Invented from CopiesInvented from Copies

Invented from Copies therefore speculates on possible 'new' meanings of the copy as a cultural vector. The research is introduced by an essay by Ellen Smit, in collaboration with Hetty Berens and Clara Stille-Haardt, curators of the Collection department of Het Nieuwe Instituut.

Sometimes, you suddenly develop an entirely different perspective on archival material. This happened during a symposium about the conservation and restoration of architectural archives at the Royal Library (Koninklijke Bibliotheek) in The Hague. Experts in paper preservation and restoration from around the world gathered to exchange knowledge. Architectural archives, in particular, proved to be a major headache for paper conservators. Compared to other archives, they contain widely diverse formats and materials, with varying chemical complexities, in large numbers (portfolios often have hundreds of sheets of paper), with a wide range of wear and tear.

The presentations focused on preserving transparencies, blueprints, whiteprints, diazotypes and self-adhesive plastic films (zips), and demonstrated the many varieties of photographic reproduction processes. Gradually, a world of chemical processes, photo-reproductive and other duplication techniques emerged that we as curators had never known in such detail. Indeed, we had never considered the possible cultural significance of analogue reproduction techniques in the architectural design process.

Had we missed something, we wondered? Why had we associated only hand-drawn, artistic sketches and presentation drawings with the creative design process, and excluded analogue reproductions? And what consequences did this omission have for the evaluation of architectural archives? The more we delved into this issue, the more pieces of the puzzle emerged.

For example, conventional research into architectural reproductions treats them as either a technical material issue, focusing only on technique and material, or as an art historical issue that only considers what is represented artistically and aesthetically. As such, the field of research had not discussed the possible mutual influence between reproduction techniques and the rendering of architectural designs. But what if there had been an interaction between analogue reproduction methods and design process and visualisation methods? What if architectural reproduction turned out to be a technical matter that also had a cultural purpose in the design process?

A second insight was that research into the cultural value of the architectural reproduction should be predominantly based on the collection of Het Nieuwe Instituut because, it transpired, a quiet revolution had taken place in its archives. Most of the documents in the archives of the National Collection can be traced back to the invention of photography in the early 19th century. This photographic revolution had far-reaching implications for analogue reproduction processes in architectural design practice.

Het Nieuwe Instituut's Disclosing Architecture_ project, which runs from 2018 to 2024, involves the extensive conservation and restoration of the architectural archives. There was the momentum to look at and evaluate the archives through a new mindset, using research into analogue reproduction techniques. In 2019, we started Invented from Copies_, a long-term study that, for the first time in the research tradition of Het Nieuwe Instituut and its previous incarnations, investigates the cultural value of the analogue copies and reproductions in its archives.

This research seeks a new evaluation framework that attempts to replace traditional thinking about the canon, based on artistic sketches, presentation drawings and unique authorship, through a multiform perspective with an unknown outcome. Until now, all we knew was the archives probably contained a great many reproductions. They were mainly considered as duplicates - reproductions in ten copies or more with the same design, image or text - or as reproductions that had acquired the status of originals because of drawings later applied by hand.

We decided to put the existing evaluation model aside and question reproductions in an open-minded and inquisitive way: not as technical documents in the shadow of the 'artistic' and unique (one-off) original, but using their characteristics as a starting point. Could reproductions have cultural value? Could analogue reproduction culture as a whole have been a driver of new cultural practices, and if so, can we start evaluating the existing collection differently? Can we redefine what we mean by the design process and what an architectural archive is?

Part of the research was a critical inspection of the collection policy and its foundations. Why do we think in terms of 'original' and 'copy'? What do we mean by these terms? Why does an original drawing have a positive association and a reproduction a negative one? And does the difference in evaluation between original and reproduction inform the collection policy? To find an answer, we need to look at Het Nieuwe Instituut's tradition of collecting. After all, this institute's archives have demonstrated a high regard for the artistic and visually appealing architectural drawing (referred to as an original) since the collection was originally assembled at the end of the 19th century. From a museological and art historical perspective, this evaluation system dates back to the beginning of the 17th century, when the status of the artist and architect transformed into artistic and intellectual genius. Consequently, the works they produced were considered to be high quality and unique originals.

