Renovations: Roofing

Roofing, the first print in the Renovations Series, highlights the humor and absurdity behind reconstructing the past. The ruins themselves now serve as an outdoor architectural museum, displaying historical artifacts of Portugal. Were they to be rebuilt in situ, they would lose yet another facet of their history. The past can always be reconjectured digitally or in the ahistorical virtual space of the computer. Rebuilding, however, always alters the historical trajectory and presence- of which the new function of the building has assumed-and ultimately negates and diminishes the importance and historical value the building now has.

The diagrams overlay an image from the Convento do Carmo Ruins in Lisbon. The figure sawing is from Mechanix Illustrated: How to Do It Encyclopedia, 1961.

This is an Iris G Print on Sommerset Satin, 20" x 36".

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