@theretheirtheyreshow @ba.design.gold
18-22 JUNE 2026
Unit 8, 133 Copeland Rd, London, SE15 3SN
Unit 8, 133 Copeland Rd, London, SE15 3SN
| Ongoing (,) Becoming (…) (--) (—) (-) (/) (:) (;) (+) |
| Erin Botha |
What does an elephant shaped paperclip from the desert, a 124-year-old newspaper turner, expired Doughnut Time loyalty card, 1987,1998, 2009 and 2015 Bon Jovi Calendars, a postcard of Giovanni di Cosimo I de’ Medici and my dog’s jarred ass hair have in common?
A lot, but that’s beside the point, the real question is does an archive have to be a quiet, stable or obedient thing?
Whilst well-intentioned, archiving often only leads to function being suspended and relevance fixed in the past. Why bother with preservation at all if we’re just assigning an end, and who and what determines if an object and by extension its story, the people, its context and so much more, is worth keeping in the first place?
This project is about reframing archives as points of transition, of ongoing use and reinterpretation, that they are active instead of passive, places where objects can continue to live and be shared with others.
A lot, but that’s beside the point, the real question is does an archive have to be a quiet, stable or obedient thing?
Whilst well-intentioned, archiving often only leads to function being suspended and relevance fixed in the past. Why bother with preservation at all if we’re just assigning an end, and who and what determines if an object and by extension its story, the people, its context and so much more, is worth keeping in the first place?
This project is about reframing archives as points of transition, of ongoing use and reinterpretation, that they are active instead of passive, places where objects can continue to live and be shared with others.
Archive
Regenrative
Stewardship