Conservation of Contemporary Art : (Bridging the Gap Between Theory and Practice)

The Decision-Making Model for Contemporary Art Conservation and Presentation (CICS 2019) was used for a case study on Wolf Vostell’s interactive electroacoustic environment from 1970, Thermoelectronic Chewing Gum (Thermo-Elektronischer Kaugummi, T.E.K.), to establish to what extent it can assist in complex situations to weigh and structure arguments, to identify and clarify dilemmas and conflicts, as well as to document and justify decisions so that they are comprehensible for future generations. The process records how external factors and the personal viewpoints of the various stakeholders can influence the form, function and impact of an artwork and shape its identity. This study analyses how as a political environment T.E.K. was variously interpreted during the last fifty years, displaying it at times in an altered or reduced form. The application of the decision-making model illustrates this complex biography as well as selected considerations and decision-making processes aimed at the long-term preservation of this work and its future display in 2022 in the Museum Ostwall in the Dortmunder U.