Anagrafe della ricerca

The topic of the proposal concerns the preservation, communication and safeguarding of Dissonant Heritage caused by conflicts, both real (war) and regarding interpretation. The project is based on the analysis of a significant sample of case studies related to this specific heritage, one characterised by a controversial legacy that has marked its history and in which it has taken on different roles. The analysis highlights a possible path of re-signification underway, where the communication of values, beyond the stigma attached to it, is part of a new way of understanding this complex heritage on the part of the community. These case studies are analysed with the specific aim of identifying appropriate tactics which can be used to address the preservation of a Dissonant Heritage which is such not so much by virtue of a “tainted legacy”, a memory that is difficult to manage, but because it acquires (or is acquiring) dissonance through a communication that manipulates and alters their stratified memory with the aim of making an asset become a divisive element of the communities. It opens up an understanding of Dissonant Heritage, linked to the one theorised by Tunbridge and Ashworth, to include objects at the centre of communities that attribute discordant meanings to a heritage which are superimposed on a dissonance originating from history itself, following changes that cause an inversion of values and messages. This manipulation is not linked to "trauma removal", but is instead purposely distorted to foment feelings linked to nationalism, and to open up a vulnus in the community, particularly where tensions between "social groups" have only partially subsided. In the production of this 'New' Dissonant Heritage, virtual platforms (social media) play a fundamental role, as access to them is not only simplified and less filtered compared to official communication channels (radio, press), but above because of their visibility, speed of diffusion and lack of a “validation”. The message thus launched reaches a wide audience, particularly among those groups that are less accustomed to the use of digital tools or less culturally prepared, and more likely to uncritically absorb unverified content (e.g. fake news). In this interpretative conflict, the question of "why preserve" becomes the product of a consensus rather than the outcome of the deeper reasons that should be the basis of choices concerning Cultural Heritage. The aim of the project is therefore to identify, through the analysis of significant experiences, which innovative tools can identify and control this new form of risk for heritage, mapping situations where there are tensions conveyed through manipulated communication, and identifying tactics based on the analysis of virtuous cases of re-signification of Dissonant Heritage, in order to positively influence its safeguard and to outline management strategy for the conservation and communication of this architectural legacy.