1st Edition
The Evolution of Urban Heritage Conservation and the Role of Raymond Lemaire
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Acronyms
Introduction
Chapter 1 From Archaeology to Conservation
A Family Legacy
Training in Theory and Practice
University Education
Training in the Field: the CGRP and the Ministry of Public Works
Building a National and International Network
The Recovery of Looted Artworks
Heritage Protection in Wartime
First Contacts with Italy
A Personal Vision of Conservation
Raymond M. Lemaire and the restauro critico
The St. Lambert Chapel in Heverlee
The Venice Congress (1964): A Turning Point
Drafting the Venice Charter
The Founding of ICOMOS
Chapter II Constructing an Ideal Historic City: The Great Beguinage of Louvain (1962–1972)
A Unique Context
An Exceptional ‘Traditional’ Ensemble
A Tailor-Made Programme
A Flexible Schedule
A Great Freedom of Action
The Venice Charter put to the Test of the Rehabilitation of Urban Ensembles
The Interiors: Conservation vs Comfort
The Façades: A Radical Restoration
The Additions: From Contrast to Integration
The Public Space: A Picturesque Vision
A Reflective Process
Lessons from Gustavo Giovannoni
The Historic Cities’ ‘Way of Being’
Chapter III Ideal vs Reality: Brussels (1967–1990)
Contrasting Precedents: Brusselization and Urban Scenery (1940–1960)
Towards a Functionalist City
The ‘Sacred Blocks’: An Urban Scenery
The Input of International Reflections and R.M. Lemaire
The 1960s: A Gradual Awareness
The Quartier des Arts: A Catalyst
A Challenging Context
New Methodological Tools for a New Vision
Learning from Eastern European Experiences
Restoring the Links between People and their Built Environment
‘Thinning Out’ and Opening the Blocks
Selective Preservation
‘Architectural Design in an Old Urban Environment’
Correcting the Cityscape
To Conclude
Chapter IV Towards a Holistic Approach
R.M. Lemaire, a ‘Complete Architect’
The Emergence of Integrated Conservation
The Council of Europe’s Committee on Monuments and Sites
New Doctrinal Instruments
The Venice Charter: A Necessary Revision
Bruges: A Laboratory for ‘Integral Planning’
From Rehabilitation to ‘Retrospective Utopia’
Towards Post-Modernism?
Conclusion
Appendix 1. Commission royale des Monuments et des Sites. Problèmes de doctrine
Appendix 2. Charte de Venise [première version]
Appendix 3. Charte internationale sur la conservation et la restauration des monuments et des sites (Charte de Venise)
Appendix 4. Charte de Venise, texte révisé
Index
Biography
Claudine Houbart, an architect and art historian, is a professor at the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Liège, and heads the DIVA (Documentation, Interpretation, Valorization of Heritage) research group. She is one of the Belgian representatives on the ICOMOS Committee on Theory and Philosophy of Conservation and Restoration.
