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.

Invitation Space No.1 - Tania Mouraud

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

Relatum (Iron Plate and Stone) - Lee Ufan

Jake and Dinos Chapman's five proposals for an empty plinth situated on central londons trafalgar square - Jake and Dinos Chapman

Theater der Leere - Werner Ruhnau and Yves Klein

Project tor the Veterans Administration Hospital--Bay Pines, Florida. - Robert Morris

CIVITAS Stadtpostkarten - Lothar Baumgarten

Prima del 73 - Fabio Mauri

The World is a Theater and we each have a role - Louise Bourgeois

No title, as the project only reached proposal stage - Rikrit Tiravanija

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
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Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W10725
25.09.2014
free night - xiaoyun mao
WWW
The infrastructure space is the node of moving path. It functions to connect different places and keep people moving tot her their destination. Within the density of the city, the infrastructure is unavoidably packed of people. The individual can't stop o ...
The infrastructure space is the node of moving path. It functions to connect different places and keep people moving tot her their destination. Within the density of the city, the infrastructure is unavoidably packed of people. The individual can't stop o ...
W3724
17.05.2011
Sgt. Martin Tours  - Jose Luis Rojas
WWW
Sgt. Martin Tours was a sculptural project which never reached completion mainly due to lack of interest on a theme I had been working on for at least five years. Even though, the work remains "postponed" at its best, and I do regret not finishing it.. ...
Sgt. Martin Tours was a sculptural project which never reached completion mainly due to lack of interest on a theme I had been working on for at least five years. Even though, the work remains "postponed" at its best, and I do regret not finishing it.. ...
W3677
15.05.2011
Broken Monumen - ESTHER ACHAERANDIO
WWW
Broken Monument Mixed Media. 8x8x18cm. 2011. Broken Monument takes part of a projects that I was working on for pleasure since 2001. While this works is comprised of a diferent of mediums, they do not aim to ladder up to a singular thesis. That sai ...
Broken Monument Mixed Media. 8x8x18cm. 2011. Broken Monument takes part of a projects that I was working on for pleasure since 2001. While this works is comprised of a diferent of mediums, they do not aim to ladder up to a singular thesis. That sai ...
W4208
24.05.2011
One-way toilet - Will Foster
WWW
One-way toilet. Shitting in the street. 2001 A toilet for public use is sited in an inner city location. The walls of the toilet are made entirely from Pellicle mirror glass, which is partially reflective and partially transparent. ...
One-way toilet. Shitting in the street. 2001 A toilet for public use is sited in an inner city location. The walls of the toilet are made entirely from Pellicle mirror glass, which is partially reflective and partially transparent. ...
W3559
12.05.2011
David Detrich
WWW
My current project involves coring through art periodicals with the intent to obscure the distinctions between the fashion industry and the art world. The periodical ArtForum is a "container" of such dichotomies. I've constructed a tool that cores through ...
My current project involves coring through art periodicals with the intent to obscure the distinctions between the fashion industry and the art world. The periodical ArtForum is a "container" of such dichotomies. I've constructed a tool that cores through ...
W4908
13.08.2012
A collateral time. - Annalisa Furnari
WWW
A collateral time. Two videoinstallations: screening of two movies archive reprocessed in postproduction. In relation to each video, two sculptural installations: A base of white cement on where it is deposited a mat black mattress A volcanic mono ...
A collateral time. Two videoinstallations: screening of two movies archive reprocessed in postproduction. In relation to each video, two sculptural installations: A base of white cement on where it is deposited a mat black mattress A volcanic mono ...
W5368
19.10.2012
World Trade Center Memorial Proposal - Stephen Canneto
WWW
The design honors and celebrates the lives of those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks. The figurative road to healing begins with a literal journey, with the soaring zenith of the Memorial Spire catching the eye of newly arriving visitors, ...
The design honors and celebrates the lives of those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks. The figurative road to healing begins with a literal journey, with the soaring zenith of the Memorial Spire catching the eye of newly arriving visitors, ...
W3946
20.05.2011
Balancing Act - Tricia McLaughlin
WWW
This living space design is for two people trying to balance their lives together. Every movement in this precarious space shifts that balance. Fortunately the furniture is all hinged. Even when the floor is falling out from under you, the basic amenities ...
