For about a month now, the Archivorum team has been curating a bibliography dedicated to “dynamic archives“ with the aim of creating a mini-library accessible to the general public. Currently, the idea is to gather the works at the Galleria Continua in Paris to make them available to the public, especially to the students who have won the Treasures of Time competition instituted by Archivorum.
By “dynamic archives“ we mean archives that are never complete, transforming and adapting to the vicissitudes of their time. They encompass both digital and physical objects, traditionally excluded from classical archives. Unlike static archives, which are mere frozen copies of data at a given moment, dynamic archives allow for more flexible and intuitive navigation and interaction with the data.
The Archivorum team discussing the bibliography (July 29th 2024).
In truth, few works specifically address the concept of “dynamic archives“. Nevertheless, we have built this bibliography with the guiding principles of the concept in mind: questioning, transformation, the “anti-conventional“ and innovation.
For now, the bibliography comprises around thirty works, divided into four carefully defined categories:
1. Historical
This section brings together “classics“ on the history of archives and the very notion of archives from a primarily philosophical perspective. It includes essential thinkers on the subject, such as Jacques Derrida with his “archive fever“ describing an obsession with the conservation and organization of archives, Umberto Eco and his “o en work“ emphasizing the interaction between the author, the work, and the reader, and Michel Foucault, who examines systems of thought and discourse – a crucial work for understanding the underlying structures of archives and their role in the formation of knowledge.
2. Present-Dynamic Archive
This section aligns most closely with the concept of “dynamic archives“. We focused on recent works that question the notion of archives and open new possibilities for the project with each of our artists. How does one create an archive in 2024? What does an archive hide and reveal? What are its gaps or absences? How can we rethink the archive? We sought to gather works that reflect current trends in archival science, emphasizing adaptation to digital technologies, exploring new conceptual approaches (such as dynamic archives), and expanding the scope of archival practices to various fields of research and creation.
3. Artist’s Thoughts on Archive
For this section, we examined the notion of archives from the artists' perspective. How do they conceive archives and how do they envision an artist's archive? Our bibliography highlights how artists and researchers explore new ways of interacting with archives, interpreting them, and using them as sources of creative inspiration. The works address both the practical aspects of archiving in the artistic context and the theoretical and conceptual implications of using archives in contemporary art.
4. Children
Finally, from the outset, we wanted to make this archive accessible to the widest audience possible, so we also included books for children and young adolescents. It was more challenging to find works directly related to archives, but thanks to Stephen (thank you!), we found some fantastic titles that can serve as an introduction to the concepts of preservation and heritage – both personal and national. I will not reveal all the titles in the bibliography just yet, but rest assured that we will share it with you once it is complete.
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