Mitteilungen des Österreichischen Staatsarchivs 39. (1986)
Archive Buildings and the Conservation of Archival Material. An Expert Meeting, held in Vienna, Austria October 30 - November 1, 1985 - STEWART, William J.: Summary of Discussions
278 William J. Stewart ning, and protection against air pollution. Archives and libraries are not really that different, generally we have the same custodial and storage requirements even if we have entirely different patterns of public use. Permanent cooperation with IFLA is something we can agree upon very easily. Is this not so? Coffee break Duchein: Someone has just asked if it would be possible to widen one of the existing commissions to deal with questions of archive buildings? Well, the only committee that could be extended is the Committee on Conservation and Restoration. That possibility has been taken into consideration, but it appears - I have spoken with my friend, Ms Crespo, who is the chairperson of the committee - that they already have so much work to do and so many questions to treat, especially in restoration, that the committee would have to be split in two. Because when they discuss those very technical matters of restoration, the choice of materials, and so forth, it is altogether a different matter to discuss the plan of a building and the choice of a site. So either the committee would split in two or then, well, I am not sure adding buildings to the Committee on Conservation and Restoration would be very practical. I should ask Mr Feindt for advice. Feindt: First, may I note that the Committee on Conservation and Restoration has treated the theme of archive buildings for about three years and we were a little bit astonished about this conference. In fact, we are concerned with conservation in the sense of having a good repository within an archive, so I don’t think it would be a new direction for our committee. It would help only to say, “you should do more in this direction in your committee”. May I add a point or two. In your symposium it has become clear that archive buildings whether new or old, adapted or specially constructed, are individual structures affected by their environment. Assistance for archivists then, would produce the best results if you publish the conclusions of the Vienna symposium and if you focus on calling small conferences of a localized character. Regional conferences can better examine local conditions and problems. Probably regional branches of ICA would be the best means of arranging such conferences. Duchein: Perhaps Ms Kamba would comment because she is closely involved with regional branches. Ms Kamba: While it could be a relevant concern for regional groups it seems to me that what has emerged most distinctly in the past two days is that we are grappling with a problem that affects everyone. Mr de Silva’s recommendation for a further study of climatic conditions should focus, he said, not only in the tropical areas but in the temperate zones as well, as it is clear that Europe and North America are concerned with environmental and climatic conditions too.
