Abstract
In the scope of the journal Ædificare, a call for abstracts is launched on the question of the “masterpiece in the art of building from the Middle Ages to the Comtemporary era”. The discussion will begin from theoretical and practical, multidisciplinary, national and international perspectives. All interested parties are invited to submit proposals to the committee, in particular, but not exclusively, along the following two lines. First, the ritual demonstration of competence, which will help analyze the available sources - old or new - on this procedure : duration, nature of the subject, material realization, conservation. It would be interesting to examine the basis for such a practice in Latin countries, and its absence in Anglo-Saxon countries. Then, the technical feat will be understood as a challenge, while examining the plurality of masterpiece practices and their meanings : challenges launched between communities or to oneself, technical feats, their visual or written representations, their effects on spectators or the public (procession, world’s fairs, etc.).
Announcement
Call for abstracts - The “masterpiece” in the art of building, from Middle Ages to Contemporary era, Robert Carvais and Valérie Nègre
Arguments
We intend to examine the notion of the “masterpiece” in the history of construction over the long period from the Middle Ages to the present day. Although the French word "chef-d’œuvre" has been used since 1268 to describe “a journeyman's most important and difficult work in order to obtain a master's degree in a guild”, since 1508 it has been used extensively in the figurative sense to mean a perfect, remarkable, accomplished work (1) Augustin Charles d'Aviler in his Explication des termes d'Architecture (1691) defined the word as “a work of difficult execution, to be received as a Master in certain Arts & Trades”. He adds: “it is also said of a work that is excellent in its kind, and the most beautiful that a craftsman has made”(2).
Although the term is used very sparingly in the iconic Livre des métiers attributed to Etienne Boileau (it is only mentioned once for chapuiseurs - the old word for carpenters and joiners)(3). the publishers, René de Lespinas and François Bonnardot, assume that the practice of masterwork became widespread and generalised to most craft trades during the Middle Ages. In the same book, a passing examination is mentioned only for silk cloth workers in Paris.
How did this notion develop in the art of building to the point where it covered many situations other than the examination for passage within a profession (from the status of valet, labourer, apprentice or journeyman to that of master) or, during the 18th century, in the companion guilds, from the status of aspirant to that of compagnon du Devoir? Note the potential confusion introduced by the duality of meanings of the term “compagnon”, between those in trades who had not yet passed their mastery and those who were future members of compagnonnique guilds.
For the original sense of “ritual demonstration of skill”, the aim of this issue is to provide data on the material conditions under which masterpieces were produced. There are a number of areas to examine: the duration of the test; the nature of the subject (standard or extraordinary work; the creation of a material object or the design of a project); who chose the subject (the authority of the trade or its representatives); how it was revealed (sealed or open); the stages of its production, preparation and presentation; the stages of its production, location, nature of the proof (full-scaledrawings), sketch, small-scale drawing, production of a model); whether or not it was to be conserved (temporary workshop or museum); how its validity was to be checked (acceptance or rejection). We may include in this category the masterpieces of a compagnon's work, which are the result of the preparation of a “masterpiece".
For the secondary sense of “technical prowess at stake in a challenge”, the aim is to examine the plurality of masterpiece practices and their meanings. Depending on the period and the place, they cover a wide variety of situations (Mathonière, forthcoming): challenges issued among members of the same community (particularly companion guilds) or between more than one;challenges issued by the craftsman to himself to show off his skill; collective masterpieces produced with a view to a public exhibition (procession, universal exhibition). In France, masterpieces also include pieces created to obtain the title of Meilleur ouvrier de France (MOF), instituted in 1924.
Articles may focus on the nature of these technical feats (what they consist of: economy of materials, miniaturisation, speed of execution, transposition of materials, etc.), their staging, as well as the behaviour of the creators of masterpieces and the political, social and professional contexts that encouraged them. Why and to what end were they executed? What role did masterpieces playin the transmission of knowledge and skills, and in invention?
