to enable participation in the discovery and preservation of monuments for everyone, regardless of origin, education or other limitations.

 

In the context of this worldwide movement in the field of monuments, the main theme of this year's Bardkontakt is:

 

SUSTAINABILITY OF MONUMENTS AND MONUMENTAL AREAS
IN THE CONTEXT OF CURRENT SOCIAL CHALLENGES

​

​

Recommended areas of focus are:

• sustainability of monuments* from different points of view (legislative / user / administrative, ..., theoretical and practical)

• accessibility of monuments to all participants without restrictions

  • participation in programming, use, management regardless of the relationship to specific monuments,

  • promotion and publicity of monuments (in various media, forms – their conditions and demands), opportunities and impacts of computerization,

  • the availability of monuments by various means of transport - resulting requirements for amenities, or necessary restrictions,

  • conditions for making monuments accessible - opening time, guide/information services / other commercial and non-commercial services - their impact on monuments, ownership conditionality (public, private, other ownership, ...),

  • accessibility

  • optimization of traffic flows (parallel offer in the wider background - opportunities and impacts),

• sustainability risks – strengthening the resistance of monuments to the attack of external changes

  • security (monuments, visitors, owners, local residents, ... ), induced measures and their effects

  • energy equipment - its availability and impact on historical values

  • material and technological innovations - optimization of their application in order to preserve the values of monuments and at the same time for the benefit of the user comfort of visitors and administrators of monuments.

​

*Note: The term "monuments, monuments" also includes monument areas

 

Just like the previous ones, this year's Bardkontakt 2023 conference will also provide space

for a broad interdisciplinary discussion - especially for uncovering white spots in the knowledge of the context of monuments, their values, possibilities and limitations supporting their involvement in the development programs of municipalities and regions, for the exchange of opinions (including polemical ones) and the exchange of experiences between participants in the processes of protection, restoration, programming and management of monuments. Presentations of inspiring and debatable examples and other related experiences will be welcome.

 

Owners, administrators, managers and users of monuments and heritage sites, employees of the Monuments Office of the Slovak Republic, the Association of Cities and Towns of Slovakia, representatives/representatives of municipalities with monuments and heritage that have not yet been evaluated (often unknown), members of the Slovak Chamber of Architects, the Slovak Chamber civil engineers, the Slovak Chamber of Restorers, experts from the academic environment, investors, designers, members and representatives of civic initiatives, enthusiasts and everyone who is interested in this topic here and abroad.

 

[1]Heritage Changes: Resilience – Responsibility – Rights – Relationships