This paper draws a parallel between the physical and political remnants of the communist regime i... more This paper draws a parallel between the physical and political remnants of the communist regime in Bulgaria and explores the Soviet Army Monument in Sofia as a temporal and spatial reflection of the relationship between Bulgaria, the Russian Empire, Soviet Union and, now, the Russian Federation, with a specific focus on the #ДАНСwithme anti-government demonstrations currently taking place in the country (14 June 2013 - present [November 2013]). The monument is considered as a point of resistance where competing discourses – that of the authorities responsible for building and maintaining this relationship, and that of marginalised groups that seek to challenge and destroy it – clash, offering the possibility of change. By investigating the monument’s multiple, often conflicting meanings and uses throughout history within the framework of counter-memory and counter-monumentality, it highlights its dissonant nature and offers the basis for a discussion of the applicability of current heritage conservation principles.
(Dissertation submitted as part of the MA in Principles of Conservation, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 2013)
Launched at the beginning of the Ceausescu regime and wrapped in the Romanian flag, Rom Ciocolata... more Launched at the beginning of the Ceausescu regime and wrapped in the Romanian flag, Rom Ciocolata is Romania’s first chocolate bar and a quintessentially Romanian product. Seeking to remedy a decline in sales following the fall of communism, advertising campaigns playing on Rom’s links to a painful past were launched, not only increasing sales, but turning Rom into what can be seen as a highly effective heritage product.
Following Tunbridge and Ashworth’s marketing-inspired heritage model, with its focus on experience as a core product, and recent discussions on counter-monumentality, this paper examines the commoditisation processes involved in turning Rom into a successful heritage product, as well as its commemorative and performative functions. It also implicitly challenges the role of heritage authorities in the production and consumption of the past, as well as the nature of heritage as belonging to the past.
This paper explores the implications and challenges of conserving the Freud Museum collection by ... more This paper explores the implications and challenges of conserving the Freud Museum collection by investigating collectors’ intent throughout its evolution from private art and antiquities collection to house museum. In viewing it as a unit, its collectors – identified as Freud, his daughter Anna, and the Freud Museum respectively – are treated as originators. As such, they act as three separate authenticating and validating common denominators to the contents of the Freud Museum, which work within one another as part of the ‘Russian doll’ construct of the collection.
By addressing the question “What is the object of conservation?” in relation to originators’ intent and context – when, how and why they formed their collections, the paper studies the various conservation processes involved in the preservation of meanings via tangible objects. In doing so, it challenges the perception of museum collections as static and encourages a critical viewing approach.
This paper draws a parallel between the physical and political remnants of the communist regime i... more This paper draws a parallel between the physical and political remnants of the communist regime in Bulgaria and explores the Soviet Army Monument in Sofia as a temporal and spatial reflection of the relationship between Bulgaria, the Russian Empire, Soviet Union and, now, the Russian Federation, with a specific focus on the #ДАНСwithme anti-government demonstrations currently taking place in the country (14 June 2013 - present [November 2013]). The monument is considered as a point of resistance where competing discourses – that of the authorities responsible for building and maintaining this relationship, and that of marginalised groups that seek to challenge and destroy it – clash, offering the possibility of change. By investigating the monument’s multiple, often conflicting meanings and uses throughout history within the framework of counter-memory and counter-monumentality, it highlights its dissonant nature and offers the basis for a discussion of the applicability of current heritage conservation principles.
(Dissertation submitted as part of the MA in Principles of Conservation, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 2013)
Launched at the beginning of the Ceausescu regime and wrapped in the Romanian flag, Rom Ciocolata... more Launched at the beginning of the Ceausescu regime and wrapped in the Romanian flag, Rom Ciocolata is Romania’s first chocolate bar and a quintessentially Romanian product. Seeking to remedy a decline in sales following the fall of communism, advertising campaigns playing on Rom’s links to a painful past were launched, not only increasing sales, but turning Rom into what can be seen as a highly effective heritage product.
Following Tunbridge and Ashworth’s marketing-inspired heritage model, with its focus on experience as a core product, and recent discussions on counter-monumentality, this paper examines the commoditisation processes involved in turning Rom into a successful heritage product, as well as its commemorative and performative functions. It also implicitly challenges the role of heritage authorities in the production and consumption of the past, as well as the nature of heritage as belonging to the past.
This paper explores the implications and challenges of conserving the Freud Museum collection by ... more This paper explores the implications and challenges of conserving the Freud Museum collection by investigating collectors’ intent throughout its evolution from private art and antiquities collection to house museum. In viewing it as a unit, its collectors – identified as Freud, his daughter Anna, and the Freud Museum respectively – are treated as originators. As such, they act as three separate authenticating and validating common denominators to the contents of the Freud Museum, which work within one another as part of the ‘Russian doll’ construct of the collection.
By addressing the question “What is the object of conservation?” in relation to originators’ intent and context – when, how and why they formed their collections, the paper studies the various conservation processes involved in the preservation of meanings via tangible objects. In doing so, it challenges the perception of museum collections as static and encourages a critical viewing approach.
Uploads
Papers by Mia Agova
(Dissertation submitted as part of the MA in Principles of Conservation, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 2013)
Conference Presentations by Mia Agova
Following Tunbridge and Ashworth’s marketing-inspired heritage model, with its focus on experience as a core product, and recent discussions on counter-monumentality, this paper examines the commoditisation processes involved in turning Rom into a successful heritage product, as well as its commemorative and performative functions. It also implicitly challenges the role of heritage authorities in the production and consumption of the past, as well as the nature of heritage as belonging to the past.
For the ads, please see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5BsN9BKoFI
By addressing the question “What is the object of conservation?” in relation to originators’ intent and context – when, how and why they formed their collections, the paper studies the various conservation processes involved in the preservation of meanings via tangible objects. In doing so, it challenges the perception of museum collections as static and encourages a critical viewing approach.
(Dissertation submitted as part of the MA in Principles of Conservation, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 2013)
Following Tunbridge and Ashworth’s marketing-inspired heritage model, with its focus on experience as a core product, and recent discussions on counter-monumentality, this paper examines the commoditisation processes involved in turning Rom into a successful heritage product, as well as its commemorative and performative functions. It also implicitly challenges the role of heritage authorities in the production and consumption of the past, as well as the nature of heritage as belonging to the past.
For the ads, please see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5BsN9BKoFI
By addressing the question “What is the object of conservation?” in relation to originators’ intent and context – when, how and why they formed their collections, the paper studies the various conservation processes involved in the preservation of meanings via tangible objects. In doing so, it challenges the perception of museum collections as static and encourages a critical viewing approach.