Papers may also focus on the visual and written representations of these feats: the effects that masterpieces have on spectators, in line with the work of anthropologists (Gell, 1988, 1992, 1998; Stoichita, 2011). Finally, on criticism of them in writings on art and architecture (Nègre, 2019,2023).
The issue will also re-examine the old sources compiled by the first historians of the crafts (statutes, regulatory debates in the papers of craft associations, acceptance reports following the completionof a masterpiece - Carvais 2005) and reveal new ones: visual and written representations (in compendia of models and treatises written by craftsmen); objects and drawings preserved by various institutions or private collections; exhibition reports; newspaper articles, etc. The traces ofthe practice deserve to be completed and analysed.
The issue focuses exclusively on trades related to the art of building. We would very much welcome contributions from other countries in order to make comparisons on the subject. Why does Britain seem to ignore the process of testing competence? We could ask why such a practice exists in Latin countries and not in English-speaking countries. We are also looking for case studies: articles maybe based on one or more objects and the material study of these objects (in the context of conservation/restoration studies in particular).
Articles may be written in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese or Spanish. They should be between 30,000 and 60,000 characters long, including spaces.
Contribution guidelines
We are looking for case studies as well as in-depth reflections on all periods and geographical areasfrom a historical perspective, even if it is that of immediate history. Proposals for articles shouldinclude a title and a summary of approximately 2,500 characters (including spaces), as well as the author's contact details (surname, first name, position and institutional affiliation, e-mail address,postal address).Submissions must be sent by 31 January 2024 to
- rcarvais@noos.fr
- valerie-negre@wanadoo.fr
The proposals will be examined and selected by the issue coordinators : Robert Carvais (professeur émérite, Université Paris-Nanterre) and Valérie Nègre (Université Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne) The articles themselves will be assessed by two referees appointed by the Aedificare editorial board.
Timeline
- 31/01/2024: submission of proposals by authors
- 01/03/2024: notification of acceptance of the proposal
- 31/08/2024: submission of articles by authors
- 30/09/2024: transmission of expert reports to authors
- 31/10/2024: final articles returned
- early 2025: publication of the issue
Selected bibliography
- Adell Nicolas, “Arts de faire, arts de vivre. Chefs-d’œuvre inconnus des compagnons du Tour deFrance”, Gradhiva, n°17, 2013, p. 4-29.
- Adell Nicolas, “La force du Trait et le chef-d’œuvre”, Midi-Pyrénées patrimoine, 2009, p. 32-39.
- Bastard Laurent, Chefs-d’œuvre de Compagnons, éd. De Borée, Clermont-Ferrand, 2008.
- Bondaz Julien, “Entrer en collection. Pour une ethnographie des gestes et des techniques decollecte”, Les Cahiers de l’École du Louvre [online], 4 | 2014.
- Carvais Robert, “Les statuts des métiers de la construction et l’économie de l’industrie du bâtiment :premiers résultats d’une enquête en cours dans la France moderne”, in Cavaciocchi S.(ed.), L’Edilizia prima della Rivoluzione industriale secc. XIII-XVIII, Atti della “Trentaseiesima Settimana diStudi”, Istituto Internazionale di Storia Economica “F. Datini”, Prato (Italy), Le Monnier, 2005, p.137-165.
- Chédeau Catherine, “Led. art de maçon est un des sept arts libéraux et qu’il est raisonnable que l’on fasse chefd’œuvre : projet de statuts des maîtres maçons dijonnais en 1587”, in Ex quadris lapidibus. La pierre et sa mise en oeuvre dans l'art médiéval : Mélanges d'Histoire de l'art offerts à Éliane Vergnolle, Brepols, 2011,p. 487-496.
- Garçon Anne-Françoise, “Les dessous des métiers : secrets, rites et sous-traitance dans la France du XVIIIe siècle”, Early Science and Medicine, vol. 10, n° 3, “Openness and Secrecy in Early ModernScience”, 2005, p. 378-391.
