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.

den anonymen Tod ausstellen - Gregor Schneider

Aguapracasa - Gabriel Orozco

Unrealized Turtles 1967 - Joseph Grigely

NON REALIZED PROJECTS - Christo and Jeanne-Claude

Unbetitelt, Gänse-Projekt + Noch unbetitelt , " Durch den Mund sehen " + Kartoffeln  - Carsten Holler

Double Exposure 1995-6  - Dan Graham

Social Resource Project For the Munich Olympics - Stephen Willats

Temple of the western buddha (1971 Kathmedu) - Herman de Vries

MAK - Wien  - Rosemarie Trockel

654 THINGS from The United States - Edward Ruscha

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
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Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W3814
19.05.2011
Caitlin Masley
WWW
“…by remembering that cities are more than just habitats or geographical entities. They extend beyond networks of communication, commerce, sociality, or politics. Cities often exist in the form of memories and aspirations, and these cities are no less ...
“…by remembering that cities are more than just habitats or geographical entities. They extend beyond networks of communication, commerce, sociality, or politics. Cities often exist in the form of memories and aspirations, and these cities are no less ...
W5141
21.09.2012
arrays - Steffen Kasperavicius
WWW
ARRAYS „Heutzutage ist kaum etwas realistischer als Utopien“ (Thornton Wilder, 1887-1975) Als diplomierter Medienkünstler interessiere ich mich bereits seit mehreren Jahren für die MinimalArt- und ConceptualArt-Tendenzen der 60er und 70er Jahre. I ...
ARRAYS „Heutzutage ist kaum etwas realistischer als Utopien“ (Thornton Wilder, 1887-1975) Als diplomierter Medienkünstler interessiere ich mich bereits seit mehreren Jahren für die MinimalArt- und ConceptualArt-Tendenzen der 60er und 70er Jahre. I ...
W5062
04.09.2012
(CAPTURING) FOG IN A BOX (2012) - Caroline Parks
WWW
(CAPTURING) FOG IN A BOX (2012) This unrealized project is to capture fog in a box (a clear Lucite type of box) so that the fog can be seen inside the box. The box can then be carried around (further into the fog) on a walk down the beach shoreline. T ...
(CAPTURING) FOG IN A BOX (2012) This unrealized project is to capture fog in a box (a clear Lucite type of box) so that the fog can be seen inside the box. The box can then be carried around (further into the fog) on a walk down the beach shoreline. T ...
W4276
24.05.2011
Proposal for the New Jersey State Aquarium - Kristin Jones / Andrew Ginzel
WWW
Proposal for the New Jersey State Aquarium Camden, New Jersey ...
Proposal for the New Jersey State Aquarium Camden, New Jersey ...
W4301
24.05.2011
“UDLU” Underground Desert Living Unit - Reynard Loki
WWW
“UDLU” Underground Desert Living Unit The UDLU (Underground Desert Living Unit) is a conceptual single-family dwelling installed below the surface of a desert ecosystem. PROJECT Create and install “UDLU” demo house in the Chihuahuan Dese ...
“UDLU” Underground Desert Living Unit The UDLU (Underground Desert Living Unit) is a conceptual single-family dwelling installed below the surface of a desert ecosystem. PROJECT Create and install “UDLU” demo house in the Chihuahuan Dese ...
W3710
17.05.2011
New business complex for The public company Electro-Slovenija - ARB, Slovenia
WWW
The project was presented at a competition for a new business complex for The public company Electro-Slovenija. The project is characterized by thin folded blades, containing open-volume, offices, making a perfect ground for photovoltaic. ...
The project was presented at a competition for a new business complex for The public company Electro-Slovenija. The project is characterized by thin folded blades, containing open-volume, offices, making a perfect ground for photovoltaic. ...
W4699
26.05.2011
I never said I was deep - Marcela Torres
WWW
“I never said I was deep” is the name of a project that deals with notions such as How can we retell History? And how can we manage to live with the official facts in History and ap-ply them to our everyday life and our own notions of them. Some of ...
“I never said I was deep” is the name of a project that deals with notions such as How can we retell History? And how can we manage to live with the official facts in History and ap-ply them to our everyday life and our own notions of them. Some of ...
W3660
15.05.2011
Hannah Ross
WWW
Inspired by Janet Cardiff, creating a room for observation that requires community participation. It will be a life sized entry hallway, with a side table, telephone, and answering machine. I will have a public campaign of distributing the phone number wi ...
