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.

NON REALIZED PROJECTS - Christo and Jeanne-Claude

Tulips for Amsterdam - Isa Genzken

Passage - Richard Wentworth

Grand Concours International D'Architecture  - Sol Lewitt

Fax Transmission - Raymond Pettibone and Jason Rhoades

A House of Dust - Alison Knowles

La Guerra De Los Simbolos - Victor Grippo

"Free Space" - Michelangelo Pistoletto

Projets non réalisés: - Daniel Buren

Museum - Katharina Fritsch

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
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Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W4348
24.05.2011
Safe Haven - Farrell Brickhouse
WWW
Farrell Brickhouse Unrealized Projects The year before 9/11 I was unable to paint in my studio and I made a series of images about The World Trade Center on handy wall calendars. I lived on West Broadway one block north of the colossal buildings that ...
Farrell Brickhouse Unrealized Projects The year before 9/11 I was unable to paint in my studio and I made a series of images about The World Trade Center on handy wall calendars. I lived on West Broadway one block north of the colossal buildings that ...
W5904
18.10.2013
Watertower Geldern (Germany) - Matthijs Muller
WWW
The idea was to give this former water tower a bright icecap on top, which would have changed its appearance dramatically, making it look more like an alp. Bringing the water, which used to be stored inside the tower, to the outside, illustrates its (form ...
The idea was to give this former water tower a bright icecap on top, which would have changed its appearance dramatically, making it look more like an alp. Bringing the water, which used to be stored inside the tower, to the outside, illustrates its (form ...
W3821
19.05.2011
Thanatopolis / Solace grove - Rebecca Keller
WWW
This was a proposal for a project called "Thanatopolis" --asking for outdoor works that explored the rituals of interment and memorialization. (This proposal was for an outdoor art environment that was also a place of memory) Imagine walking though ...
This was a proposal for a project called "Thanatopolis" --asking for outdoor works that explored the rituals of interment and memorialization. (This proposal was for an outdoor art environment that was also a place of memory) Imagine walking though ...
W3651
15.05.2011
A Lighthouse - Goran Tomcic
WWW
“A Lighthouse” is an installation consisting of three main parts: 1. Three walls (each wall app. 15’ long/20’ high) completely wallpapered with cut outs of many different designs of gold holographic films; 2. The floor space in between the walls c ...
“A Lighthouse” is an installation consisting of three main parts: 1. Three walls (each wall app. 15’ long/20’ high) completely wallpapered with cut outs of many different designs of gold holographic films; 2. The floor space in between the walls c ...
W4857
08.08.2012
A Comedy Routine - Dan Riley
WWW
Comedy Routine A, is a comedy routine that was written but never performed, due to shyness and perhaps bad material... COMEDY ROUTINE A So, its been gettin’ real cold lately, jeez. [Optional: Have you guys been feeling this?] We went out and ...
Comedy Routine A, is a comedy routine that was written but never performed, due to shyness and perhaps bad material... COMEDY ROUTINE A So, its been gettin’ real cold lately, jeez. [Optional: Have you guys been feeling this?] We went out and ...
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 ...
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 ...
W4036
22.05.2011
Daniel Joseph Martinez
WWW
Third Act for Goya is the unrealized component of Daniel Joseph Martinez’ android trilogy. Based on the central figure in Francisco Goya’s The Inquisition Scene (c.1816), the mechanical doppelganger of the artist gets up, steps to the edge of the plat ...
Third Act for Goya is the unrealized component of Daniel Joseph Martinez’ android trilogy. Based on the central figure in Francisco Goya’s The Inquisition Scene (c.1816), the mechanical doppelganger of the artist gets up, steps to the edge of the plat ...
D10807
01.01.2003
ÉCOUTE - Bethan Huws
DAAD
To film a colony of coots on a small, dark pond, recording their daily and seasonal life. The film (image) would put equal emphasis on sound. The only word in the entire film is the title: Écoute (French, “listen”), which forms a homophone wit ...
