Symposium - Small Archives Thinking Collectively

Small archives do not have a specific size but are usually run by one or two people with archiving as one task among several and/or as a part-time position. Small archives vary in scope and quality and usually have very limited financial resources, especially when the art institute does not have a ‘formal’ collection. In this symposium we want to reflect on how we can share resources to enhance our archiving practices, from the point of view of small or medium non-collecting art spaces. It is a moment to gather resources from how we each operate, how we want to develop our archives and how we reach the public. Because, without people using these archives, all they are are storage spaces for boxes.

We will start this program with a keynote lecture to ground us in the theoretical, ethical and political issues related to small archives. Different initiatives, archivists and professionals will be in attendance and will then give insight into their practice. We will finish with a conversation between participants, to share our knowledge and experience so that we can collectively further the accessibility of our archives.

The aims of this symposium are to facilitate connections between archivists of small archives, to think about the politics of the archive, and to solidify ways in which we can help each other in the future.

Program:

Keynote Lecture Theoretical, ethical, and political considerations of small archives: Clémentine Deliss (Curator at Large, KANAL-Centre Pompidou, Brussels; Guest Professor, KABK & KANAL-Centre Pompidou, Brussels; Global Humanities Professor, University of Cambridge)

Presentations by:

Mariana Lanari & Remco van Bladel (Archival Consciousness)

Nell Donkers (de Appel)

Evie Evans (Framer Framed)

Isabelle Sully (A Tale of a Tub)

Closing Conversation: Participants share knowledge and experiences to collectively enhance the accessibility of small archives