Inspired by Janet Cardiff, creating a room for observation that requires community participation. It will be a life sized entry hallway, with a side table, telephone, and answering machine. I will have a public campaign of distributing the phone number wi ...
W4163
23.05.2011
iaround - Anna Martinou
WWW
iaround provides an interactive platform for artists, groups and collectives who commission work within the urban landscape. The platform serves both as documentation and a social media tool as it integrates the process iaround: http://www.iaround.co ...
iaround provides an interactive platform for artists, groups and collectives who commission work within the urban landscape. The platform serves both as documentation and a social media tool as it integrates the process iaround: http://www.iaround.co ...
W4710
26.05.2011
Instructions to finding a future - Batya F. Kuncman
WWW
Instructions to finding a future Previously known as “Contemporary stream of consciousness: Stored data of identity as a work in progress” this project is an ongoing investigation into my individual identity as it relates to collective identity. Cul ...
Instructions to finding a future Previously known as “Contemporary stream of consciousness: Stored data of identity as a work in progress” this project is an ongoing investigation into my individual identity as it relates to collective identity. Cul ...
W3709
17.05.2011
Temple Grandin - Teodoro Lupo
WWW
During a well and prominently attended vernissage, such as the Art Basel or Frieze opening, nitrous oxide (commonly known as laughing gas) will be poured into the air. Doors will be closed from outside. I (but I'm sure I will easily find some colleagues ...
During a well and prominently attended vernissage, such as the Art Basel or Frieze opening, nitrous oxide (commonly known as laughing gas) will be poured into the air. Doors will be closed from outside. I (but I'm sure I will easily find some colleagues ...
W5425
20.10.2012
Peace State of aWareness - Mo Abd-Ulla
WWW
Is peace an exceptional state? Is it fact that war breeds another war? Is war an inevitable destiny of mankind? This is a public art intervention working with and around the war monuments in London within global context of war and peace. Aiming to fr ...
Is peace an exceptional state? Is it fact that war breeds another war? Is war an inevitable destiny of mankind? This is a public art intervention working with and around the war monuments in London within global context of war and peace. Aiming to fr ...
W3944
20.05.2011
The Triumph of Oil Painting (TOP) - Mo Abd-Ulla
WWW
99 Iraqi artists will be invited to make 99 paintings of oil/ petroleum on paper or canvas. TOP is structured to take place at 99-public spaces for 33 days. It is an independently curated multi-site-showcasing 99 Oil painting of 99 emerging and establi ...
99 Iraqi artists will be invited to make 99 paintings of oil/ petroleum on paper or canvas. TOP is structured to take place at 99-public spaces for 33 days. It is an independently curated multi-site-showcasing 99 Oil painting of 99 emerging and establi ...
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 ...
W5259
12.10.2012
Kusmi Tea Sweet Love - Rosana Sancin
WWW
Kusmi Tea Sweet Love Concept and Location:. The project Kusmi Tea Sweet Love is a collaboration between a curator, lawyer, architect and a filmmaker based on the research conducted in Lisbon's multicultural ...
Kusmi Tea Sweet Love Concept and Location:. The project Kusmi Tea Sweet Love is a collaboration between a curator, lawyer, architect and a filmmaker based on the research conducted in Lisbon's multicultural ...
W4618
25.05.2011
L’Auditorium A,  - DEHOVE Claire
WWW
L’Auditorium A, Dans sa proximité se construit aujourd’hui l’un des derniers tronçons autorou- tiers. Si cette construction a défiguré le paysage naturel en laissant des cicatrices indélébiles dans la terre et la végétation, si elle a occa ...
L’Auditorium A, Dans sa proximité se construit aujourd’hui l’un des derniers tronçons autorou- tiers. Si cette construction a défiguré le paysage naturel en laissant des cicatrices indélébiles dans la terre et la végétation, si elle a occa ...
W5112
16.09.2012
The Cactus Room - Javier Tapia
WWW
THE CAUCUS ROOM Project proposal for OVERGADEN By Javier Tapia The authentic moment of discovery, the breakthrough, occurs when a properly universal dimension explodes from within a particular context and becomes “for itself”, and is directly ex ...
THE CAUCUS ROOM Project proposal for OVERGADEN By Javier Tapia The authentic moment of discovery, the breakthrough, occurs when a properly universal dimension explodes from within a particular context and becomes “for itself”, and is directly ex ...
