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.

MODELL OF AN OFFICE FOR A COUPLE OF TWINS, BOTH 1,38 TALL" - Tobias Rehrenberg

654 THINGS from The United States - Edward Ruscha

MAK - Wien  - Rosemarie Trockel

Eight Days a Week - Joe Scanlan

Square Depression - Bruce Nauman

AUSSICHTSTURM, HOLZHAUS (WOHNHAUS), SCHWIMMBECKEN, FREIE FAHRT - Maria Eichhorn

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

Catwalk - Sylive Fleury

<A Public Misery Message> - Critical Art Ensemble

den anonymen Tod ausstellen - Gregor Schneider

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
#
Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W5242
09.10.2012
Taking over the sea - Slobodan Stosic
WWW
Slobodan stosic “Taking over the sea” Proposal for land art project This sketch for geopolitical land art project is also a proposal which offers solution for balkan mentality (mostly concerning ex- Yugoslavian countries) which is riven by et ...
Slobodan stosic “Taking over the sea” Proposal for land art project This sketch for geopolitical land art project is also a proposal which offers solution for balkan mentality (mostly concerning ex- Yugoslavian countries) which is riven by et ...
W4497
25.05.2011
“Oil spill La Fenice” - KilMor Prod.
WWW
“Oil spill La Fenice” by KilMor Prod. La Fenice Teatro La Fenice is the biggest opera house in Venice, Italy and one of the most famous theatres in Europe. “La Fenice” means “The Phoenix”. A phoenix is a mythical bird that is a fire spir ...
“Oil spill La Fenice” by KilMor Prod. La Fenice Teatro La Fenice is the biggest opera house in Venice, Italy and one of the most famous theatres in Europe. “La Fenice” means “The Phoenix”. A phoenix is a mythical bird that is a fire spir ...
W4795
14.06.2011
Scott Redford
WWW
I propose that in the spirit of Wikileaks all Hans Ulrich Obrist and Serpentine Gallery notes, documents, papers and files including financial matters be published online. Let's see how the New Curator Romantics who wet their pants over Assange respond to ...
I propose that in the spirit of Wikileaks all Hans Ulrich Obrist and Serpentine Gallery notes, documents, papers and files including financial matters be published online. Let's see how the New Curator Romantics who wet their pants over Assange respond to ...
W4388
25.05.2011
THIS ISA NICE NEIGHBORHOOD - MARTINEZ PETROPOULOS WHITE
WWW
THIS ISA NICE NEIGHBORHOOD Moscone Center/Howard Street Project, San Francisco, CA 1991 Located two blocks south of Market Street, the site is the space between two Convention Centers – six lanes of traffic, with two sets of three lane bus and taxi ...
THIS ISA NICE NEIGHBORHOOD Moscone Center/Howard Street Project, San Francisco, CA 1991 Located two blocks south of Market Street, the site is the space between two Convention Centers – six lanes of traffic, with two sets of three lane bus and taxi ...
W10676
13.08.2014
Structure for Formal and Material Imagination - Scott Massey
WWW
Travel to another dimension has long held our fascination. From Alice’s tentative leap down the rabbit hole, Wade Davis’ experients with the worlds psychotropic flora, or teleporting from the bridge of the Starship Enterprise, exploration of alternat ...
Travel to another dimension has long held our fascination. From Alice’s tentative leap down the rabbit hole, Wade Davis’ experients with the worlds psychotropic flora, or teleporting from the bridge of the Starship Enterprise, exploration of alternat ...
W5069
05.09.2012
National Bank - Assaf Gruber
WWW
National Bank: In April 2009, I contacted the Sport Center of the National Bank of Belgium to submit to them a proposition for an exhibition: We planned to exhibit Getting Even, a piece made with slices of bowling balls that are scattered around and be ...
National Bank: In April 2009, I contacted the Sport Center of the National Bank of Belgium to submit to them a proposition for an exhibition: We planned to exhibit Getting Even, a piece made with slices of bowling balls that are scattered around and be ...
W4244
24.05.2011
Hophornbeam Hill - McKendree Key
WWW
Hophornbeam Hill From August 2nd - September 3rd, 2009, I lived in the woods in Vermont on a hillside known locally as Hophornbeam Hill. ...
Hophornbeam Hill From August 2nd - September 3rd, 2009, I lived in the woods in Vermont on a hillside known locally as Hophornbeam Hill. ...
W3957
20.05.2011
Chain Link Fence - Michael Arata
WWW
Chain Link Fence(space between) Graphite and paint on diamond shapes made of styrofoam and masking tape. The Chain Link Fence project represents the negative space between the wires that make up the steel fence material. The diamond shapes are some tim ...
Chain Link Fence(space between) Graphite and paint on diamond shapes made of styrofoam and masking tape. The Chain Link Fence project represents the negative space between the wires that make up the steel fence material. The diamond shapes are some tim ...
