Bonington Vitrines #26: The Aimless Archive – Suggested Starting Points
We’re delighted to invite Hull based The Aimless Archive to deliver the 26th instalment of our Bonington Vitrines programme.
Suggested Starting Points is an exhibition that builds upon a single afternoon The Aimless Archive (TAA) spent in the Bonington Gallery archives.
Each item selected operates as an invitation for the audience to contribute to the exhibition, which can be done via open apertures cut into one of the Vitrines on display. Within this format, TAA aim to question the things that grab attention and what those things can be a catalyst for – reimagining the archive as a place for quick decisions and instinct, and not a place of exhaustion.
This exhibition will expand to include the Bonington Archive Cabinet in the form of Notes Toward Suggested Starting Points, where a collection of papers and notebooks generated by TAA will lay bare the process behind the presentation in the Vitrines.
—
The invitation to TAA to make a project with us follows an extensive (and still ongoing) period of organisation of Bonington Gallery’s own 50+ year archive. By bringing external voices into this work, we hope to analyse, question and potentially disrupt inherited processes and attitudes towards the organisation of historical materials. We hope to explore methods for how archives can be activated in ways that better match their often more subjective origins.
Person 'posting' their contribution into the vitrinePerson using the received stamp when submitting their contribution Interpretation text inside the cabinetInterpretation text inside the cabinetDetails of workbooks used in the initial research phase for "Suggested Starting points"Details of workbooks used in the initial research phase for "Suggested Starting points"Details of workbooks used in the initial research phase for "Suggested Starting points"Installation view of the archive cabinet Installation view of the archive cabinet Installation view of the archive cabinet Detail of the paper tray which people can use to contribute their own piecesDetail of archive material used as a suggested starting point, on top of an archive boxDetail of archive material used as a suggested starting point, on top of an archive boxNote from the Aimless Archive on the exhibition text in the spaceDetail of the "Received" StampDetail of one of the images from the Aimless archive workshop with NTU Fine Art studentsAudience contributionsAudience contributions User submissions and an image from the workshop run by the Aimless Archive with NTU Fine Art studentsNote from the Aimless Archive as to a possible contribution to the vitrinesNote from the Aimless Archive as to a possible contribution to the spaceImage of archive boxes labeled "Misc"Close up of an old course structure flow diagram, one of the prompts as a suggested starting point Installation viewInstallation viewInstallation viewInstallation viewInstallation viewDetail of user contributions to the vitrines. Installation view
Person 'posting' their contribution into the vitrinePerson using the received stamp when submitting their contribution Interpretation text inside the cabinetInterpretation text inside the cabinetDetails of workbooks used in the initial research phase for "Suggested Starting points"Details of workbooks used in the initial research phase for "Suggested Starting points"Details of workbooks used in the initial research phase for "Suggested Starting points"Installation view of the archive cabinet Installation view of the archive cabinet Installation view of the archive cabinet Detail of the paper tray which people can use to contribute their own piecesDetail of archive material used as a suggested starting point, on top of an archive boxDetail of archive material used as a suggested starting point, on top of an archive boxNote from the Aimless Archive on the exhibition text in the spaceDetail of the "Received" StampDetail of one of the images from the Aimless archive workshop with NTU Fine Art studentsAudience contributionsAudience contributions User submissions and an image from the workshop run by the Aimless Archive with NTU Fine Art studentsNote from the Aimless Archive as to a possible contribution to the vitrinesNote from the Aimless Archive as to a possible contribution to the spaceImage of archive boxes labeled "Misc"Close up of an old course structure flow diagram, one of the prompts as a suggested starting point Installation viewInstallation viewInstallation viewInstallation viewInstallation viewDetail of user contributions to the vitrines. Installation view
The Aimless Archive works across text – conversation – performance – collecting. It questions what we keep and what we get rid of by generating starting points for new and collaborative work, building archives as places for reflection and evaluation, and presenting unfinished and ongoing work. Repeatedly working in the area where artists and audiences meet, outcomes often take the form of (a book – a box – a by-product) or (a workshop – a scanned doc – a re-drafted piece of writing). The Aimless Archive on Instagram.
Launch event Book your free ticket to attend the launch event for this exhibition at 6 pm on Friday 17 January 2025.
The School For Lovers was an exhibition by Sharon Kivland, which took place in November 1998. The title of the new photographic installations by Sharon Kivland is taken from Mozart’s […]
Sensitive skin a season of interdisciplinary arts Future Factory, within the School of Art and Design at Nottingham Trent University, is proud to present the 7th Sensitive Skin season of performance and live art. Taking […]
Bonington Vitrines #15: Nomadic Vitrine with Mick Peter
Sat 15 Feb 2020 - Sat 28 Mar 2020
Just outside the gallery, you’ll find the Bonington Vitrines – two display cases that present an ever-changing series of projects that run alongside our exhibitions. For the 15th instalment of […]