Modern architecture, as one of the defining art forms in the architecture of the 20th century characterized by innovative forms liberated from traditional structural requirements and use of new experimental materials, is today at considerable risk. Professionals from the Heritage sector do not always have enough knowledge about the nature and behaviour of these new materials, as well as, in developing appropriate protocols for their conservation treatment.
To address these challenges and support the conservation of modern architecture conservation, Getty Foundation had developed an initiative called Keeping It Modern in order to set the focus on values and importance of the modern built heritage of the 20th century.
Since 2014, Keeping It Modern has supported 64 grant projects whose grants have a focus on the creation of conservation management plans that will develop a guide for long-term maintenance and conservation policies.
We are happy to announce that in 2018 History Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been recognized and granted by Getty Foundation initiative Keeping It Modern.
Today, thanks to the financial support from the Getty Foundation, the nonprofit organization Foundation Cultural Heritage without Borders is working on the conservation management plan to ensure the museum’s safekeeping. The Foundation will also organize a seminar on the conservation of modern architecture for young professionals in the region. The resulting conservation management plan will address how future interventions can incorporate the building’s more recent history, including the war damages that tell the history of the siege of Sarajevo and attest to the survival of the city’s culture.