Unlike unrealized architectural projects, which are frequently exhibited and circulated, unrealized artworks tend to remain unnoticed or little known. But perhaps there is another form of artistic agency in the partial expression, the incomplete idea, the projection of a mere intention? Agency of Unrealized Projects (AUP) seeks to document and display these works. Whether censored, forgotten, postponed, impossible, or rejected, unrealized projects form a unique testament to the speculative power of non-action.

AUP follows the publication entitled “Unbuilt Roads: 107 Unrealized Projects,” collated by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Guy Tortosa after several years of international research conducted in the late 1990s. Twenty years later, the Agency of Unrealized Projects was formed in collaboration with Julieta Aranda and Anton Vidokle, and an open call for unrealized projects was issued for its first public exhibition at ArtBasel in 2011. The open call will continue until all unrealized art projects are compiled.

Visual Poem: Cap I Cua - Joan Brossa

Chen H.V.O + G.T. - Bertrand Lavier

Dog Jaw Monument - A Futurist Tele-introject - Leon Golub

Placid Earth: A Project for the Meeting of Millennia - Cai Guo Quiang

Electronic Theater - Laurie Anderson

Eislandschaft - P. Fischli und D. Weiss

Uncompleted 1966 - and on  - John Armleder

Project for the Initiative Mahnmal Homosexuellenverfolgung, Frankfurt  - Jeff Wall

Proposal for a permanent video installation for the NYC headquarters of Sony Corporation - Dara Birnbaum

