In roaming around the several cities we have visited, I have come to the conclusion that preservation is multi-layered and complex. A simple assessment, I will admit, but it seems to be the most fitting response when working through this controversial topic.
Preservation indicates value, significance and importance, elements that are more sentimental and ephemeral than they are tangible. The idea behind preservation concurrently tugs at the what (the site), the who (the people directly/indirectly involved or affected) and the why (the characteristics of the area that makes it worth saving). Historic and cultural relevance play an important role as well as the promotion of certain lifestyles or social interactions related to the space or site.
In protecting the old in the new world, decoration plays a major role in enhancing attractiveness for tourism and business, and stimulating a sense of national identity. It does more than make a space look nice or authentic; decoration is the primary introduction to the preserved space and acts as a narrative that is carried out throughout the site. Decoration works as both a preservation tool and as an aesthetic tool to protect, or even re-manufacture, the historic and cultural relevance of the space or site.
In the realm of preservation, decoration is a strategy to maintain the old all in itself, but for the different sites, the tactic for preservation varies. In the course of this studio, I have identified ten sub-strategies folded under the decoration umbrella: Replication, Drag-And-Drop, Definition, Embellishment, Camouflage, Place Holder, Excessory, Façade, Art...and something else. (smiley face)
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