Ill CONFERENCES presentations, illustrating how it is possible to incorporate new buildings into historic settings, and also examples of the mistakes that can be made. Les Sparks, a CABE commissioner and former Director of Planning at Birmingham City Council, told the conference that there is a climate of conservatism and a general lack of confidence in architects; he even suggested that many architects had lost confidence in themselves. Pastiche has its place, he said, but only in critical locations, and facaclism should only be used in set piece locations. Richard Feilclen, from Feilclen Clegg Architects, criticised the edges of our historic centres stating that "There is a history of historic cores with disasters round the edge"; he called for local authorities to produce vision statements for their towns. This was something later repeated by Angus Jameison, who told the conference that the fringe should be vital to 'arrival'. Malcolm Parry (head of the Welsh School of Architecture) spoke passionately about the character of our historic towns; he stressed that spaces are surrounded by buildings - therefore we need signature buildings if we are to enhance our urban areas. He also asked that we recognise, not only the visual parts of a town, but also the smell, taste, touch and sound of these places. After lunch we were fortunate to welcome Alan Howarth, MP. As Minister for the Arts he was in the ideal position to inform us of current Government thinking regarding conservation issues. He confirmed that the Government stood by the general principles of PPG 15 and PPG 16, and that there were no current plans to change either of them. He did, however, mention that the procedures for dealing with listed building applications were under review, as well as a number of policies. One other major theme of his speech, and one that was repeated several times throughout the conference, was that of education. He told the conference "we need to raise the standard of everyday architecture, and stimulate debate within our communities". The Minister then set the conference a challenge, of capturing the imagination of the younger generation, they he said, are the future architects of this country. In the afternoon, James ConservingthePaintedPast Caird and Eddie Booth both spoke of how to achieve new buildings through the use of design-guides. James Caircl spoke of the need for a design team approach; he did not see a place for detailed design guides, but instead stressed the importance of early and continued officer advice. Likewise, Eddie Booth preferred the use of design frameworks to design guides. On the second clay of the conference, Richard MacCormac spoke of the need for perception and analysis when considering a new building in a historic setting. The building needed to be appropriate and 'make the place'; he claimed that Europe seemed to get this right, but that we usually didn't. Rob Joiner of Reidvale Housing Association, Glasgow, spoke on how to involve the local community in new architecture. He said that we should give power to the people, but that we should also educate them on how to use it. Janet Dore, joint chair of the EHTF built environment working group, informed us of the group's progress on a number of topic papers, but especially the forthcoming paper on new English Heritage conference on developing approaches to wall painting conservation, London, 2-4 December 1999 An international conference on the conservation of wall paintings celebrated the significance of English wall paintings and took stock of recent technical and methodological developments in the field. English Heritage organised the conference the same year as publishing its booklet Our Painted Past; a useful introduction to the subject, with an illustrated paintings have suffered clue to changing fashion, and Peter Burman reminded us that 20thcentury modernism has contributed to our lack of appreciation of richly decorated interiors; one effect being the whitewashing of Victorian or even medieval wall paintings in churches. The 19th-centrny enthusiasm for polychromy has given us a wealth of painted interiors, particularly in churches, where the paintings are as much a part of the 40 architecture as stained glass or ceramics. One omission at the conference was the subject of paintings from the 20th century, which deserve more attention, especially in view of the recent cinema listing recommendations. Wall paintings have historically been vulnerable to architectural alterations and disrepair, but have also been damaged by past conservation techniques. The documentation and recording of wall paintings and their treatment is now an essential part of their conservation and will enable future conservators to understand current interventions. The second session's key speaker, Mike Corfielcl of English Heritage, introduced the role of documentation in developing conservation and management strategies. Paul Bryan, the leader for the Survey Team and the Photogrammetry Unit at English Heritage, explained the increasing importance of metric survey techniques. The value of recording in the context of available funding resources is a current issue which was debated by Lorinda Wong, a private conservator, who called for clear briefs and objectives for all recording commissions. Delegates heard about the longterm project to record and conserve wall paintings at the spectacular Mesa Verde National Park in the USA; Frank Matero from the University of Pennsylvania illustrated how records have been used to track changes in the condition of the paintings, informing conservation approaches. The third session was devoted to diagnostic investigation and was chaired by John Fidler, who advocated a risk assessment approach to debuildings in historic areas. Richard Coleman, an urban design and conservation consultant, showed us many examples of facacle retention and building stretching, and called this "la ville taxidermie", probably a phrase that many of us will now be using. He also questioned the use of PPG 15 as a bible, and claimed it shou lei instead be used as a signpost. Finally, Sophie Anclreae, also a CABE commissioner, showed us many examples of modern buildings. She finished the conference by reiterating the Minister's calls that we should have more education in architecture, starting in schools and then moving into other areas of society. Those who attended the conference will know that the above summary merely scratches the surface of some of the issues raised. In many cases it was the slides and site visits that really brought home the problems of building contemporary architecture in historic areas. It was, though, a very interesting and thought provoking conference, and one that will help all those who attended in their working lives. Catherine Croft cay. Sharon Cather from the Courtaulcl Institute emphasised the importance of first considering prevention, followed by passive, then remedial measures and finally restoration. There has been a great increase in the use of scientific analysis and technology, which has enabled accurate assessments to be made of the composition of the painting and the factors of decay. We heard about key decay factors; Alison Sawcly from the Institute of Archaeology presented her research into the kinetics of salt deterioration in paintings; Karin Petersen from Oldenburg, Germany, talked about biodeterioration; Mauro Matteini from the Opificio clelle Pietre Dure in Florence discussed the mineral approach to treatment, and Robert Gowing, a conservator with English Heritage, presented his Courtaulcl research Context65 March 2000
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