654 THINGS from The United States - Edward Ruscha

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
#
Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W3861
19.05.2011
Social Housing Concept - PRINZGAU/podgorschek
WWW
Um das Jahr 2000 gab es in Wien die Diskussion wieweit man den Gemeindebau für MigrantInnen öffnen soll. Mit einem Schlag wurde das Wiener Herz in tiefster Seele getroffen und ein heftiges Für und Wider entbrannte. Im Zuge der Geschehnisse legte ...
Um das Jahr 2000 gab es in Wien die Diskussion wieweit man den Gemeindebau für MigrantInnen öffnen soll. Mit einem Schlag wurde das Wiener Herz in tiefster Seele getroffen und ein heftiges Für und Wider entbrannte. Im Zuge der Geschehnisse legte ...
W4080
23.05.2011
Photorécepteurs - Kasia Ozga
WWW
Description du Projet – Photorécepteurs Pour le projet participatif, Photorécepteurs, je souhaite travailler sur des images en grand format des yeux des habitants de la Ville de _________. Un photorécepteur peut désigner un neurone sensoriel sens ...
Description du Projet – Photorécepteurs Pour le projet participatif, Photorécepteurs, je souhaite travailler sur des images en grand format des yeux des habitants de la Ville de _________. Un photorécepteur peut désigner un neurone sensoriel sens ...
W4820
07.08.2012
Pablo Jansana
WWW
People are normalized by depiction. It situates them in positions that, with the passing of time, become identities. Reality requires repetition in order for meaning to settle and artworks help to reinforce these positions. The supremacy of men over women ...
People are normalized by depiction. It situates them in positions that, with the passing of time, become identities. Reality requires repetition in order for meaning to settle and artworks help to reinforce these positions. The supremacy of men over women ...
W4305
24.05.2011
BENEATH SAND AND SEA - Holger C. Lönze
WWW
BENEATH SAND AND SEA INTRODUCTION The proposed project is set within the physical and social context of Portobello Beach and intends to bring an aspect of the area’s hidden history back out into the light. It focuses on the historic Portobello Harbo ...
BENEATH SAND AND SEA INTRODUCTION The proposed project is set within the physical and social context of Portobello Beach and intends to bring an aspect of the area’s hidden history back out into the light. It focuses on the historic Portobello Harbo ...
W5412
20.10.2012
THE ISLAND PROJECT - Pietro Mele
WWW
PIETRO MELE The Island Project Multimedia project I am going to start a campaign of fund raising so as to purchase the private Island of Budelli* for giving it to the Sardinian Government. Despite the island is part of the highly protected La Madda ...
PIETRO MELE The Island Project Multimedia project I am going to start a campaign of fund raising so as to purchase the private Island of Budelli* for giving it to the Sardinian Government. Despite the island is part of the highly protected La Madda ...
W4906
13.08.2012
US Dollar Incense - Christian Burnoski
WWW
Unrealized project for AUP archive submission: US Dollar Incense, 2010 Christian Burnoski Description The concept is to make incense-sticks from US dollars, which would cost as much as the number of bills used in making the incense, so that th ...
Unrealized project for AUP archive submission: US Dollar Incense, 2010 Christian Burnoski Description The concept is to make incense-sticks from US dollars, which would cost as much as the number of bills used in making the incense, so that th ...
W3870
19.05.2011
Small room of expression - erik mavrič
WWW
Description of the project The idea of the project is making structures that are based on the interference between the flat surface and light source. An intense light will be directed at the surface which will be positioned against the wall. The projec ...
Description of the project The idea of the project is making structures that are based on the interference between the flat surface and light source. An intense light will be directed at the surface which will be positioned against the wall. The projec ...
W4172
24.05.2011
The Neverending Fence - Tom Butler
WWW
Statement for The Agency Of Unrealized Projects I use found postcards as miniature environments for sinister and fantastical scenarios. These proposals are not intended be realized and are also distanced from us by the age of the postcard, the only pl ...
Statement for The Agency Of Unrealized Projects I use found postcards as miniature environments for sinister and fantastical scenarios. These proposals are not intended be realized and are also distanced from us by the age of the postcard, the only pl ...
W4498
25.05.2011
Elaine Leader
WWW
Proposal Model for Installation – Sensor activated walls that move back and forth alternately in the space very slowly using an automatic gate mechanism, dissecting the space and controlling the movement of the viewer within it, creating a disruption of ...
Proposal Model for Installation – Sensor activated walls that move back and forth alternately in the space very slowly using an automatic gate mechanism, dissecting the space and controlling the movement of the viewer within it, creating a disruption of ...
W4722
26.05.2011
Broc Blegen
WWW
This is a proposal for a people's memorial in response to Hurricane Katrina, in which absurdly tall sandbag walls are built around important US flag poles across the city. The sandbags would be filled and stacked by each local community during day-long.. ...
This is a proposal for a people's memorial in response to Hurricane Katrina, in which absurdly tall sandbag walls are built around important US flag poles across the city. The sandbags would be filled and stacked by each local community during day-long.. ...
W4573
25.05.2011
Emily Puthoff
WWW
W4483
25.05.2011
Transformation #2 - Samuel Levack and Jennifer Lewandowski
WWW
Transformation #2 2003 Mixed media installation Dimension variable A sculptural installation created as a partial remake of the film 'The Big Blue' (1988). Made up of an assemblage of collected, found and fabricated objects, including hundreds of sh ...
Transformation #2 2003 Mixed media installation Dimension variable A sculptural installation created as a partial remake of the film 'The Big Blue' (1988). Made up of an assemblage of collected, found and fabricated objects, including hundreds of sh ...
W4844
08.08.2012
Oliver Klimpel
WWW
Concept for Urban Intervention / Wayfinding / Local Indication of former Stasi Detention Centre in Berlin-Hohenschönhausen, a compound of the State Security in East-Germany. City of Berlin, invited competition entry, 2006 Shortlisted, Not Realised ...
Concept for Urban Intervention / Wayfinding / Local Indication of former Stasi Detention Centre in Berlin-Hohenschönhausen, a compound of the State Security in East-Germany. City of Berlin, invited competition entry, 2006 Shortlisted, Not Realised ...
W5215
06.10.2012
The Modern Book of Cynics - Luc Messinezis
WWW
I read and at the same time I hear a voice in my head; words about humanity's achievements, of human rights and our unsheathing from the beast. But the voice in my head narrates something different making it impossible to comprehend the exact meaning of t ...
