Keith Wilson built an empty museum-scale display structure, filled by visitors bringing single objects to the exhibition.

Wilson's enquiry had three main strands: into the behind-the-scenes 'everyday' workings of the museum; into the meanings people invest in objects, whether special or ordinary; into the 'studio' of the artist. The exhibition began as an empty sculptural calendar framework occupying the whole ground floor exhibition space. This became the architecture into which members of the public were invited to contribute their objects, which, after being received in person by Wilson were photographed, catalogued and put on open exhibition in a short time frame—a complete reversal of the usual collection-museum relation.

This was the first time a museum opened 'empty', and allowed the collection to walk through the front door, brought by members of the public.

Gathered material subsequently exists as an online collection archive.

Researchers involved

Keith Wilson - Professor of Sculpture

Related projects

British Art Show 7: In the Days of the Comet - This research engaged with the potential for meaning to be generated and...

Modern British Sculpture Royal Academy London - This curatorial research and exhibition was commissioned by The Royal...

Steles Queen Elizabeth Park, London - Commissioned by the Olympic Delivery Authority, this work continues Wilson...