A crumbling concrete base, broken out areas and loose granite slabs: After around 40 years of frost and thaw cycles and repeated waterlogging, the foundation of the 13-metre-high Karl Marx monument in the former Karl Marx City of Chemnitz had lost its load-bearing strength. The restoration of the base of one of the largest portrait busts in the world in line with monument conservation requirements placed high demands on both the surfacing work and the […]

A crumbling concrete base, broken out areas and loose granite slabs: After around 40 years of frost and thaw cycles and repeated waterlogging, the foundation of the 13-metre-high Karl Marx monument in the former Karl Marx City of Chemnitz had lost its load-bearing strength. The restoration of the base of one of the largest portrait busts in the world in line with monument conservation requirements placed high demands on both the surfacing work and the urgently required drainage of the surfacing structure.

The approximately 18.5 x 10.5 meter wide, 40 to 80 centimetre high base of the monument, which was erected in 1971, consists of concrete and bricks at its core. The original brick surround of this foundation, which was built as a lost formwork, has now been replaced by a concrete apron about 25 centimetres wide. The one-piece granite corner elements were excluded from the dismantling of the previous surround and left in their original position. In this way, the installers ensured that both the heights and the alignments remained unchanged.

The employees of the specialist company Natur- und Kunststeinbau Martin Herberholz in Chemnitz carefully removed the approximately 250 slabs from the existing building. As many granite slabs as possible were to be reused in line with the concept of monument preservation. In the end, the stone workers checked a good three quarters of the slabs for damage, cleaned them and laid them again. The new slabs required were supplied by the same quarry in the Ukraine from which the Soviet sculptor Lew Kerbel, who was commissioned to build the Karl Marx monument at the time, had obtained the original granite slabs.

Read more about “Surface drainage” in STEIN in March 2014.

Too little space and inadequate storage conditions: RESTAURO spoke to specialist restoration planner Johannes Baur from Munich about sustainability and the sensible use of technology in museum depots Johannes Baur has not only been advising cultural institutions for a good twenty years, but has also been realizing museum depots and archives – and doing so internationally. The fact that there was an urgent need here came to the attention of […]

Too little space and inadequate storage conditions: Restauro spoke to specialist conservation planner Johannes Baur from Munich about sustainability and the sensible use of technology in museum depots

Johannes Baur has not only been advising cultural institutions for over twenty years, but also realizes museum depots and archives – internationally. The specialist conservation planner from Munich, who has his own office, noticed that there was an urgent need for this as early as the mid-1990s while working as a furniture restorer at the Munich City Museum.

Planning projects run in parallel

Museums were complaining about a lack of space and inadequate storage conditions in their depots. At that time, Johannes Baur was responsible for setting up an external depot, among other things. Today, his clients include the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation (Berlin), for whom he provided advice and specialist planning for the museum depot in the new building of the Museum of the 20th Century at the Kulturforum (Herzog & de Meuron). Johannes Baur is also involved in the extension of the Kunsthaus Zurich (Chipperfield Architects). In addition to these two major projects, the expert has numerous others running in parallel. Two permanent architects are now part of the team. Johannes Baur had already converted the office completely to digital before coronavirus and invested heavily in technology. Nothing works without CAD programs anymore. “We are in constant contact with other planners to coordinate the different plans,” reports Johannes Baur. “The projects are in the cloud, so we can access them from anywhere at any time. The lockdown was therefore not an issue. We communicated via video conference and moved the plans back and forth.”

Expertise in warehouse technology

Customers come via recommendations and tenders. But the revamped website also attracts a lot of attention. “When it comes to depot planning, we offer all service phases from one to nine (according to HOAI). And we have a great deal of expertise, including in storage technology.” One challenge that is often underestimated is structural engineering, which must be addressed at an early stage, says Johannes Baur. “We often only get involved in service phase three or even five. However, the earlier we are involved, the better.”

Johannes Baur recommends planning conservatively

Baur attaches great importance to sustainability when planning depots and archives. “Energy requirements and the costs of energy and building maintenance now exceed the acquisition budgets of museums. I therefore always suggest planning conservatively, especially when building depots. In contrast to permanent exhibitions, which are replaced every ten years at the latest, not much changes here, so for me the planning approach is 50 years plus.”

Focus on low tech

Johannes Baur generally relies on low tech. He is reluctant to install electric travel systems, for example. “Up to certain loads, a system with handwheel operation will still be working perfectly in twenty or thirty years’ time. However, you need to be involved relatively early on in the project phase, as otherwise high rooms may be planned. And that’s where large travel systems become necessary, which in turn can no longer be operated manually once they reach a certain size. So technology wherever it makes sense.” We often receive inquiries about what needs to be considered. “As with architects, our work is divided into an advisory area and a planning area. We often take on the role of mediator. Of course, we know the language of restorers, but also that of structural engineers and architects. And there are always challenges in communication.”

In the Collection Center: workplaces for conservators

Incidentally, Johannes Baur doesn’t really like to use the term depot or central depot. “I now prefer the term collection center. Because this is where work should be actively carried out – and, depending on the situation and space requirements, workstations for conservators should also be created. And we can also take really interested visitors there. In addition, there can be a meaningful link to museum education, for example.”

Reading tip: How to plan, build and use a depot or archive in a needs-based, environmentally friendly and sustainable way is shown in the newly published “Handbuch Depots und Archive – Handlungsempfehlungen für Planung und Betrieb”, edited by Dr. Kristina Holl and Prof. Dr. Ralf Kilian. Graduate conservator Katharina Haider wrote a review of the new publication for RESTAURO (8/2022). This covers the conception, planning and use of depots and archives, includes new buildings and conversions and is just as committed to sustainability, climate protection and energy efficiency as it is to preventive conservation.