An Archival Impulse
In An Archival Impulse, Hal Foster discusses how the archive is once again a popular form of art making since it first emerged in the pre-war period. Archival art is often historically based, with artists wanting to physically present lost or forgotten infomation. This can take numerous forms with most artists tening towards installation.
Foster makes reference to the artworks of Thomas Hirschhorn, Tacita Dean and Sam Durant who all work with the archive in completely different ways. This shows the diversity in which the archive can be sed, researched and presented. Hirschhorn works in public spaces creating his sculptures, altart, kiosks and monuments and aims to "connect what can not be connected." Dean finds neglected historical stories and follows them up or re-enacts them and often her work is unfinished or ongoing and the findings of her exploration. She is ofter drawn to stories of abandonment and failure, the opposite of Hirschhorn whose art rotates around known cultural figures such as artists and writers. Durant shows the struggle between the upper class of design and the working class through multiple mediums (drawing, photography, sculpture, sound, video and installation) and presents these in an unpredictable way.
Ultimately that are all searching and trying to piece together their own parts of the world. To bring together infomation, find the missing pieces and their art making is a collection, combination or ramification of this infomation.
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