Symposium: History/Reality #3 – Engaging with The Attic Archive
9 April 2025, 9am
Harry Clarke lecture theatre, National College of Art and Design (NCAD)
Free, but booking required
Agenda
09:00 Registration
09:30 Welcome by Donna Romano, Head Librarian at NCAD
09:40 On Autonomous Archiving and Archiving Autonomy. Symposium keynote by Dr Judit Bodor and Dr Roddy Hunter
10:00 Artist books: NCAD student responses to the HIBERNIA archive
10:45 – 11:15 Self-guided tour of artist books in NCAD Gallery Foyer with tea/coffee provided
11:15 Object investigations: NCAD student responses to the HIBERNIA archive
11:40 Field Guide to Sticking Around: Presentations from tutors and students
12:15 Lunch
13:15 Building legacy for artists archives. Presentations and panel discussion with artists Brian Connolly, Sandra Johnston, Alastair MacLennan and Calum Eccleston. Chair: Roddy Hunter.
This panel will focus on four artists’ perspectives on legacy-building for artists’ archives. It will include short presentations by performance artists Brian Connolly, Sandra Johnston, Alastair MacLennan and Calum Eccleston, reflecting on their approaches to archiving. This will be followed by a discussion about the opportunities and challenges involved in creating a legacy for artists’ archives, particularly in relation to ‘dematerialized’ art practices.
15:45 Closing remarks
16:00 End
Join us at the National Irish Visual Arts Library (NIVAL) at NCAD for a very special symposium focusing on legacy-building for artists’ archives. The day’s talks bring together leading performance artists, with contributions from Brian Connolly, Sandra Johnston, Alastair MacLennan and Calum Eccleston as well as art and design students, international archivists and curators to discuss how artists’ archives are built and how they can be engaged with and preserved.
This symposium is hosted by NIVAL as part of a series of HISTORY/REALITY events run by the research network project ‘Curating the Digital Attic Archive: A Case Study For Open-Source Approaches To Artists’ Archives’. Led by Dr Judit Bodor (University of Dundee) and Dr Roddy Hunter (The Glasgow School of Art) and with network partners including the University of Dundee Archives, the National Library of Scotland, and Artpool Art Research Center, Museum of Fine Art, Budapest, this project explores sustainable and decentralised approaches to legacy-building for artists’ archives through the case study of Ha’s work (artist known as Peter Haining when assembling the HIBERNIA archive, held at NIVAL).
We look forward to welcoming all those interested in how artists approach the construction of their own creative archives. Find out more about this event and book your free ticket now through our Eventbrite page.
Who should attend? Artists, designers, educators, curators, arts organisations and institutions, and anyone interested in artists’ archival practices.
Limited seats available – register now!
Plan your visit
See our plan your visit page for how to find NIVAL, a map, access details and more.
Book your place
To reserve your place, book your free ticket through Eventbrite. Please contact us if you have any queries or accessibility requirements and we will assist you.
‘Curating the Digital Attic Archive: A Case Study For Open-Source Approaches To Artists’ Archives’ is funded by a two year Royal Society of Edinburgh Research Network Award.
The organisers gratefully acknowledge the support of NCAD, the Edward Murphy Bequest and the Arts Council of Ireland.
