Archives by Artists

Institutions commonly act as the repository for documents, images and archives. What happens when artists assume that role, and turn the archive into a creative medium? Archives by Artists presents a diverse range of strategies used by artists to explore and imaginatively reconceive the archive. Their works contain items typically found in an archive, such as photos, postcards, letters, maps and newsclippings, but also unconventional items such as smells and sounds. These eclectic archives illuminate the artists' own art and practice, reflect upon the notions of community and social networks, revisit historical events, examine timely themes about memory and preservation, as well as question the nature and dynamics of the archive itself. Archives by Artists presents not only visual artists who have deployed the archive as a medium in their practice, but also printmakers, poets, performance artists, dancers, musicians and filmmakers.  

At Galerie UQO, ten vitrines reveal different aspects of artist-based archives. These works appropriate the look and feel of the archive to make it a capacious platform for reflection, expression and critique. The exhibition's roster includes Canadian and international artists, with works from the 1960s to today: Ioannis Anastasiou & Majka Dokudowicz, Aiden Bettine, Joseph Beuys, Christian Boltanski, Nick Cave & Bob Faust, Amanda Chestnut, William N. Copley, Dora García, Ilya Kabakov, Joseph Kosuth, Kiran Kumār, Lefevre Jean Claude, Kiwi Menrath, Charlotte Moorman, Tammy Nguyen, Sophie Nys, Jürgen O. Olbrich, Carlos Soto Román, Dieter Roth, Vicky Sabourin, Vilma Samulionytė, Camille Turner & Yaniya Lee, Danh Vō, and Laurie Young. Besides artists' multiples, the exhibition features videos, wallworks, and an installation with a free take-away. Each week selected multiples will be available for visitors to examine, providing the opportunity for personal, hands-on engagement.

This exhibition is an initiative of Mélanie Boucher and Marie-Hélène Leblanc. It is jointly produced by Galerie UQO, the Team Art and museum (FRQ 2022-2026) and CIÉCO Research and Inquiry Group’s New Uses of Collections in Art Museums Partnership (SSHRC 2021-2028). The exhibition is also supported by the Université du Québec en Outaouais and York University.