Régisseur d’œuvres : enjeux d’un métier émergent et perspectives de professionnalisation

• Main Authors: Sophie Daynes-Diallo, Hélène Perrel, Hélène Vassal
• Format: Article
• Language: fra
• Published: Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication 2016-09-01
• Series: In Situ : Revue de Patrimoines
• Subjects: museum registrars; curators; preventive conservation; professionalisation; information technologies; professional qualifications
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/insitu/13705

Curatorial functions, born with the modern museum’s emergence during the eighteenth century and in particular with the nascent concepts of inventorying and cataloguing collections, are organically linked to the figure of the person in charge of drawing up such inventories and catalogues, known in France as a ‘conservateur’, a curator. But the profession of registrar―in the current sense of the term―emerged later, at the end of the twentieth century. It is rooted in the development, during the late 1980s, of new support and operational functions within the museum, a result of increasing specialisation in culture and heritage employment combined with increasing professionalism inspired by the Anglo-Saxon model of registration. We will describe the emergence of this registrar profession in the 1980s and its maturation at the turn of the century, marked by greater institutional recognition. This included included the definition of a registrars’ tasks and activities, the formalisation of their employment contexts, the structuration of desk or collection management services, the emergence of seminars and lectures and the creation of professional associations. Beyond the recognition of a profession which is now well defined in the institutional landscape, some recent developments also suggest deeper changes still to come, such as issues regarding specialisation claims, the emergence of diplomas and professional training programmes, competition and/or collaboration with other actors in museum teams. These changes are crucial to understand for young staff entering their profession in an era of profound change in the museum world where risk management, versatility, and adaptability skills have become essential for a concerted practice of conservation.