To film a colony of coots on a small, dark pond, recording their daily and seasonal life. The film (image) would put equal emphasis on sound. The only word in the entire film is the title: Écoute (French, “listen”), which forms a homophone wit ...
W5286
16.10.2012
Cove - Jerry Monteith
WWW
Cove Cove is a site work that would be made of earth, concrete and aluminum. The bulk of the mass is earth, which would be compacted and finished with a layer of topsoil. The curved wall, two orange vertical panels and the cone would all need to have s ...
Cove Cove is a site work that would be made of earth, concrete and aluminum. The bulk of the mass is earth, which would be compacted and finished with a layer of topsoil. The curved wall, two orange vertical panels and the cone would all need to have s ...
W4461
25.05.2011
Camoufoliaged - Chrysanne Stathacos
WWW
Camoufoliaged In ecology, organisms avoid observation or detection by other organisms though camouflage, transparency, or mimicry. In the project Camoufoliaged, trees, and bushes near or within a museum setting are covered in various degrees of prin ...
Camoufoliaged In ecology, organisms avoid observation or detection by other organisms though camouflage, transparency, or mimicry. In the project Camoufoliaged, trees, and bushes near or within a museum setting are covered in various degrees of prin ...
U9953
01.01.1974
Temple of the western buddha (1971 Kathmedu) - Herman de Vries
Unbuilt Roads
a circle of sacred trees in the east side of the circle a flat stone as seat uder a boddhi tree (ficus religiosa). other trees in the circle: ficus bengalensis, aegle marmelos,butea frondosa,melia azadirachta,prosopis spicigera,thevetia neriifolia, sa ...
a circle of sacred trees in the east side of the circle a flat stone as seat uder a boddhi tree (ficus religiosa). other trees in the circle: ficus bengalensis, aegle marmelos,butea frondosa,melia azadirachta,prosopis spicigera,thevetia neriifolia, sa ...
W5124
18.09.2012
Leaching The Grease Out Of A Cheese Pyramid - Michael Arata
WWW
"Leaching The Grease Out Of A Cheese Pyramid" 1991-2012 The project (1991) consisted of ten pounds of white cheddar cheese carved into the shape of a stepped pyramid. The pyramid was placed on a 30 inch stack of newspapers bound together with braide ...
"Leaching The Grease Out Of A Cheese Pyramid" 1991-2012 The project (1991) consisted of ten pounds of white cheddar cheese carved into the shape of a stepped pyramid. The pyramid was placed on a 30 inch stack of newspapers bound together with braide ...
W3806
18.05.2011
(Home)Squat Residency - Melissa Wyman
WWW
(Home)Squat Residency What it is: (Home)Squat Residency is a framework for artists to find their own residency opportunities and another model of patronage for art enthusiasts. (Anyone can follow this model.) How it works: This project follow ...
(Home)Squat Residency What it is: (Home)Squat Residency is a framework for artists to find their own residency opportunities and another model of patronage for art enthusiasts. (Anyone can follow this model.) How it works: This project follow ...
W4392
25.05.2011
Dig a hole through the middle of the Earth.  - Gernot Wieland
WWW
Dig a hole through the middle of the Earth. When one jumps into this hole, he or she flies, for example, from Berlin to China. Naturally, with gravity, the speed of travel be- comes enormous. However, as one flies past the centre of the Earth the s ...
Dig a hole through the middle of the Earth. When one jumps into this hole, he or she flies, for example, from Berlin to China. Naturally, with gravity, the speed of travel be- comes enormous. However, as one flies past the centre of the Earth the s ...
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 ...
W5301
17.10.2012
Spiral Monument - Lux Geier
WWW
Monument: Debussy’s La Mer: SPIRAL MONUMENT – an unrealized project SPIRAL MONUMENT intends to drop visitors into the grooves of a recording of Debussy’s famed orchestral work La Mer. This structure, which replicates the surface of a vinyl recor ...
Monument: Debussy’s La Mer: SPIRAL MONUMENT – an unrealized project SPIRAL MONUMENT intends to drop visitors into the grooves of a recording of Debussy’s famed orchestral work La Mer. This structure, which replicates the surface of a vinyl recor ...
