Open calls in special issues
Between Exhibition Gallery and Storage: Redesigning Museum Conservation Practices
Guest editors
- Bárbara Coutinho
MUDE – Museu do Design, Portugal - Inês Correia
MUDE – Museu do Design, Portugal - Rita Macedo
Department of Conservation and Restoration, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Portugal - Susana França de Sá
Department of Conservation and Restoration, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Portugal
Open for submissions until 18 Sep 2026
Contemporary museum practice is increasingly shaped by complex interactions between conservation, curatorship, museography, design and education within shifting institutional frameworks. As museums are increasingly sites of knowledge production and dynamic spaces of interpretation and public engagement, conservation practices are no longer confined to technical procedures but are continuously reconfigured through conceptual, spatial, and collaborative processes.
Recent discussions within the field have highlighted the need to critically reassess how curatorial frameworks and conservation practices intersect in exhibition-making, decision-making processes, and the construction of museological narratives. These shifts call for interdisciplinary approaches that bridge tangible and intangible dimensions of conservation, while also addressing pressing challenges such as sustainability, material complexity, and the stewardship of contemporary collections. Such an evolution necessitates that curatorial strategies and conservation practices jointly uphold the integrity of contemporary collections while advancing modern interpretative and educational missions.
This special issue of Conservar Património is dedicated to exploring these intersections particularly on design and contemporary material culture collections. While it builds upon the themes addressed in the International Symposium Between Exhibition Gallery and Storage. Redesigning Museum Conservation Practices, it is not limited to its participants and welcomes contributions from a broader international community of researchers and professionals working within this scope.
The issue aims to foster critical and interdisciplinary perspectives on how conservation practices and curatorial perspectives are shaped, negotiated, and transformed within museum contexts, contributing to a deeper understanding of their evolving role.
Topics of special interest include but are not limited to:
- Interrelationships between conservation and curation
- From preventive care, display materiality, risk, and adaptation
- Collaborative practices between conservators, curators and educators
- Conservation narratives and the visibility of their process on display
- Methodological innovation in the conservation of modern and postmodern materials within contemporary collections
- The reciprocal influence of conservation ethics and curatorial aesthetics in museum narratives
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts must be submitted online by registering and logging in to this website. All manuscripts must follow the journal authors’ guidelines and are subject to peer review. During the submission process, in the "Comments to the Editor" section, it is essential to clearly state that the manuscript is intended for this special issue.
Accepted papers:
Accepted papers will first be made available online in the "in press" section. These papers will then be compiled and officially published as part of this special issue of Conservar Patrimonio.
