Contesti storicizzati e progressiva marginalizzazione del ruolo dell’architetto restauratore nell’evoluzione delle carte internazionali sul patrimonio culturale

In the evolution of charters, recommendations and international documents on conservation and promotion, the difference in views of those speaking from either a restoration or cultural heritage standpoint is highly tangible, particularly from the 70s when these two perspectives came to the fore. The eminently political stance of planning, which is described in detail in the Declaration of Amsterdam (1975), would appear to leave to architecture and similar disciplines only with the task of finding figurative solutions to compositional problems. As time goes by, other new more urgent needs will arise, marginalizing the role of the architect even more. Financial and consequently social reasons, particularly after the economic crisis which began back in 2008 and due the current climate, have taken on a significant role in defining how historical centres are transformed, be it through welfare policies or strategic planning. Within the process of urban restoration, the architect and the architect-restorer, who once were in a position of command when substantial changes were made to constructions, have now been relegated to merely embellishing public and/or private spaces.