A Typology of Conservation-Restoration

Václav Girsa and Miloslav Hanzl

Efforts to move from the renovation of historic buildings to their conservation-restoration stem from a desire to see greater sensitivity applied in the care of historic monuments. This volume presents a selection of projects planned and executed by the architectural studio of Girsa and Hanzl. They have demonstrated themselves to be staunch advocates of this approach for twenty years now. Using specific examples, the present publication seeks to aquaint the readed with the methods and results of the conservation-restoration approach in architecture. The publication features five of their most important projects (four of which were actually carried out), which have met with international acclaim, including prestigious European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award. The publication includes articles on methodology and current problems in the field. It includes commentary on topics sucha as traditional building techniques, the conservation and restoration of architecture, the creative nature of this work, the qualifications required of the specialist architect, setting out the approaches to historic buildings, and the special status of castles and manor houses. The publication concludes with a short commentary on carrying out conservation-restoration projects and an overview of selected projects planned and carried out by the Girsa At studio during twenty years of its existence.