Colour Photography and Film: Sharing knowledge of analysis, preservation, and conservation of analogue and digital materials 2024

It is with gratitude and satisfaction that we introduce the proceedings that resulted from the third edition of the conference on Colour Photography and Film: Sharing Knowledge of Analysis, Preservation, and Conservation of Analogue and Digital Materials. It was organized in September 2024 by the Gruppo del Colore – Associazione Italiana del Colore (Color Group – Italian Color Association), in collaboration with the University of Amsterdam (UvA), Eye Filmmuseum (Eye), the Institute of Applied Physics “Nello Carrara” of the Italian Nation Research Council (IFAC-CNR), and the Doctoral School in History of Art at Sapienza University in Rome. The conference, held at the University Library in Amsterdam, welcomed more than one hundred participants representing 16 countries across five continents; over 50 of them attended the convening in person.

The papers presented over the two-day conference in eight thematic sessions covered a wide range of topics, from the history of photographic and film materials to conservation critique and ethics, from deterioration issues to new restoration treatment approaches. From a historical perspective, the objects studied ranged from colored daguerreotypes to color slides, with a particular focus on specific processes such as Dufaycolor and Polaroid. The history of early color films and the stratification of vernacular materials were also explored. The cultural impact of color in both film and photography was discussed in several papers, as were the importance of a clear strategy and unambiguous policies to ensure proper archival preservation.

Digitization as a conservation and restoration strategy was proposed for both film and photographic materials. While digitization practices have emerged as an ineluctable solution for dissemination, digital restoration and rejuvenation remain evolving fields where research is growing exponentially.

The ethical considerations underlying restoration practices in early cinema were expertly introduced on the first day by the keynote speaker, Elif Rongen-Kaynakçi, Curator of Silent Film at Eye Filmmuseum, in her talk titled Rediscovering the Colours of Early Cinema: A Journey Through Eye Filmmuseum’s Silent Film Restorations. Although her contribution does not appear in these proceedings, we would like to express our gratitude for her generosity in participating in the conference.

We are also truly grateful to Monica Marchesi, art historian and conservator at the Stedelijk Museum, for serving as the keynote speaker on the second day of the conference. In her talk Reprinting Photography as a Game-Changer, Dr. Marchesi shared new considerations from her seminal long-term project on reproduction and reprinting as a conservation and exhibition strategy. This project underscores the importance of dialogue among artists, conservators, and curators when addressing the deterioration and obsolescence of photographic and film technology.

Finally, we wish to thank all the participants and speakers who submitted their contributions to be published in this volume. It was our great pleasure to include them in the proceedings.