Artropolis 1997 sous-fonds

Sous-fonds consists of records relating to the planning, administrative, fundraising, promotional, documentary, and curatorial activities of the A.T. Eight Artropolis Society for the Artropolis 97 exhibition.

The records are arranged into the four following series:

1. General documents series (6-4.1)
2. Exhibition series (6-4.2)
3. Printed matter series (6-4.3)
4. Artwork series (6-4.4)

The fourth Artropolis exhibition, entitled Browser: Artropolis 97, was held from October 25 to November 23, 1997, at the Roundhouse Community Centre, 181 Roundhouse Mews—established as a cultural centre following Artropolis 90. The exhibition featured 268 artists in an exhibition space of approximately 7,000 square feet.

Artropolis 97's concept was an exhibition constructed as an archive or vice versa. Artists' submissions had to fit into a grey Hollinger archival box. The intention was to emphasize artists' practice, by having submissions include elements that inspired, suggested or generated artworks. It was also to be an inclusive exhibition; organizers wished to accommodate every artist who submitted a consignment. Viewers were encouraged to sit and think about the artistic process, by browsing through a database and examining artworks and related materials. Viewers could search the database by name and subject terms, or by descriptions of artists' works or collections. Descriptions included a consignment/container number, name(s) of the creator(s), title, physical description, a brief biographical statement, a scope and content note, notes about artist statements or unusual aspects of the material, and a photograph of the container's contents. Viewers could then fill out a form to request individual consignments, which they would then examine at study tables. Curatorial interventions were facilitated through small daily displays of the exhibition materials. The Browser Artropolis 97 catalogue is available as a CD-ROM.

The A.T. Eight Artropolis Society personnel consisted of a board of directors, curators, a project manager, an archivist, exhibition designers, and a volunteer co-ordinator.