Future of the Past
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A01=Thijs Weststeijn
adapting to climate crisis
an awareness of history
and climate-related uncertainty
art and the Anthropocene
art conservation
Author_Thijs Weststeijn
can we use technology to make the climate crisis go away
Category=AB
climate activism and museums
climate change and art
damp
digitize and reconstruct
drought
encountering heritage today involves the delights of art
environment and climate change
eq_art-fashion-photography
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
extreme heat
fires
forthcoming
history of the interaction of art and nature
how do we preserve beauty for the next generations in the age of global warming
how do we protect art and monuments from extreme weather events
how is heritage worldwide threatened by a climate crisis that involves flooding
how much should we care about the loss of artworks and architecture when climate change is also threatening loss of life
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
invasive species and thawing permafrost?
museum studies
preserving heritage in the Global South
rising water levels and beautiful European cities
science and art
storms
three ways to preserve historical heritage in an era of climate change: transform
Venice and climate change
Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring and climate protest
Western heritage
what does climate change mean for art conservation
Product details
- ISBN 9781509567843
- Publication Date: 05 Jun 2026
- Publisher: Polity Press
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Hardback
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As the wooden piles under Amsterdam begin to rot, water levels rise in Venice, and the 4,500-year-old ruins of Mohenjo-daro flood in Pakistan. Compaction of peat soil in northern England is causing Hadrian’s Wall to collapse. The bricks of excavated Babylon are exploding due to increasing salt levels. Melting permafrost in Siberia is endangering the ancient burial mounds of the Scythian civilisation. In the US, hurricanes have partially destroyed the heritage of New Orleans and Puerto Rico, while the 2019 wildfires forced the Getty Museum in Los Angeles to close.
The climate crisis is threatening historical heritage all over the world, with higher temperatures, more storms and fires and, of course, rising water. Monuments, buildings, inner cities and cultural landscapes are at risk, and museums such as the Louvre have already started relocating parts of their collections to climate-proof storage facilities. Written by a highly regarded art historian, The Future of the Past addresses this urgent issue and asks us to include the fate of beauty in our conversations on climate change. Extreme weather means we have to approach history in new ways. Historical heritage now confronts us not only with the past, but also the future.
The climate crisis is threatening historical heritage all over the world, with higher temperatures, more storms and fires and, of course, rising water. Monuments, buildings, inner cities and cultural landscapes are at risk, and museums such as the Louvre have already started relocating parts of their collections to climate-proof storage facilities. Written by a highly regarded art historian, The Future of the Past addresses this urgent issue and asks us to include the fate of beauty in our conversations on climate change. Extreme weather means we have to approach history in new ways. Historical heritage now confronts us not only with the past, but also the future.
Thijs Weststeijn is a Professor of Art History at the University of Utrecht.