This living space design is for two people trying to balance their lives together. Every movement in this precarious space shifts that balance. Fortunately the furniture is all hinged. Even when the floor is falling out from under you, the basic amenities ...
W4547
25.05.2011
ICONIC VIRTUALITY - Peter Dyson/THE ALTERMODERN GROUP
WWW
ICONIC VIRTUALITY Uluru, the World Heritage-listed site in central Australia has been a spiritual icon for the indigenous people of the island continent for over 60,000 years and a focus for white man’s tourism for a mere 160 years. It is a formida ...
ICONIC VIRTUALITY Uluru, the World Heritage-listed site in central Australia has been a spiritual icon for the indigenous people of the island continent for over 60,000 years and a focus for white man’s tourism for a mere 160 years. It is a formida ...
U9503
01.01.1997
NON REALIZED PROJECTS - Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Unbuilt Roads
1964-66 Two Lower Manhattan Wrapped Buildings, Project for New York, U.S.A. 1967 Wrapped Galleria Nazionale, Project for Rome, Italy. Ponte Sant' Angelo Wrapped, Project for Rome, Italy. Wrapped Trees, Project for Washington Pa ...
1964-66 Two Lower Manhattan Wrapped Buildings, Project for New York, U.S.A. 1967 Wrapped Galleria Nazionale, Project for Rome, Italy. Ponte Sant' Angelo Wrapped, Project for Rome, Italy. Wrapped Trees, Project for Washington Pa ...
W5174
26.09.2012
Somewhere at the top there's a swimming pool - Charlie Coffey
WWW
Title: Somewhere at the top there's a swimming pool (Failed Proposal For Shoreditch House) Date: 2007 Medium: Biro sketch on A4 office paper (unframed) Charlie Coffey Somewhere at the top there's a swimming pool (Failed Proposal For Shoreditch House) ...
Title: Somewhere at the top there's a swimming pool (Failed Proposal For Shoreditch House) Date: 2007 Medium: Biro sketch on A4 office paper (unframed) Charlie Coffey Somewhere at the top there's a swimming pool (Failed Proposal For Shoreditch House) ...
W5093
11.09.2012
H.U.R.I.M.P.R - Alina Tudor and Razvan Neagoe
WWW
H.U.R.I.M.P.R (part of MOnuMENTS project) MOnuMENTS project starts from the necessity of a reflexion on the deficitary relationship we have with history and recent memory, following a representative piece for the relationship between the political disc ...
H.U.R.I.M.P.R (part of MOnuMENTS project) MOnuMENTS project starts from the necessity of a reflexion on the deficitary relationship we have with history and recent memory, following a representative piece for the relationship between the political disc ...
W3537
11.05.2011
‘Against the fall’ - Sarah Luedemann
WWW
Project outline (Version Ia): ‘Against the fall’ consists of a fully functioning white parachute and about 300 (or more) A4 rejection letters from art students and artists worldwide, which are printed onto the parachute. The parachute as such is ...
Project outline (Version Ia): ‘Against the fall’ consists of a fully functioning white parachute and about 300 (or more) A4 rejection letters from art students and artists worldwide, which are printed onto the parachute. The parachute as such is ...
W3729
18.05.2011
“Minaret” - Felippe Moraes
WWW
The installation “Minaret” is constituted by a single scaffold 7m high with 2 pairs of stereo speakers in its top emitting simultaneously an African drum counting the prime numbers starting 2, 3, 5, 7, 11… going up to … 89, 97, 101 ...
The installation “Minaret” is constituted by a single scaffold 7m high with 2 pairs of stereo speakers in its top emitting simultaneously an African drum counting the prime numbers starting 2, 3, 5, 7, 11… going up to … 89, 97, 101 ...
U9510
01.01.1997
Der New-Babyloner - Constant
Unbuilt Roads
Die Automation verspricht uns eine Produktion, die die Bedürfnisse aller Menschen ohne menschliche Arbeitsleistung zufriedenstellt. Die Arbeit des Menschen ist nicht länger ein unumgängliches Produktionsmittel. Der Mensch steht erste. malig vor der Tat ...
Die Automation verspricht uns eine Produktion, die die Bedürfnisse aller Menschen ohne menschliche Arbeitsleistung zufriedenstellt. Die Arbeit des Menschen ist nicht länger ein unumgängliches Produktionsmittel. Der Mensch steht erste. malig vor der Tat ...
W10895
23.03.2015
The Great Wall Archive - The Bureau for Transgressive Tourism and the Acquisition of its Archives
WWW
The Great Wall Archive presents many potential narratives through the collection and exhibition of an excess of specific and seemingly arbitrary information. Its conception was spurred by a curiosity in the ways we communicate with one another, specifical ...
The Great Wall Archive presents many potential narratives through the collection and exhibition of an excess of specific and seemingly arbitrary information. Its conception was spurred by a curiosity in the ways we communicate with one another, specifical ...
W4973
24.08.2012
neither hidden nor visible - Jean-Charles Agboton-Jumeau
WWW
neither hidden nor visible project description: My project for the Berlin edition of AUP in collaboration with the Berliner Künstlerprogramm/ DAAD is to "document, display and/or archive" the catalogue titled January 5-31, 2009 with its label.... S ...
