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Matter out of place: paradigms for analyzing textile cleaning

Matter out of place: paradigms for analyzing textile cleaning
Matter out of place: paradigms for analyzing textile cleaning
The purpose of this paper is to argue that cleaning is part of a social process, and this applies to conservation cleaning as well as to domestic cleaning. This paper identifies four paradigms that have influenced textile conservation cleaning: the domestic, the sacred and heroic, the art-historical, and the evidential. This analysis is informed by the anthropologist Douglas’ contention that dirt is matter out of place and is therefore socially determined and culturally informed. The domestic paradigm is based on a link, that usually remains uncontested, between cleanliness and social and/or moral worth, as demonstrated by examples drawn from literature. The effects of the other three paradigms are demonstrated via analysis of published case studies. It is argued that raising awareness of these influential paradigms enables decisions about conservation cleaning to be more overtly debated by curators and conservators and to be more fully documented.

conservation, cleaning, textiles, ethics
0197-1360
171-181
Brooks, Mary M.
cf44ae8e-ed4b-4394-a1ae-d434a898cf08
Eastop, Dinah
c4825cd3-784e-4035-9be9-958f0a60b5f0
Brooks, Mary M.
cf44ae8e-ed4b-4394-a1ae-d434a898cf08
Eastop, Dinah
c4825cd3-784e-4035-9be9-958f0a60b5f0

Brooks, Mary M. and Eastop, Dinah (2006) Matter out of place: paradigms for analyzing textile cleaning. Journal of the American Institute of Conservation, 45 (3), 171-181. (doi:10.1179/019713606806112478).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to argue that cleaning is part of a social process, and this applies to conservation cleaning as well as to domestic cleaning. This paper identifies four paradigms that have influenced textile conservation cleaning: the domestic, the sacred and heroic, the art-historical, and the evidential. This analysis is informed by the anthropologist Douglas’ contention that dirt is matter out of place and is therefore socially determined and culturally informed. The domestic paradigm is based on a link, that usually remains uncontested, between cleanliness and social and/or moral worth, as demonstrated by examples drawn from literature. The effects of the other three paradigms are demonstrated via analysis of published case studies. It is argued that raising awareness of these influential paradigms enables decisions about conservation cleaning to be more overtly debated by curators and conservators and to be more fully documented.

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More information

Published date: 2006
Keywords: conservation, cleaning, textiles, ethics
Organisations: Winchester School of Art

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 41047
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/41047
ISSN: 0197-1360
PURE UUID: aa7d7966-e178-4673-9cc6-578c610aa50e

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 14 Jul 2006
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 08:24

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Contributors

Author: Mary M. Brooks
Author: Dinah Eastop

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