W3571
12.05.2011
Guardian Givers - Urban Belina
WWW
The invisible has the same importance as the visible, because the meaning is not in the material, it is in the change. The artwork dissolves its matter and its concept; when revealed it gradually diminishes over a limited time period; leaving behind only ...
The invisible has the same importance as the visible, because the meaning is not in the material, it is in the change. The artwork dissolves its matter and its concept; when revealed it gradually diminishes over a limited time period; leaving behind only ...
W3859
19.05.2011
Waiting room: A History of Doing Nothing and a Long Tale of Useful Action - Guillermo E. Rodriguez Rivera
WWW
G A L E R I A M A N G O S T A 23 June – 31 July 2011 402 Muñoz Rivera Ave FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Galeria Mangosta is pleased to present Waiting room: a history of doing nothing and a long tale of useful action. Looking at the pivotal role of ...
G A L E R I A M A N G O S T A 23 June – 31 July 2011 402 Muñoz Rivera Ave FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Galeria Mangosta is pleased to present Waiting room: a history of doing nothing and a long tale of useful action. Looking at the pivotal role of ...
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 ...
W4236
24.05.2011
Monumental sculpture of an over-scaled sitting nude woman in the Thames River in London.  - Tamas Jovanovics
WWW
Tamas Jovanovics (www.contemporary.hu) Monumental sculpture of an over-scaled sitting nude woman in the Thames River in London. Project presented for the ‘London 2012’ Cultural Olympiad ('Artists taking the lead', London) Commission brief: Ar ...
Tamas Jovanovics (www.contemporary.hu) Monumental sculpture of an over-scaled sitting nude woman in the Thames River in London. Project presented for the ‘London 2012’ Cultural Olympiad ('Artists taking the lead', London) Commission brief: Ar ...
W4184
24.05.2011
A POCKET FULL OF EMPTY - amalia caputo
WWW
PROJECT FOR EXHIBITION “A POCKET FULL OF EMPTY” By Amalia Caputo BRIEF DESCRIPTION This exhibition is a solo show, conceived as an interactive installation of variable dimensions that will take over the main area of an exhibition space. It is ...
PROJECT FOR EXHIBITION “A POCKET FULL OF EMPTY” By Amalia Caputo BRIEF DESCRIPTION This exhibition is a solo show, conceived as an interactive installation of variable dimensions that will take over the main area of an exhibition space. It is ...
W4887
10.08.2012
Caravan Tour - An Inverted World - Ann Messner
WWW
caravan tour — an inverted world A Proposal for a Transportable Camera Obscura for the Courts of Lower Manhattan The Lower Manhattan court buildings in their neoclassical grandeur and scale endure as visual tropes of the solidity of the power of justice ...
caravan tour — an inverted world A Proposal for a Transportable Camera Obscura for the Courts of Lower Manhattan The Lower Manhattan court buildings in their neoclassical grandeur and scale endure as visual tropes of the solidity of the power of justice ...
W4425
25.05.2011
Retrospection of Rejection: - Brianne Mackinnon
WWW
Retrospection of Rejection: A collaborative competition with fellow Brisbane artist, Anastasia Booth. Each artist apply's for as many exhibition opportunities as possible - collecting and archiving only the rejection responses to proposals. These document ...
Retrospection of Rejection: A collaborative competition with fellow Brisbane artist, Anastasia Booth. Each artist apply's for as many exhibition opportunities as possible - collecting and archiving only the rejection responses to proposals. These document ...
W4703
26.05.2011
Sterling Crispin
WWW
My project involves a globally connected network of participants wearing EEG brain-computer interfaces. By displaying the average of thousands of live readings back to the participants their minds will slowly become closer to the average. Emerging brai ...
My project involves a globally connected network of participants wearing EEG brain-computer interfaces. By displaying the average of thousands of live readings back to the participants their minds will slowly become closer to the average. Emerging brai ...
W5065
04.09.2012
The Canon - Stephanie Radok
WWW
The unrealised project is called 'The canon'. The unrealised project is called 'The canon'. It involves casting 1,001 books representing the canon of Western literature. A list of the books, the rejected works and the reasons for the choices made form ...
The unrealised project is called 'The canon'. The unrealised project is called 'The canon'. It involves casting 1,001 books representing the canon of Western literature. A list of the books, the rejected works and the reasons for the choices made form ...
W4066
23.05.2011
Public Phones - János Sugár
WWW
