Docomomo International


Docomomo International is a non-profit organization whose full title is International Committee for Documentation and Conservation of Buildings, Sites and Neighbourhoods of the Modern Movement.
Mrinalini Rajagopalan, author of "Preservation and Modernity: Competing Perspectives, Contested Histories and the Question of Authenticity," described it as "the key body for the preservation of modernist architecture".

History

Its foundation was inspired by the work of ICOMOS, the International Council on Monuments and Sites, established in 1965. The work of Icomos was concerned with the protection and conservation of historical buildings and sites, whereas Docomomo was founded to take up the challenge of the protection and conservation of Modern Architecture and Urbanism.
Docomomo International was founded in Eindhoven in 1988 by Dutch architects Hubert-Jan Henket and Wessel de Jonge. Henket chaired Docomomo International with de Jonge as secretary until September 2000 when the International Secretariat relocated to Paris, where it was hosted by the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, in the Palais de Chaillot. The chair was Maristella Casciato, architect and architectural historian; with Émilie d'Orgeix, architectural historian, as secretary and Anne-Laure Guillet as director.
In 2008 there were 2,000 individual members. That year, 49 countries had national chapters and working parties of Docomomo. In 2010, the International Secretariat was relocated to Barcelona, hosted by the Fundació Mies van der Rohe. Ana Tostoes, architect and architect historian, chaired Docomomo International with Ivan Blasi, architect, as secretary. In 2014 the secretariat was transferred to the Instituto Superior Técnico at Lisbon, Portugal. Professor Tostoes remained as chair, with Zara Ferreira as secretary.

Conferences and seminars

Docomomo holds biennial international conferences where the people related to conservation issues gather and exchange information and studies pertaining to their scholarly research. The list of conferences held until now is as follows:
SessionYearDateHost city
11990September 12–14 Eindhoven
21992September 16–19 Bauhaus Dessau
31994September 16–19 Barcelona
41996September 18–20 Bratislava and Sliac
51998September 16–18 Stockholm
62000September 20–22 Brasília
72002September 16–21 Paris
82004September 26–October 2 New York City
92006September 26–29 Istanbul and Ankara
102008September 13–20 Rotterdam
112010August 24–27 Mexico City
122012August 7–10 Espoo
132014September 24–27 Seoul
142016September 6–9 Lisbon
152018August 28–31 Ljubljana
162020September 10–14 Tokyo

The International Scientific Committee on Technology organizes seminars covering the following themes: restoration of reinforced concrete structures, curtain-wall facades, windows and glass, wood and the modern movement, colours in modern architecture and stone in modern buildings.
Seminars and conferences are often held in key modernist buildings, as for instance at Alvar Aalto’s Vyborg Library, Brinkman and Leendert van der Vlugt's Van Nelle factory in Rotterdam, and Gordon Bunshaft's Lever House in New York.

Publications

The docomomo Journal is an international periodical that, since 1990, regularly summarizes recent research on the sites and buildings of Modern Movement. It is a bi-annual publication featuring articles by noted architecture practitioners and scholars, addressing all facets of Modern Movement architecture, from history and design concepts to conservation, technology or education.
ISSUETITLEYEAR
1Newsletter 1August 1989
2Newsletter 2January 1990
3Newsletter 3June 1990
4Newsletter 4March 1991
5Newsletter 5June 1991
6Newsletter 6November 1991
7Newsletter 7June 1992
8Newsletter 8January 1993
9TechnologyJuly 1993
10November 1993
11North AmericaJune 1994
12MetalNovember 1994
13Latin AmericaJune 1995
14The Image of ModernityNovember 1995
15Curtain Wall RefurbishmentJuly 1996
16Urbanism, Gardens & LandscapeMarch 1997
17Exposed ConcreteSeptember 1997
18February 1998
19Nordic CountriesJuly 1998
20Windows to the Future
Anniversary Issue - 10 Years Docomomo		January 1999
21June 1999
22Modern HousesMay 2000
23The Modern City Facing the FutureAugust 2000
24February 2001
25July 2001
26Engineering the FutureDecember 2001
27The History of DocomomoJune 2002
28Modern Heritage in AfricaMarch 2003
29Modernism in Asia PacificSeptember 2003
302003 A Year of Docomomo ActivitiesMarch 2004
31Modernism in the US after World War IISeptember 2004
32New FramesMarch 2005
33The Modern Movement in the Caribbean IslandsSeptember 2005
34France-Brazil Round TripMarch 2006
35Modern Architecture in the Middle EastSeptember 2006
36Other Modernisms: A Selection from the Docomomo RegistersMarch 2007
37Places of ModernismSeptember 2007
38Canada ModernMarch 2008
39Postwar Mass HousingSeptember 2008
40Tel Aviv 100 YearsMarch 2009
41Nine Favorite ArchitectsSeptember 2009
42Art and ArchitectureSummer 2010
43Brasilia 1960-20102010/2
44Modern and Sustainable2011/1
45Bridges and Infrastructure2011/2
46Designing Modern Life2012/1
47Global Design2012/2
48Modern Africa, Tropical Architecture2013/1
49For an Architect's Training2013/2
50High Density2014/1
51Modern Housing. Patrimonio Vivo2014/2
52Reuse, Renovation and Restoration2015/1
53LC 50 Years After2015/2
54Housing Reloaded2016/1
55Modern Lisbon2016/2
56The Heritage of Mies2017/1
56The Heritage of Mies - SECOND EDITION2019/1
57Modern Southeast Asia2017/2
58Louis I. Kahn. The Permanence2018/1
59An Eastern Europe Vision2018/2
60Architectures of the Sun2019/1

Work at national level

Many countries have national Docomomo working parties, as either part of academic establishments or architecture federations. They may define gazetteers of important structures to be protected, such as DoCoMoMo Key Scottish Monuments and DoCoMoMo Architectural Masterpieces of Finnish Modernism, or support local campaigners.
Preservation work by Docomomo together with others was recognised by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection after a 2009 charrette to protect the former Bell Labs Holmdel Complex.