A second development that perpetuated the status of an original was the creation of an architecture museum, with the first initiatives dating back to the early 20th century. This kind of museum, founded for and by architects, confirmed the architect's status as an artist. Indeed, following the creation of museums for artists' works, architects also longed for a museum in which their artistic design drawings could be kept and exhibited. From the outset, this architecture museum, one of the forerunners of the Netherlands Architecture Institute and thus of Het Nieuwe Instituut, wanted a study collection consisting of artistic sketches and attractive presentation material. Even today, there are architects who, when handing over their archives, retroactively sign designs or curate the handover, thereby preserving the architect's status as an artist.

The art-historical and architectural historical perspectives have also contributed to the appreciation of the original. As well as architects, historians of art and of architecture also attached great importance to artistic and attractive design material. This interest was partly motivated by practical considerations, in order to connect with the general public at exhibitions through the presentation of attractive and readable drawings. Art and architecture history's emphasis on the history of aesthetics and artistry also played an important role in establishing the status of the original. The influence of this paradigm is apparent in Het Nieuwe Instituut's approach to collecting, inherited from its predecessor, the Netherlands Architecture Institute, founded in 1988. The institute collects the architect's design process, thus entire archives. But donors and collectors alike primarily identify a creative design process with artistic sketches and attractive presentation drawings.

The evaluation model above is a guideline for the organisation, access, conservation, digitisation and display of archival material. Archives are often accessed linearly (chronologically), from preliminary to final designs, from initial sketches to the specification phase, and with a distinction between primary (hand-drawn sketches and presentation drawings) and secondary and documentary archive material (reproductions, photographs and documentation). This is logical, given that architects organise and transfer their archives using this structure.

Most archives and archival descriptions are therefore arranged chronologically, for both the donor and the archive collector, and distinguish between artistically and visually attractive drawings, referred to as originals, and the work archive, which consists of reproductions or copies. This understandable choice has far-reaching consequences for how we view the work archive. It is considered less artistic and less original, so lower in status, with less attention paid to the role of reproductions in the design process and the enormous variety of types of reproductions. Incidentally, this valuation is also facilitated by the nature of the material itself: reproductions don't have the right appearance. At first glance, reproductions are artistically unattractive and often resemble one another, making it time-consuming to study them seriously and interpret their role in the design process.

The fact that reproductions often relate to building techniques, specifications and construction drawings certainly also plays a role in this difficulty. For non-architects, reproductions are challenging to read and recognise a creative activity. This is in contrast to presentation drawings and beautiful sketch materials, to which we can relate without much knowledge or extensive study. Despite or perhaps because of this one-sided perspective, most copies in the Het Nieuwe Instituut's collection of archives are regarded as less valuable and inferior. For example, copies are more often disposed of, rarely selected for the search portal, and rarely appear in exhibitions or archive presentations.

In this first phase of the research, we focused on the following questions: who introduced these reproduction systems into the architectural design practice and design process, and when, how and why? We used four research methods:

• An analysis, carried out in Het Nieuwe Instituut's archives, of analogue reproductions in the design process
• An investigation into the introduction, evaluation and use of analogue reproductions in primary sources
• Research through oral history into consumers' and designers' experiences of analogue reproduction methods.
• Research using close reading.

At what stage in the design process are analogue reproduction techniques used? Drawn designs, correspondence and documentation concerning the design are sources of research. We define the design process broadly, from the first sketch to the preliminary design, final design, specifications, implementation drawings, publication drawings and presentation drawings. By placing the reproductions chronologically in this chain of documents and naming the function of the reproduction in the design process, we hope to gain insights into changes in the design due to the reproduction technique, the relationship with the 'original', the relationship with other reproductions and the role of the reproduction in the design process.

The research from the point of view of design practice consists of consulting primary written sources, such as magazines, architectural handbooks, product catalogues, plan explanations and publications published at the time and which we can assume contributed to the formation of a collective opinion. How did architects think and write about the new photographic copying possibilities at the time? From which disciplines did this knowledge originate? Why did architects embrace this reproduction technique in droves? Have reproduction methods influenced how information is designed, communicated and archived? What definitions did architects give to originals and reproductions? How did they perceive the interrelationships?

