Writing the Archive

Why should we make art from the archive? Why should we care? How can creativity serve history and vice versa? How do we write into the gaps left by history? What happens when artefacts are removed from their cultural contexts and audiences? Where does the line between poetry, history and myth sit? How does all this sit with our understanding of national memory and education?

We will be writing from research exercises based on the archival sources within the gallery. The participants will identify areas of silenced or marginalised narratives within the archive and creatively respond to them. The morning will be spent utilising writing techniques that best problematise the language of the archive, that help give voice to silenced narratives. The afternoon will be spent putting these techniques into practice along with mixed-media approaches to archive work.