Dr. David Lowenthal, a boyhood visitor to Chilmark, was recently awarded the 2010 Forbes Prize for conspicuous service to conservation given annually by the Council of the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. The award, presented in Istanbul, Turkey, honors Edward Waldo Forbes, emeritus director of the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University.

Dr. Lowenthal was honored “for 60 years of influential lectures and publications on the significance and problems of conservation, his pioneering efforts in defining conservation goals, his services to national and international heritage agencies and institutions.” These included UNESCO, the International Council on Monuments and Sites, the World Monuments Fund, the Council of Europe, the U.S. National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the National Trust of Australia.

Professor emeritus in the department of geography at University College, London, Dr. Lowenthal is the author of numerous books including The Past Is a Foreign Country and George Perkins Marsh: Prophet of Conservation. His many other writings are largely concerned with landscape tastes and perceptions and the relationship between history and cultural heritage.

On a return Vineyard visit a few years ago, Dr. Lowenthal concluded that although the Vineyard’s landscape had changed relatively little over the years compared with mainland landscapes, care must always be taken when new building is done.

“Any structure on this Island is apt to look at variance with the environment, especially along the Island’s coast . . . The lack of vegetation on the Vineyard is one of its charms, but it also means that any house, to fit in, must be small scale, very low-lying and preferably without startling decoration.”

Dr. Lowenthal now divides his time between London, England and Berkeley, Calif.