I read and at the same time I hear a voice in my head; words about humanity's achievements, of human rights and our unsheathing from the beast. But the voice in my head narrates something different making it impossible to comprehend the exact meaning of t ...
W3694
16.05.2011
Doppler Symphony - leo fitzmaurice
WWW
Proposal The proposal is to overlay two Doppler Effect * phenomena (change in pitch and volume) onto a piece of music. Process Start with a multi-track recording of a piece of music (one track per instrument) Split each track of the recording ...
Proposal The proposal is to overlay two Doppler Effect * phenomena (change in pitch and volume) onto a piece of music. Process Start with a multi-track recording of a piece of music (one track per instrument) Split each track of the recording ...
W5320
18.10.2012
Strike Nº0 - Thiago Parizi
WWW
05.2010 The project entitled “Strike Nº0” is composed of a group of helium balloons attached to the handle of a shovel, floating it above the ground. Suspending it until the object is brought again to the floor given the slight leaking of the heli ...
05.2010 The project entitled “Strike Nº0” is composed of a group of helium balloons attached to the handle of a shovel, floating it above the ground. Suspending it until the object is brought again to the floor given the slight leaking of the heli ...
W5175
26.09.2012
Action Office III - Geissler Sann
WWW
Action Office III The first cubicles were designed in 1967 by Robert Propst. The purpose was to give the workers more privacy, to isolate them from sights and noises of an open workspace. Probst consulted for his research mathematicians, behavioral psych ...
Action Office III The first cubicles were designed in 1967 by Robert Propst. The purpose was to give the workers more privacy, to isolate them from sights and noises of an open workspace. Probst consulted for his research mathematicians, behavioral psych ...
W4746
26.05.2011
Freiheits- und Einheitsdenkmal - Rafael Schmidt, RAFAA
WWW
Freiheits- und Einheitsdenkmal Berlin Competition In the autumn of 1989, a growing number of courageous citizens in many cities of the GDR conquered their fear and rose against the totalitarian regime of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). ...
Freiheits- und Einheitsdenkmal Berlin Competition In the autumn of 1989, a growing number of courageous citizens in many cities of the GDR conquered their fear and rose against the totalitarian regime of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). ...
W4293
24.05.2011
BATIBURRILLO(S) - BATIBURRILLOS
WWW
BATIBURRILLO(S) According to the Dictionary of the Royal Academy of Spanish Language (RAE) ‘Batiburrillo(s)’ means: 1. m. Mezcla de cosas, especialmente de guisados, que no dicen bien unas con otras. 1. m. Mixture of things, especially stews, t ...
BATIBURRILLO(S) According to the Dictionary of the Royal Academy of Spanish Language (RAE) ‘Batiburrillo(s)’ means: 1. m. Mezcla de cosas, especialmente de guisados, que no dicen bien unas con otras. 1. m. Mixture of things, especially stews, t ...
W3617
14.05.2011
WHAT A BEAUTY: A WORKING POEM - jillian mayer
WWW
Aprox run time: 8 min. Synopsis: Performance based around a volcano constructed from paper mache. Set to a pre-recorded audio poem with interactive components. Materials: Paper Mache Volcano, speakers,pre-precorded poem, amplifying device, pre-pr ...
Aprox run time: 8 min. Synopsis: Performance based around a volcano constructed from paper mache. Set to a pre-recorded audio poem with interactive components. Materials: Paper Mache Volcano, speakers,pre-precorded poem, amplifying device, pre-pr ...
W4202
24.05.2011
The Eisenstein Project - janet hodgson
WWW
BATH SPA STATION - DAY A trolley with high wire-mesh sides stands on the platform, and propped inside is a crate - it’s big enough to contain an adult but doesn’t look like a coffin. A large consignment note is pasted on to it. It’s in Russian: an ...
BATH SPA STATION - DAY A trolley with high wire-mesh sides stands on the platform, and propped inside is a crate - it’s big enough to contain an adult but doesn’t look like a coffin. A large consignment note is pasted on to it. It’s in Russian: an ...
W4780
03.06.2011
Emily Lockren
WWW
I have attached one collage and one edited image of unrealized artwork based around the idea of my paintings displayed on a bookshelf with only the edges visible like the spines of books. I envisioned a library of paintings, but never had the rescources t ...
I have attached one collage and one edited image of unrealized artwork based around the idea of my paintings displayed on a bookshelf with only the edges visible like the spines of books. I envisioned a library of paintings, but never had the rescources t ...
U9747
01.01.1968
A House of Dust - Alison Knowles
Unbuilt Roads
The House of Dust was first a computer poem using fortran language. The quatrains are all different, each line randomly connected. The form shifting categories for the house are: the material of manufature, the locations the light source and the inhabitan ...
The House of Dust was first a computer poem using fortran language. The quatrains are all different, each line randomly connected. The form shifting categories for the house are: the material of manufature, the locations the light source and the inhabitan ...
W5473
21.10.2012
On Recalling - Rodrigo Hgz
WWW
In this initiative, I sought companies (corporations) and organizations that held in their name a twisted pride on our colonial past in Canada. The companies closed down long ago, but the pride in their names expressed a perspective that has been collecti ...
In this initiative, I sought companies (corporations) and organizations that held in their name a twisted pride on our colonial past in Canada. The companies closed down long ago, but the pride in their names expressed a perspective that has been collecti ...
W4162
23.05.2011
Claire Ferguson
WWW
a man catches a glimpse of a woman. he thinks of her for a few seconds and then doesn’t. she is just someone he has seen. some time later, he sees her again. this time for longer. only for a few seconds longer. he thinks about her for longer. at first, ...
a man catches a glimpse of a woman. he thinks of her for a few seconds and then doesn’t. she is just someone he has seen. some time later, he sees her again. this time for longer. only for a few seconds longer. he thinks about her for longer. at first, ...
W4205
24.05.2011
Dublin girl sells soul for drugs  - Catherine Harty
WWW
One of my many unrealized projects A number of years ago I saw a headline on the front of an evening paper. It read ‘Dublin girl sells soul for drugs’. Its a phrase which stayed with me, it generated an image in my mind of a track- suit glad young ...
One of my many unrealized projects A number of years ago I saw a headline on the front of an evening paper. It read ‘Dublin girl sells soul for drugs’. Its a phrase which stayed with me, it generated an image in my mind of a track- suit glad young ...