- Gell Alfred, “Technology and Magic”, Anthropology Today, vol. 4, n°2 (avril 1988), p. 6-9.
- Gell Alfred, “The Technology of Enchantment and the Enchantment of Technology”, Anthropology, Art and Aesthetics, Coote Jeremy and Shelton Anthony (eds.), Oxford, Clarendon, 1992, p. 40-66.
- Gell, Art and Agency. An Anthropological Theory, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1998 (Frenchedition: L’art et ses agents. Une théorie anthropologique, Paris, Sophie and Olivier Renaut (transl.), Presses du réel, 2009.
- Icher François, “Le chef-d’œuvre du compagnon”, dans Christian Jacob (ed.), Lieux de savoir. I,Espaces et communautés, Paris, Albin Michel, p. 246-269.
- Lecotté Roger, Chefs-d’œuvre de Compagnons, éd. Chêne, Paris, 1980.
- Mathonière Jean-Michel, “Chefs-d’œuvre compagnonniques : typologie et histoire”, dans Guillouet Jean-Marie, Nègre Valérie, Chevalier Pauline, Virtuosités techniques, Paris, INHA/Ed des cendres, (à paraître, 2023).
- Moulin Raymonde, “La Genèse de la rareté artistique”, Ethnologie française, nouvelle série, t. 8, n°2/3, Pour une anthropologie de l'art (1978), p. 241-258.
- Mouret Jean-Noël, Les Compagnons, chefs-d’œuvre inédits, anciens et contemporains, éd. Hatier, Paris, 1996.
- Nègre Valérie, “Virtuosité technique et esthétique artisanale dans l’architecture aux XVIIe etXVIIIe siècles”, Images Re-vues. Histoire, anthropologie et théorie de l’art, Hors-série 7, 2019. DOI :10.4000/imagesrevues 6451
- Nègre Valérie, “Architecture and Technical Virtuosity in Eighteenth Century France” dans Sven Dupré and Marieke Hendriksen (eds.), The Making of Technique in the Arts: Theories and Practice from the Sixteenth to the Twentieth Century, Brussels, Brepols, 2023, p. 147-163.
- Stoichita Victor, Grimaud Emmanuel, Jones Graham, “Virtuosités ou Les sublimes aventures dela technique”, Ateliers d'anthropologie n°35, 2011. [online]
Notes
(1) Alain Rey, ed., Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Le Robert, 1998
(2) Augustin Charles d’Aviler, Explication des termes d’Architecture, 1691, p. 457-458, entry “Chef-d’œuvre”.
(3) Boileau, Livre des Métiers, [13th c.], 1879, titre LXXIX, para. XI. Se li aprentis set faire 1 chief d’oeuvre tout sus, ses mestres puetprendre 1 autre aprentiz pour la reson de ce que, quant 1 aprentis set faire son chief d’oevre, il est reson qu’il se tiegne au mestier et soit enl’ouvroire, et est resous que on l’oneurt et deporte plus que celui qui ne le set faire ; si que ses mestres ne l’envoit mie en la vile quere son painet son vin aussi comme 1 garçon ; et par cela reson puet li mestre prendre 1 autre aprentiz, si tost cil set faire son chief d’oeuvre. »
Keywords
- chef d'oeuvre, art de bâtir, compétence, rituel, prouesse technique, défi
Contact(s)
- Robert Carvais
courriel : rcarvais [at] noos [dot] fr - Valérie Negre
courriel : valerie [dot] negre [at] univ-paris1 [dot] fr
License
This announcement is licensed under the terms of Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal.
To cite this announcement
« Le chef d’œuvre dans l’art de bâtir du Moyen Âge à l’époque contemporaine », Call for papers, Calenda, Published on Tuesday, January 09, 2024, https://doi.org/10.58079/vk0q
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