The Invented from Copies study employs various oral history techniques. The research started with a collective moment shared with the public. In the Research Centre, surrounded by various reproduction types, we explored the role of reproduction in the design process with those involved and interested in this subject. In September 2020, an episode of Archive Explorations focused on the cross-disciplinary relationships between the use of zips in the 1970s in architectural design, animation and graphic design. We also interviewed former employees at architectural companies and reproduction companies, such as OCE, to collect, refine and test our knowledge and interpretations of copying processes and design and visualisation techniques.

Large numbers of reproductions and a high degree of uniformity invite close reading and comparison. This is the only way to notice differences, interpret them and relate them to each other on a larger scale. Reproductions require different ways of looking and examining than artistic sketches or presentation drawings, whose overall impression offers an easy understanding and needs no other documents for interpretation. With a copy and reproduction, it is precisely the details, such as annotations, a shifted line, a new colour, a question mark, a blemish or a different font, that reveal something about the copy's use and meaning in the design process. Such details and interrelationships mainly reveal themselves through close reading and comparison with contextual documents.

The Invented from Copies study is still in progress and will continue in 2022-23. Nevertheless, we can outline the first insights, which will also inform further research.

The photographic reproduction technique was introduced into architectural design practice around 1870 and had significant consequences. For the first time, architects could copy an architectural design without manual drawing and engraving. In a relatively short period, a giant leap forward was made in the production and distribution of the architectural design by means of blueprints, photoreproductive prints, Vandyke prints and electrostatic prints, whether or not combined with zips. The archives of Het Nieuwe Instituut thus contain many varieties of reproduction. Although we have never counted them, our research suggests at least half of the 1.5 million drawings are reproductions and copies, mixed media, or made and drawn for reproduction purposes.

This common practice of reproduction persisted well into the 1990s. Although design culture has almost wholly succumbed to digitisation, more recent archives show that some architectural companies, such as Michael van Gessel, de ArchitectenCie and OMA, still use analogue reproduction techniques as part of the design and thinking process. Therefore, this analogue reproduction practice has proved its endurance because it forms the DNA of Het Nieuwe Instituut's collection of analogue archives. The archive would not have existed in this form had architects not embraced the various photographic reproduction techniques so widely.

We shall continue the archival research into blueprints, photoreproductive prints and zips in 2023. We shall then investigate what role analogue reproductions have had in the design process based on specific cases.

We shall also frame this historical research in the context of current and external perspectives. We aim to broaden, supplement or change the existing conceptual framework regarding reproductions. What topical issues inform our curiosity about architectural reproduction? Does a new look at history yield a different interpretation of current developments, such as digitising the design process? How do analogue reproduction techniques, such as blueprints and photoreproductive prints, function in contemporary art practice? The third perspective concerns perceptions of the copy in the context of cultural anthropology. Reproduction systems are not value-free systems. In a capitalist system, they are often coercive and inescapable, and in dictatorial and colonial systems, such as the former Dutch East Indies, they are instruments for exercising power. In this context, Invented from Copies, together with the OCE archive in Venlo, has started exploring sources related to the role of photoreproductive prints a and reproduced designs in the colonisation of the former Dutch East Indies.

From 2021 to 2024, several research outcomes will feature in the presentations and publications below:

• Conservator Clara Stille-Haardt on the introduction of the photoreproductive prints into architectural practice (February 2022);
• Conservator Ellen Smit on the introduction of zips in architectural practice (April 2022);
• Conservator Hetty Berens in Archive Explorations (an edition of Thursday Night Live!) on the relationship between the blueprint and artistic practice;
• A contribution to the Salon of MVRDV about copy-pasting in architectural design practice;
• An introduction to architectural archives in the Schadeatlas Ontwerptekeningen (Damage Atlas Design Drawings) publication in collaboration with Hoogduin paper conservators;
• A presentation at the Disclosing Architecture symposium (2022);
• A contribution to a new vision on the collection policy of Het Nieuwe Instituut.