2000s
Photography as a living document in Latin American archives
Beyond technical conservation, photographic archives in the region act as spaces of collective memory that re-signify identity and everyday affection.
Everyday life and the small things that shaped the rhythm of the day
Latest additions
Contemporary
Beyond the physical object in retro conservation
Institutions like Reina Sofía and the Ipiranga Museum explore how digitization and cultural context transform the preservation of retro objects, moving beyond mere material custody.
1990s
Paper, Tape, and Memory: How Musical Archives Define Sound
Beyond mere technical preservation, musical archives act as interpretive filters. We analyze how the distinction between work, edition, and medium conditions contemporary listening, from the Mariana holdings to debates on folkloric authenticity in Peru.
1970s
How refrigerators and gas stoves entered Argentine households, 1920–1970
Fernando Rocchi’s study of durable goods in Argentina offers a way to examine electric refrigerators and gas stoves without mistaking changing consumption for a uniform household experience.
Contemporary
Celluloid and Pixel: The Duality in Film Preservation
We explore how film institutions balance the material integrity of physical copies with digital accessibility, a hybrid model that redefines the survival of audiovisual heritage.
Contemporary
From the closet to the archive: the materiality of private life
Analyzes how institutions like the NMAH and the Osorno Museum transform everyday objects into heritage, expanding the concept of the archive to include human experience and domestic cultural resistance.
Contemporary
Retro is designed in the present: style, technology and perception
A 2013 study of the potential market for retro products opens up a design question: which elements evoke the past, and which unmistakably belong to the present?
1970s
Refrigerators and Gas Stoves in Argentina’s Changing Domestic Life, 1920–1970
Fernando Rocchi’s study of electric refrigerators and gas stoves shows how durable goods can illuminate shifts in food practices, household organization, and material life—without implying that every Argentine home experienced them in the same way.
2000s
Beyond the pixel: forgotten materiality in archival photography
The digitization of photographic collections like those at the Mexico City Museum reveals that an image's value lies in its physical support and historical context, not just its digital reproduction.
Contemporary
Preserving the object is not enough: documenting ephemeral and digital art
Contemporary conservation combines the care of physical works with contextual documentation. The examples available show both the value of digital models and the limits of what they can preserve.
Contemporary
The documentary limit in reconstructing domestic spaces
We analyze how registration and conservation protocols define the boundaries of the verifiable when studying interiors, avoiding the confusion between object presence and usage context.
Contemporary
The retro market and the gap between label and object
A 2013 study attempts to segment retro product buyers, but available evidence limits its scope. We analyze what that research can and cannot claim about current consumption.
