The impact of Paul Philippot on the theory and history of conservation/restoration

Paul Philippot (1925–2016) was an influential conservation theoretician and author in addi- tion to serving as an important leader or col- laborator with major conservation institutions in Europe (ICR, ICCROM, IIC, UNESCO, ICOM, etc.). He was an art historian born into a Belgian fam- ily of conservator-restorers. The authors were privileged to interview him in 1997, 2009 and 2015. Verbeeck discusses Philippot’s relation to and reinterpretation of the philosophy of Cesare Brandi, his definition of restoration as both an intellectual judgment and a critical act, and his influence on the establishment of an interdis- ciplinary curriculum for pioneer training pro- grams. Stoner describes Philippot’s emphasis on the impact of language on communication of philosophical concepts in his 1997 interview in addition to key points in his publications once they were available in English, especially his de- scription of patina as the normal effect that time has on material and the search for equilibrium in cleaning paintings.