Christian Scheidemann

Christian Scheidemann is an Honorary Professor of Preservation of Contemporary Art at the Hamburg University of Fine Arts (HFBK). He is a renowned conservator and founder of Contemporary Conservation, a New York-based studio specializing in preserving complex contemporary artworks using innovative methodologies. His research focuses on material authenticity, ritual contexts in artistic processes, and cross-cultural approaches to care and repair in art conservation. Scheidemann has collaborated with prominent artists since the 1990s, addressing non-traditional materials such as Robert Gober's doughnuts, Chris Ofili's elephant dung, and Zoe Leonard's fruit peels. He served as a research fellow and lead conservator on the University of Chicago's project conserving Wolf Vostell's Concrete Traffic (1970) and has taught philosophical principles in art conservation as a visiting professor at the University of Chicago since 2022.

His academic work bridges artistic practice and theoretical inquiry, emphasizing ethical considerations in conservation and the socio-cultural dimensions of material preservation. Scheidemann's contributions have been presented in numerous lectures and publications, addressing topics like authenticity in contemporary art and the intersection of conservation with artistic intent.