neither hidden nor visible project description: My project for the Berlin edition of AUP in collaboration with the Berliner Künstlerprogramm/ DAAD is to "document, display and/or archive" the catalogue titled January 5-31, 2009 with its label.... S ...
W3583
13.05.2011
Green Architecture - Francesco Fossati
WWW
wall installation variable dimensions water pain on wall and oil on paper transfered on wooden tables (26 x 19 cm each element) The project consists of a large installation that runs on the walls, creating a visually stunning work of able to relate g ...
wall installation variable dimensions water pain on wall and oil on paper transfered on wooden tables (26 x 19 cm each element) The project consists of a large installation that runs on the walls, creating a visually stunning work of able to relate g ...
W5470
21.10.2012
Idiot Savante: Subversive Failure  - Andrea Liu
WWW
The notion of an "idiot savant" is someone who is simultaneously above and below normative standards of competence, imbuing them with a sublime uselessness. Their virtuoso (savant) cannot be instrumentalized by the rest of society for productive ends, be ...
The notion of an "idiot savant" is someone who is simultaneously above and below normative standards of competence, imbuing them with a sublime uselessness. Their virtuoso (savant) cannot be instrumentalized by the rest of society for productive ends, be ...
W5464
21.10.2012
Electron Self-Portrait - Lauren Jo
WWW
An electron microscope uses a beam of electrons to illuminate a specimen and produce a magnified image. In particular, a scanning electron microscope shoots focused electron beams that rather than carrying an image itself back to the lens, probes the spec ...
An electron microscope uses a beam of electrons to illuminate a specimen and produce a magnified image. In particular, a scanning electron microscope shoots focused electron beams that rather than carrying an image itself back to the lens, probes the spec ...
W4737
26.05.2011
Untitled Sign No. 4 - Kasper Sonne
WWW
Kasper Sonne ‘Untitled Sign No. 4’ Proposed work for the NEONS competition 2011. Fonds municipal d’art contemporain (Fmac) Concours NEONS (FCAC/Fmac) 34, rue des Bains 1205 Genève Switzerland While the sign clearly appropriates it’s ...
Kasper Sonne ‘Untitled Sign No. 4’ Proposed work for the NEONS competition 2011. Fonds municipal d’art contemporain (Fmac) Concours NEONS (FCAC/Fmac) 34, rue des Bains 1205 Genève Switzerland While the sign clearly appropriates it’s ...
W5081
06.09.2012
Der Todeszug - The LGB Group
WWW
Der Todeszug is a project that envisioned using an entire train as a canvas. Not as a bombed out suburban train, but a civic connection between the seperated Belgrade and Sarajevo, whose train connection was severed for over 18 years due to war and nation ...
Der Todeszug is a project that envisioned using an entire train as a canvas. Not as a bombed out suburban train, but a civic connection between the seperated Belgrade and Sarajevo, whose train connection was severed for over 18 years due to war and nation ...
W4793
13.06.2011
Between, Between, no More and Drink a Chair - Natalie Bell
WWW
This is a consciously utopian project aiming to create a very accessible and affordable pocket-sized handbook of English for Spanish-speaking immigrants in New York City. SEE PDF ...
This is a consciously utopian project aiming to create a very accessible and affordable pocket-sized handbook of English for Spanish-speaking immigrants in New York City. SEE PDF ...
W3792
18.05.2011
TYRE GARDEN - Agnieszka Wolodzko
WWW
Participatory action with a catastrophy in the background. My project is based on an assumption that in future, in result of economic / political / climatic crises, European cities, will surrender to a total degradation and it will gradually get a char ...
Participatory action with a catastrophy in the background. My project is based on an assumption that in future, in result of economic / political / climatic crises, European cities, will surrender to a total degradation and it will gradually get a char ...
U9610
01.01.1988
Tulips for Amsterdam - Isa Genzken
Unbuilt Roads
Auf dem Wege nach Amsterdam sollten wir 30 meter hohe stahltulpen im würde leicht Schwingend die Autofahrer. Links und rechts oder Autobahn begrußen. (Jede Blüte in ihre eigenen farbe) (eventually reasons why the work has not been realised) Die A ...
Auf dem Wege nach Amsterdam sollten wir 30 meter hohe stahltulpen im würde leicht Schwingend die Autofahrer. Links und rechts oder Autobahn begrußen. (Jede Blüte in ihre eigenen farbe) (eventually reasons why the work has not been realised) Die A ...
U9712
14.11.1992
Memorial - Ilya Kabakov
Unbuilt Roads
Kabakov "MEMORIAL" Short description of the project The Concept of the Project "Memorial" The Russian revolution which established the "era of Socialism" is considered to be a most important event of the twentieth century. The end of ...
Kabakov "MEMORIAL" Short description of the project The Concept of the Project "Memorial" The Russian revolution which established the "era of Socialism" is considered to be a most important event of the twentieth century. The end of ...