Docomomo International (sometimes written as DoCoMoMo or simply Docomomo) is a non-profit organization whose full title is: International Committee for Documentation and Conservation of Buildings, Sites and Neighbourhoods of the Modern Movement.
Mrinalini Rajagopalan, author of "Preservation and Modernity: Competing Perspectives, Contested Histories and the Question of Authenticity," described it as "the key body for the preservation of modernist architecture".[1]
History
Its foundation was inspired by the work of ICOMOS, the International Council on Monuments and Sites, established in 1965. The work of Icomos was concerned with the protection and conservation of historical buildings and sites, whereas Docomomo was founded to take up the challenge of the protection and conservation of Modern Architecture and Urbanism.
Docomomo International was founded in Eindhoven in 1988 by Dutch architects Hubert-Jan Henket and Wessel de Jonge. Henket chaired Docomomo International with de Jonge as secretary until September 2000 when the International Secretariat relocated to Paris, where it was hosted by the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, in the Palais de Chaillot. The chair was Maristella Casciato, architect and architectural historian; with Émilie d'Orgeix, architectural historian, as secretary and Anne-Laure Guillet as director.
In 2008 there were 2,000 individual members. That year, 49 countries had national chapters and working parties of Docomomo. In 2010, the International Secretariat was relocated to Barcelona, hosted by the Fundació Mies van der Rohe. Ana Tostoes, architect and architect historian, chaired Docomomo International with Ivan Blasi, architect, as secretary. In 2014 the secretariat was transferred to the Instituto Superior Técnico at Lisbon, Portugal. Professor Tostoes remained as chair, with Zara Ferreira as secretary.
Conferences and seminars
Docomomo holds biennial international conferences where the people related to conservation issues gather and exchange information and studies pertaining to their scholarly research. The list of conferences held until now is as follows:
The International Scientific Committee on Technology (ISC/T) organizes seminars covering the following themes: restoration of reinforced concrete structures, curtain-wall facades, windows and glass, wood and the modern movement, colours in modern architecture and stone in modern buildings.
Seminars and conferences are often held in key modernist buildings, as for instance at Alvar Aalto’s Vyborg Library (2003 ISC/T seminar), Brinkman and Leendert van der Vlugt's Van Nelle factory in Rotterdam (2008 Conference), and Gordon Bunshaft's Lever House in New York (closing party at 2004 Conference).
Publications
The docomomo Journal is an international periodical that, since 1990, regularly summarizes recent research on the sites and buildings of Modern Movement. It is a bi-annual publication [3] featuring articles by noted architecture practitioners and scholars, addressing all facets of Modern Movement architecture, from history and design concepts to conservation, technology or education.
ISSUE
TITLE
YEAR
1
Newsletter 1
August 1989
2
Newsletter 2
January 1990
3
Newsletter 3
June 1990
4
Newsletter 4
March 1991
5
Newsletter 5
June 1991
6
Newsletter 6
November 1991
7
Newsletter 7
June 1992
8
Newsletter 8
January 1993
9
Technology
July 1993
10
November 1993
11
North America
June 1994
12
Metal
November 1994
13
Latin America
June 1995
14
The Image of Modernity
November 1995
15
Curtain Wall Refurbishment
July 1996
16
Urbanism, Gardens & Landscape
March 1997
17
Exposed Concrete
September 1997
18
February 1998
19
Nordic Countries
July 1998
20
Windows to the Future
Anniversary Issue – 10 Years Docomomo
January 1999
21
June 1999
22
Modern Houses
May 2000
23
The Modern City Facing the Future
August 2000
24
February 2001
25
July 2001
26
Engineering the Future
December 2001
27
The History of Docomomo
June 2002
28
Modern Heritage in Africa
March 2003
29
Modernism in Asia Pacific
September 2003
30
2003 A Year of Docomomo Activities
March 2004
31
Modernism in the US after World War II
September 2004
32
New Frames
March 2005
33
The Modern Movement in the Caribbean Islands
September 2005
34
France-Brazil Round Trip
March 2006
35
Modern Architecture in the Middle East
September 2006
36
Other Modernisms: A Selection from the Docomomo Registers
March 2007
37
Places of Modernism
September 2007
38
Canada Modern
March 2008
39
Postwar Mass Housing
September 2008
40
Tel Aviv 100 Years
March 2009
41
Nine Favorite Architects
September 2009
42
Art and Architecture
Summer 2010
43
Brasilia 1960–2010
2010/2
44
Modern and Sustainable
2011/1
45
Bridges and Infrastructure
2011/2
46
Designing Modern Life
2012/1
47
Global Design
2012/2
48
Modern Africa, Tropical Architecture
2013/1
49
For an Architect's Training
2013/2
50
High Density
2014/1
51
Modern Housing. Patrimonio Vivo
2014/2
52
Reuse, Renovation and Restoration
2015/1
53
LC 50 Years After
2015/2
54
Housing Reloaded
2016/1
55
Modern Lisbon
2016/2
56
The Heritage of Mies
2017/1
56
The Heritage of Mies – SECOND EDITION
2019/1
57
Modern Southeast Asia
2017/2
58
Louis I. Kahn. The Permanence
2018/1
59
An Eastern Europe Vision
2018/2
60
Architectures of the Sun
2019/1
61
Education and Reuse
2019/2
62
Cure and Care
2020/1
63
Tropical Architecture in the Modern Diaspora
2020/2
64
Modern Houses
2021/1
65
Housing for All
2021/2
66
Modern Plastic Heritage
2022/1
67
Multiple Modernities in Ukraine
2022/2
Work at national level
Many countries have national Docomomo working parties, as either part of academic establishments or architecture federations. They may define gazetteers of important structures to be protected, such as DoCoMoMo Key Scottish Monuments and DoCoMoMo Architectural Masterpieces of Finnish Modernism,[4] or support local campaigners.[5]
^Cramer, James P. and Evans Yankopolus, Jennifer, "Docomomo." Almanac of Architecture & Design 2006. Greenway Communications, November 1, 2005. ISBN0975565427, 9780975565421. p. 426.
^DoCoMoMo Architectural Masterpieces of Finnish Modernism, Maija Kairamo et al. (eds.), Helsinki: docomomo Suomi-Finland, 2002.
^"Bell Labs charrette recognized by state", Greater Media Newspapers, June 25, 2009
Further reading
Guillet, Anne-Laure (projects manager, Docomomo International, Cité de l'architecture et du Patrimoine, Paris).Docomomo International. Modernity as Heritage." Journal of Architectural Conservation. Volume 13, Issue 2, 2007. p. 151–156. DOI: 10.1080/13556207.2007.10785002. Published online: 16 January 2014.