W5184
30.09.2012
Relative Music - Augustin Maurs
WWW
RELATIVE MUSIC An unrealized economy, by Augustin Maurs À propos unrealized projects, it could be amusing to consider that, in the perspective of Albert Einstein's theory of relativity, almost the totality of the music written in the western cultures f ...
RELATIVE MUSIC An unrealized economy, by Augustin Maurs À propos unrealized projects, it could be amusing to consider that, in the perspective of Albert Einstein's theory of relativity, almost the totality of the music written in the western cultures f ...
W10947
11.08.2015
Conduit - A.V. Ryan and Malin Abrahamsson
WWW
Conduit is many things: a recycling project, a purification ritual, a reclamation, a gift. One of the communities we aim to reach is the one that the gallery-going public habitually overlooks in Chelsea – the network of auto body shops and gas stati ...
Conduit is many things: a recycling project, a purification ritual, a reclamation, a gift. One of the communities we aim to reach is the one that the gallery-going public habitually overlooks in Chelsea – the network of auto body shops and gas stati ...
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 ...
W4752
27.05.2011
Abstract Shapes & Forms - G.F. Zaimis
WWW
Statement Blurring boundaries of art and architecture, G.F. Zaimis work explores the nature of shape and form from the most minimal to monumental, abstract to literal, painting to photography. The essence of her work addresses architecture’s shap ...
Statement Blurring boundaries of art and architecture, G.F. Zaimis work explores the nature of shape and form from the most minimal to monumental, abstract to literal, painting to photography. The essence of her work addresses architecture’s shap ...
W4040
22.05.2011
"vulgariskamer" a nomadic hybrid cabinet of curiosities... - Susana Pinto
WWW
An utopia auto-narrative. Gleaning of “things” became an obsession, not for the anxiety of collecting them but more for the necessity of transforming them. The things or the “vulgaris” ( vulgarity) are gleaned according to specific criteria - p ...
An utopia auto-narrative. Gleaning of “things” became an obsession, not for the anxiety of collecting them but more for the necessity of transforming them. The things or the “vulgaris” ( vulgarity) are gleaned according to specific criteria - p ...
U9892
16.02.1997
Fax Transmission - Raymond Pettibone and Jason Rhoades
Unbuilt Roads
Fax to: HANS-ULRICH OBRIST From Jason Rhoades Greeting HAN-ULRICH Well the project sounded great but I didn't have any unfulfilled projects that I sad appropriate for the project, but just last sunday I was at the race track with raymon pettibone ...
Fax to: HANS-ULRICH OBRIST From Jason Rhoades Greeting HAN-ULRICH Well the project sounded great but I didn't have any unfulfilled projects that I sad appropriate for the project, but just last sunday I was at the race track with raymon pettibone ...
W5363
19.10.2012
A Constructivist Artifact for Mourning the Weekdays - Inbal Strauss
WWW
These sketches for a sculpture titled A Constructivist Artifact for Mourning the Weekdays, remain as a two dimensional proposal for the time being. As a sculptor, I use investigative sketching as a creative development tool for a sculpture that will event ...
These sketches for a sculpture titled A Constructivist Artifact for Mourning the Weekdays, remain as a two dimensional proposal for the time being. As a sculptor, I use investigative sketching as a creative development tool for a sculpture that will event ...
W3889
20.05.2011
Fireflies - Fani Zguro
WWW
“Fireflies” is a site-specific installation, I got the idea while traveling for Bogota to Medellin by land, through the mountain. For the first time after sever years I saw groups of fireflies in the woods. Why there are not so many fireflies around t ...
“Fireflies” is a site-specific installation, I got the idea while traveling for Bogota to Medellin by land, through the mountain. For the first time after sever years I saw groups of fireflies in the woods. Why there are not so many fireflies around t ...
W4809
07.08.2012
Transitional Monument - David Mabb
WWW
Transitional Monument (2004). Digital montage. Dimensions variable. Transitional Monument was made as a proposal for a public artwork. The two images show photos of a now demolished sixties tower block, Linosa Close, Liverpool, with William Morris d ...
Transitional Monument (2004). Digital montage. Dimensions variable. Transitional Monument was made as a proposal for a public artwork. The two images show photos of a now demolished sixties tower block, Linosa Close, Liverpool, with William Morris d ...