The Archive in Exhibition Making: Material, Concept and Strategy

This article explores the creative use of the archive as material, concept and strategy in recent curatorial experiments: Harrell Fletcher’s The American War (2005–2007), Jens Hoffmann’s trilogy exhibitions (2008–2010), and Massimiliano Gioni’s 10,000 Lives (2010). Through the unconventional use of curatorial methods that emphasize materiality and spatial interaction, that mix artworks and documents, and include ephemeral and vernacular artifacts, these exhibitions activate rich social, political and theoretical links.