Joanna Phillips, Lan Linh Merli-Nguyen Hoai: Launching Time-based Media Conservation at the Düsseldorf Conservation Center: Infrastructure, Staffing and Networks

The material culture of the electrified and digitized 20th and 21st centuries is exceedingly fragile. Neither electronic components nor software are made to last forever. This also affects works of art that use electronic and digital technologies: Museums are supposed to preserve them for future generations, but many works are already at risk of permanent loss. What are the biggest challenges of preserving media art? Where is there an urgent need for action? The symposium invites you to join a number of international experts to gain insight into the status quo of electronic arts conservation and to discuss possible future scenarios.

Since the 1960s, it has become increasingly common for artists to use electronic and digital technologies. The so-called "new media" pointed to the future, thus rapid obsolescence was not an issue for a long time. But now, for a number of reasons, the question of the methods and necessary resources for preserving electronic and digital works is becoming acute.