Decolonising Archives 2021
A range of critical decolonial perspectives on collections practice authored by our 2021 researchers in residence Dr Alice Correia, Hannah C. Jones, Nina Trivedi and Michelle Williams Gamaker.
Dr Alice Correia
"Place of Birth Unavailable" British-South Asian Women Artists and the Archive
Dr Alice Correia is an independent art historian and co-Chair of the British Art Network’s Black British Art Research Group.
In this paper she approaches information missing from the archives, enquiring if traces of uncatalogued artists could nonetheless be revealed. Working in collaboration with the artists, she focused on the work and archival trace of Symrath Patti and Raksha Patel in the African-Caribbean, Asian and African Art in Britain Archive at UAL’s Chelsea College of Arts.
- Read Alice’s paper: “Place of Birth Unavailable”: British-South Asian Women Artists and the Archive (PDF 255KB)
- Read the booklet: New Recordings: Raksha Patel (PDF 835KB)
- Read the booklet: New Recordings: Symrath Patti (PDF 595KB)
"Place of Birth Unavailable" podcasts
In her podcast series Dr Alice Correia seeks to address the on-going marginalisation of women artists of South Asian heritage within narratives of (Black) British art. She talks to Symrath Patti and Raksha Patel, 2 artists from different generations whose work is documented in the archive.
Episode transcripts
- Read the transcript for Symrath Patti in conversation with Alice Correia (PDF 821KB)
- Read the transcript for Raksha Patel in conversation with Alice Correia (PDF 844KB)
Dr Nina Trivedi
Lost Noise: Exclusions and Gaps in the Her Noise Archive
Nina examines the inclusion and representation of non-binary artists, women of colour, and whiteness in the Her Noise archive at London College of Communication, focusing on the fanzine collections and notes about the initial exhibition.
Working with material storytelling Nina draws inspiration from Saidiya Hartman’s critical fabulation and Ocean Vuong’s fiction writing, using Karen Barad's framework to examine how the Her Noise archive is a living archive.
Read Nina’s research paper:
Explore her fanzines series inspired by the fanzine collection within the Her Noise archive:
Dr Michelle Williams Gamaker
“Knees and Breasts are Mountains”; the art school reimagined
Michelle is an artist, filmmaker and Senior Lecturer in Fine Art at Goldsmiths. With “Knees and Breasts are Mountains” she continues her work in focusing on the experiences of artists of colour at art school.
Working with the Chelsea College of Arts Archive and Henry Moore Archive housed in Chelsea Collections and Archives, she has created a script, combining techniques including speculative fiction and humour. The script delves into the archive and draws on the contributions of artists of colour, to explore the different urgencies of the time.
Read Michelle’s script:
More to explore
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On Land Imaginaries and Dwellings. Tatiana Muringani, M ARCH, Central Saint Martins UAL. UAL Showcase 2021
Decolonising collections
Our curatorial research network residency programme in collaboration with 3 collections partners: Arts Council Collection, British Council Collection and Manchester Art Gallery.
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Simon Tegala, Fustigator, 1996. Commissioned by iniva's x-space
Digital artist in residence
Collaboration with the Institute of International Visual Arts focusing on a specific aspect of its digital materials and online archive.
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Sonia Boyce, Devotional Wallpaper and Placards, 2008-2020. Acquired by the Contemporary Art Society for the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA) through the Rapid Response Fund, 2020.
Decolonising the Arts Institute projects
Explore more of our projects.