W4674
26.05.2011
traps as artworks and artworks as traps - Daniel Rubim
WWW
“There cannot be a hammer by itself; A hammer implies on nails to be hammered, Wood to hammer them into, saw to shape the wood And so forth.” Alfred Gell – Vogel’s net: traps as artworks and artworks as traps Migrations is the process of ...
“There cannot be a hammer by itself; A hammer implies on nails to be hammered, Wood to hammer them into, saw to shape the wood And so forth.” Alfred Gell – Vogel’s net: traps as artworks and artworks as traps Migrations is the process of ...
W4332
24.05.2011
The Golden Pavilion - Xawery Wolski
WWW
The Golden Pavilion. 1993 What is essentially remote is the unapproachable. In fact, the main quality of an image used for worship is its inapproachability. By its very nature, it is always remote, as close as it may be. One can approach its material rea ...
The Golden Pavilion. 1993 What is essentially remote is the unapproachable. In fact, the main quality of an image used for worship is its inapproachability. By its very nature, it is always remote, as close as it may be. One can approach its material rea ...
W3590
13.05.2011
IN-OUTDOOR PROJECT - Helena Trindade
WWW
Unrealized Public Art Project For images and text please refer to the PDF ...
Unrealized Public Art Project For images and text please refer to the PDF ...
W4147
23.05.2011
The End of Art Theory - Cornford & Cross
WWW
The End of Art Theory We were invited to submit proposals for the 2002 Liverpool Biennial. We proposed to commission a Group 4 private security vehicle and uniformed crew, as used by HM Courts and Prison Service to transport defendants. During the Bi ...
The End of Art Theory We were invited to submit proposals for the 2002 Liverpool Biennial. We proposed to commission a Group 4 private security vehicle and uniformed crew, as used by HM Courts and Prison Service to transport defendants. During the Bi ...
W5101
13.09.2012
Copa & Sordes
WWW
and an another proposal for an ornament in art context ...
and an another proposal for an ornament in art context ...
W4581
25.05.2011
Oasis Project Proposal  - Carrie Paterson
WWW
Image 1 Oasis Project Proposal circa 2002-2004 Drawings show a device for water collection, condensation, and purification connected by ‘stem’ to an underground storage tank, accessed via a tap that operates with a pressure pump to retrieve wate ...
Image 1 Oasis Project Proposal circa 2002-2004 Drawings show a device for water collection, condensation, and purification connected by ‘stem’ to an underground storage tank, accessed via a tap that operates with a pressure pump to retrieve wate ...
W5119
18.09.2012
The Screenshot Project - Lisa De Boeck
WWW
The Screenshot Project After years of photographing and digital manipulation, I felt that I needed a bit more roughness, the imperfect roughness you have when using software in an unconventional way. ...
The Screenshot Project After years of photographing and digital manipulation, I felt that I needed a bit more roughness, the imperfect roughness you have when using software in an unconventional way. ...
W4958
20.08.2012
Fish Food Living - Eugene Soler
WWW
Fish Food Living By Eugene Soler AUP Submission Three-quarters of the world’s ocean is over fished and with food prices soaring and energy resource depleting, we are constantly living in a society where our food resource is unsustainable, unaffor ...
Fish Food Living By Eugene Soler AUP Submission Three-quarters of the world’s ocean is over fished and with food prices soaring and energy resource depleting, we are constantly living in a society where our food resource is unsustainable, unaffor ...
W4476
25.05.2011
MEGAPHONE: The New Wireless - Elizabeth McTernan
WWW
MEGAPHONE: The New Wireless An extension of my ongoing performance project "The Satellites Are Dust, the Phone Lines Are Down, the Postal Service Is Bankrupt" (a post-apocalyptic romance of sorts), I propose erecting a telephone pole crowned with a gre ...
MEGAPHONE: The New Wireless An extension of my ongoing performance project "The Satellites Are Dust, the Phone Lines Are Down, the Postal Service Is Bankrupt" (a post-apocalyptic romance of sorts), I propose erecting a telephone pole crowned with a gre ...