Enfilade

From the conference programme:

Historical Interiors and the Digital: The Possibilities and Limits of Virtual Reconstructions
Les intérieurs historiques et le numérique: possibilités et limites des reconstructions virtuelles pour la recherche
Online and in-person, Paris and Versailles, 17–18 November 2022

Colloque international organisé par Centre allemand d’histoire de l’art Paris, le Mobilier national et le Centre de recherche du château de Versailles

The virtual reconstruction of historical interiors—from architecture to wall decoration and furniture to textiles—has been a proven instrument of cultural mediation in recent years, particularly in museums, exhibitions and/or for the study of historical monuments (for instance in archaeology). Questions of spatial proportions and fundamental architectural units are today at the forefront, with emphasis often placed on the possibility of visiting these spaces virtually, either on a 2D screen or with an immersive headset.

However, when it comes to the recreation of the aesthetic characteristics of interiors, which are one of the key issues for their understanding, the possibilities of these new models seem limited. Depending largely on the harmonious interaction of different materials such as woods, metals, and textiles, as well as the structures of their respective surfaces, the nuances of colour or gold, or even the traces of artisanship, the existing solutions in rendering the materiality of an historic interior remain insufficient, both aesthetically and scientifically. The hope to swiftly overcome the excessively sanitized surfaces of digital models, expressed in 2013 (Kohle 2013, p. 166), has not yet come to fruition. Nevertheless, there is more to it than that, as the possibilities of using virtual reconstruction effectively for researching historical interiors—for example, through the virtual insertion of materials that are no longer ethically justifiable or prohibited today—are not fully exploited.

Focusing on the possibilities and limits of virtual reconstructions of historical interiors, of which questions of materiality are only one aspect, this conference highlights the fundamental issues that occupy current research. To attend in person or online on Wednesday, November 16 and Thursday, November 17, please email interieursetnumerique@dfk-paris.org. To attend the day on Friday, November 18 at Versailles (in person or online), registration is compulsory and free here.

W E D N E S D A Y ,  1 6  N O V E M  B E R  2 0 2 2

Centre allemand d’histoire de l’art Paris, salle Julius Meier-Graefe

18.30  Conférence inaugurale et discussion
Realism or Believability? The Production of Sensation in Animated Films – Bill Kinder, Boxcar Pictures, Berkeley/Paris

T H U R S D A Y ,  1 7  N O V E M B E R  2 0 2 2

Centre allemand d’histoire de l’art Paris, salle Julius Meier-Graefe

9.30  Accueil par Peter Geimer, Directeur du Centre allemand d’histoire de l’art Paris

9.45  Présentation du colloque par les organisateurs

10.00  Études de cas et questions de recherche (1)
Modération : Muriel Barbier, Conservateur en chef du patrimoine, Mobilier national
• Digitally Recreating Lost Eighteenth-Century Irish Interiors: Challenges and Opportunities – Andrew Tierney, Department of the History of Art and Architecture, Trinity College Dublin
• De l’outil scientifique à l’« expérience de visite », le numérique à l’épreuve des enjeux de la restauration des appartements des ducs de Lorraine au château de Lunéville – Thierry Franz, Musée du château de Lunéville
• Restituer les palais impériaux napoléoniens : un défi technique et historique – Philippe Le Pareux, lycée de Valognes (Manche)
• ExploVision présente la première plateforme de consultation et d’échange autour du mobilier patrimonial – Philippe Dechenaux, Explovision

14.15  Galeries et artisanat
• La reconstitution 3D des galeries d’exposition du Garde-Meuble de la Couronne : enjeux, difficultés et compréhension d’un espace disparu – Gatien Wierez, CREHS Université d’Artois
• The Virtual Museum: Digital Reconstructions of the Kongl. Museum at the Royal Palace in Stockholm – Johan Eriksson, Department of Art History, Uppsala Universitet
• Réflexions autour de la galerie disparue de l’hôtel de Noailles à Saint-Germain-en-Laye – François Gilles, UVSQ/ENS Cachan, with Paul Feytis; Louis-Joseph Lamborot; Gabriel Wick

F R I D A Y ,  1 8  N O V E M B E R  2 0 2 2

Centre de recherche du château de Versailles, Auditorium, aile Dufour

9.00  Accueil par Mathieu da Vinha, Directeur scientifique du G.I.P. Centre de recherche du château de Versailles

9.15  Autres approches et apports de la 3D
Modération : Benjamin Ringot, G.I.P. Centre de recherche du château de Versailles
• Augmented Reconstruction: On Introducing a Novel Reconstruction Method for Simulating Material and Materiality Using Mixed Realities – Clemens Brünenberg, TU Darmstadt, Department of Architecture, Institute of Classical Archaeology
• Au-delà de l’illustration. Quand des étudiants de licence apportent une contribution à la recherche – Nicolas Priniotakis, Cergy-Paris Université

11.00  Études de cas et questions de recherche (2)
Modération : Benjamin Ringot, G.I.P. Centre de recherche du château de Versailles puis Michel Jordan, laboratoire ETIS – CY Cergy Paris Université / ENSEA / CNRS
• Florence4D – Fabrizio Nevola, Chair of Art History and Visual Culture, University of Exeter
• Reconstitution 3D d’espaces intérieurs de trois domaines royaux : Versailles, Marly, Choisy – Hubert Naudeix, Aristeas
• Reconstitution d’un séjour d’Auguste le Fort à Moritzburg à l’hiver 1728 – Edouard Lussa, Histovery

15.15  Au-delà de la reconstitution 3D
Modération : Michel Jordan, laboratoire ETIS – CY Cergy Paris Université / ENSEA / CNRS
• Experimental Virtual Archaeological-Acoustics: Bringing together Physical, Computer, and Social Science Researchers – Brian Katz, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, UMR 7190
• Sacred Sound / Sacred Space: In Search of Lost Sound, Virtual Acoustic-Visual Reconstruction of Sacred Spaces of the Middle Ages – Stefan Morent, Department of the Institute of Musicology, University of Tübingen
• Reproduire l’histoire: Multi-Sensory Reconstructions of Historical Interiors for Virtual Reality – James Hutson and Trenton Olsen, Lindenwood University, Missouri

17.45  Conclusions