My work is a public telephone located centrally in a city, or in the lobby of a public building. There is a board above the telephone on which is written: "This is a free phone, but the conversations are being recorded and published later word by word." ...
My work is a public telephone located centrally in a city, or in the lobby of a public building. There is a board above the telephone on which is written: "This is a free phone, but the conversations are being recorded and published later word by word." ...
W4317
24.05.2011
LANGAGE - Tom Veeger & Ivo Schoofs
WWW
LANGAGE Proposition Neon construction cinétique Plaine de Plainpalais, Geneva Organisation Fmac, FCAC l'auteur Tom Veeger, MSc & Ivo Schoofs, BSc March 20th, 2011 LANGAGE La place est pleine de monde. Les hésitants regardent en l’air ...
LANGAGE Proposition Neon construction cinétique Plaine de Plainpalais, Geneva Organisation Fmac, FCAC l'auteur Tom Veeger, MSc & Ivo Schoofs, BSc March 20th, 2011 LANGAGE La place est pleine de monde. Les hésitants regardent en l’air ...
W4651
25.05.2011
Abscissa Abyss  - Darr Tah Lei
WWW
Abscissa Abyss Rhapsody Project for a 3D painting on a Dome Geometric figures will be drawn with black charcoal or black ink in a 360º degrees wall of a Dome including the ceiling. This display with geometric figures placed chaotically will be watched ...
Abscissa Abyss Rhapsody Project for a 3D painting on a Dome Geometric figures will be drawn with black charcoal or black ink in a 360º degrees wall of a Dome including the ceiling. This display with geometric figures placed chaotically will be watched ...
W4245
24.05.2011
Frau Fiber
WWW
My lifeʼs work is dedicated to instigating new ways for participants to consider their engagement in the world, their purchasing power, or non-purchasing power. Transforming spaces of relaxation into spaces of physical production. Encouraging Participant ...
My lifeʼs work is dedicated to instigating new ways for participants to consider their engagement in the world, their purchasing power, or non-purchasing power. Transforming spaces of relaxation into spaces of physical production. Encouraging Participant ...
W3732
18.05.2011
POP GOES THE WEASEL - Anne O'Callaghan & Barbara Sternberg
WWW
The following is a brief synopsis of the proposal, POP GOES THE WEASEL, that we submitted for 2011 Nuit Blanche, Toronto, Ontario Canada. This proposal was rejected due to censorship by the local Business Improvement Association (BIA), see emails below** ...
The following is a brief synopsis of the proposal, POP GOES THE WEASEL, that we submitted for 2011 Nuit Blanche, Toronto, Ontario Canada. This proposal was rejected due to censorship by the local Business Improvement Association (BIA), see emails below** ...
W4028
22.05.2011
The width of a grin - Matthew Geller
WWW
Proposal for a temporary public artwork on West San Fernando Street under the Highway 87 overpass and over the Guadalupe River, San Jose, CA It takes about 68 seconds to cross under Highway 87 and over the Guadalupe River while walking on West San Fern ...
Proposal for a temporary public artwork on West San Fernando Street under the Highway 87 overpass and over the Guadalupe River, San Jose, CA It takes about 68 seconds to cross under Highway 87 and over the Guadalupe River while walking on West San Fern ...
W4069
23.05.2011
Alishia Duncanson
WWW
Title: “Mission Impossible 1” Materials: Wood and M.D.F board Corridor space containing 5- 20 drawings in space, creating semi obstructed spaces to be engaged with by the viewer. The work asks the viewer to investigate both space and time as each ...
Title: “Mission Impossible 1” Materials: Wood and M.D.F board Corridor space containing 5- 20 drawings in space, creating semi obstructed spaces to be engaged with by the viewer. The work asks the viewer to investigate both space and time as each ...
W3857
19.05.2011
PAPEL PICADO 2009 - Joan Skelton Smith
WWW
In 2009 I began a series of tissue paper cut outs inspired by Mexican Day of the Dead papel picado banners drawing subject matter from news sources. I envision the banners as an ongoing series adding to the historical record. I would like to see them dis ...
In 2009 I began a series of tissue paper cut outs inspired by Mexican Day of the Dead papel picado banners drawing subject matter from news sources. I envision the banners as an ongoing series adding to the historical record. I would like to see them dis ...
W4124
23.05.2011
Here/There - Matthew Slaats
WWW
Here/There Matthew Slaats Project Proposal Here/There is a virtual 3D exploration of the spatial, temporal, economic and physical relationships between environments in North and South America. Project Description Here/There aims to illustr ...
Here/There Matthew Slaats Project Proposal Here/There is a virtual 3D exploration of the spatial, temporal, economic and physical relationships between environments in North and South America. Project Description Here/There aims to illustr ...