The ADiA section of the Academy is dedicated to “law and art” and aims to enhance the interdisciplinary study between the law and the protection of cultural heritage. The section “law and art” includes a number of professionals from a number of sectors (e.g. archaeology, archive administration, art history, economics, history, law, museology, numismatics, sociology) and from different Italian and European universities and academies. The collaboration between DISTU Department professors and other institutions has educational goals and supports research and interaction with the non-academic world, particularly with industry professionals and with bodies and institutions responsible for the preservation of cultural heritage.

Within such framework, ADiA is divided into three separate subsections with their independent fields of study:

  • Circulation of cultural goods in the Euro-Mediterranean area:
  1. Considering there is no uniformity of law as for the export of cultural goods within the European borders, this sub-section provides contrastive studies taking stock of the situation.
  2. In many countries with ongoing armed conflicts, we are witnessing the raise of indiscriminate destruction of archaeological and artistic heritage, including precious finds of Islamic and Buddhist arts. The seriousness of what has been happening requires urgent reflection on international policies, regulations and protocols for the protection of cultural heritage as a whole in the event of a conflict.

 

  • Safeguard of contemporary art:
    Which rights EU policies guarantee to contemporary art and what type of sustainable conservation is reserved to more fragile areas in and out of Europe? What actions are taken to promote modern times creativity? What forms of censorship are still in place due to ideological, political, religious intolerance? This sub-section draws from these questions to carry out a contrastive analysis of the solutions which each national legal system in Europe is attempting to find. The importance of highlighting modern times features in the process of rehabilitation of cultural heritage as well as the reflection on what has been done so far can certainly help raise awareness of the idea of a living heritage which is not solely confined to the preservation process but is also enriched with modern times creativity.

 

  • Copyright issues in the Digital Era:
    This sub-section aims to investigate both peculiarities and limits of authorship and copyright in the arts (e.g. audiovisual, performing, literary etc.) as thought of in the digital environment, particularly with regards to those geographical and cultural areas pertaining to the Euro-Mediterranean zone.