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

Battery Park City - Per Kirkeby

My House - Uri Tzaig

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

Catwalk - Sylive Fleury

Milan House (AC/DC & Joy Division) - Liam Gillick

Electronic Theater - Laurie Anderson

Projet pour la Place Saint Léger à Chambery  - Erik Dietman

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

The World Record - General Idea

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
#
Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W10245
09.04.2014
Observatory for the Study of Metropolitan Man - Bastiaan Arler
WWW
The project consists of a temporary structure made of easily available scaffolding that can be installed in any city square. It is open to the public and thus allows people to observe and to be observed in two distinct moments. The project has never been ...
The project consists of a temporary structure made of easily available scaffolding that can be installed in any city square. It is open to the public and thus allows people to observe and to be observed in two distinct moments. The project has never been ...
W5299
17.10.2012
Difficult Pony - Sue Palmer
WWW
Difficult Pony. In 2007, I began to make a project about horses and women, ponies and girls. I love what horses are - I've always been curious about this equine human relationship. So I started with the 1960s toy gymkhana I played with as a child, watchi ...
Difficult Pony. In 2007, I began to make a project about horses and women, ponies and girls. I love what horses are - I've always been curious about this equine human relationship. So I started with the 1960s toy gymkhana I played with as a child, watchi ...
W3713
17.05.2011
A passage, London 1999 (project, with Sergison Bates architects) - Mark Pimlott
WWW
Sutton-walk is a special place poised between two differently proposed versions or conceptions of London. One is chaotic, the other has an idea of itself as ideal, a fantasy about how London could be. Both are London, both are legitimate, both are produ ...
Sutton-walk is a special place poised between two differently proposed versions or conceptions of London. One is chaotic, the other has an idea of itself as ideal, a fantasy about how London could be. Both are London, both are legitimate, both are produ ...
W4812
07.08.2012
"2011 and my private destinations " and "Because of your coordination" - Nikolay Zanev
WWW
Pic1 2011 and my private destinations Map and software, D-print, 2012, size 70x90 cm Print shows map of Sofia city and my private duration and interest during one year period (2011), where I have been and where I used to go, do things in my pe ...
Pic1 2011 and my private destinations Map and software, D-print, 2012, size 70x90 cm Print shows map of Sofia city and my private duration and interest during one year period (2011), where I have been and where I used to go, do things in my pe ...
W5898
18.10.2013
Open tunnel - Matthijs Muller
WWW
A hilly landscape makes lines of trees disappear behind nearby hills or offers a view at a tree from above. In the Netherlands the flatness of the landscape makes that impossible. But, since the whole country is manmade, the solution for this is also ma ...
A hilly landscape makes lines of trees disappear behind nearby hills or offers a view at a tree from above. In the Netherlands the flatness of the landscape makes that impossible. But, since the whole country is manmade, the solution for this is also ma ...
W3856
19.05.2011
THE SISTER COMPLEX - Jacob Stewart-Halevy
WWW
The Sister Complex is a film script written for captive audiences on Virgin America flights from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The forty minute length of the film is meant to correspond to the amount of time a traveler would have to watch their personal s ...
The Sister Complex is a film script written for captive audiences on Virgin America flights from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The forty minute length of the film is meant to correspond to the amount of time a traveler would have to watch their personal s ...
W4173
24.05.2011
Mitya Nesterov
WWW
Project with a work title ZOO, series of hand printed color photographs installed inside animal and bird cages ...
Project with a work title ZOO, series of hand printed color photographs installed inside animal and bird cages ...
W4164
23.05.2011
Judith Sönnicken
WWW
my unrealizeable artwork is the image of my nose turning into a balcony and my brain coming out to have a cigarette. the point of visualizing it would be to put it in front of the eyes, but in fact that image is taking place behind. ...
my unrealizeable artwork is the image of my nose turning into a balcony and my brain coming out to have a cigarette. the point of visualizing it would be to put it in front of the eyes, but in fact that image is taking place behind. ...
W4372
25.05.2011
Ren Jie
WWW
In Chinese tradition,touch the land with feet is very important to one's health and life. If you are far away from the natural land,the soil,the water,the grass,you will become uncomfortable and sick. But today,urbanization make more and more peopl ...
In Chinese tradition,touch the land with feet is very important to one's health and life. If you are far away from the natural land,the soil,the water,the grass,you will become uncomfortable and sick. But today,urbanization make more and more peopl ...
W4065
23.05.2011
THE COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND RADIATION (CMB) FROM THE BIG BANG - Rick Doble
WWW
A PROPOSAL BY RICK DOBLE FOR AN UNREALIZED ART PROJECT BASED ON PROCESSING THE COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND RADIATION (CMB) FROM THE BIG BANG In 2003 I proposed an art project (see my submitted copy of my proposal to the Exploratorium in San Francisco ...
A PROPOSAL BY RICK DOBLE FOR AN UNREALIZED ART PROJECT BASED ON PROCESSING THE COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND RADIATION (CMB) FROM THE BIG BANG In 2003 I proposed an art project (see my submitted copy of my proposal to the Exploratorium in San Francisco ...
U9958
01.01.1993
Project for the Initiative Mahnmal Homosexuellenverfolgung, Frankfurt  - Jeff Wall
Unbuilt Roads
My monument would be a free-standing structure, a life-size open air cafe-terrace that the public could enter. It is a 12-sided ellipse with two entrances, and would be a careful recreation of such a place in a style typical of the 1920s. It would be made ...
My monument would be a free-standing structure, a life-size open air cafe-terrace that the public could enter. It is a 12-sided ellipse with two entrances, and would be a careful recreation of such a place in a style typical of the 1920s. It would be made ...
W4265
24.05.2011
Kristin Jones / Andrew Ginzel
WWW
Project for Hypothetical Pond Sonsbeek Arnheim, The Netherlands 1986 ...
Project for Hypothetical Pond Sonsbeek Arnheim, The Netherlands 1986 ...
W4001
22.05.2011
Michael Crowe
WWW
A proposal for Tate Modern which is a bit too costly at the moment. ...
A proposal for Tate Modern which is a bit too costly at the moment. ...
W3816
19.05.2011
Pittsburgh Passion Project, (Mistaken ID) - Ayanah Moor
WWW
The Pittsburgh Passion Project (2008-2009) probed the relationship between gender identity and sports practices through contemporary performance. In the American imagination, the contours of helmet, football pads, and protective gear have historically ...
The Pittsburgh Passion Project (2008-2009) probed the relationship between gender identity and sports practices through contemporary performance. In the American imagination, the contours of helmet, football pads, and protective gear have historically ...
W3918
20.05.2011
The Second Man - Carolyn McKay
WWW
Original Proposal: At Darlinghurst courthouse in 2008, Gordon Wood was found guilty of murdering Caroline Byrne by throwing her from The Gap, a notorious suicide spot in Sydney, Australia. Witnesses claim to have seen a second man at the crime scene but ...
Original Proposal: At Darlinghurst courthouse in 2008, Gordon Wood was found guilty of murdering Caroline Byrne by throwing her from The Gap, a notorious suicide spot in Sydney, Australia. Witnesses claim to have seen a second man at the crime scene but ...
W4095
23.05.2011
UNREALIZEABLE PROJECT A000013 - Stefano W. Pasquini
WWW
UNREALIZEABLE PROJECT A000013. As the political times have changed after 911, even my Unrealizeable Projects reflected this change. This one plays with the difficulties foreigners face when trying to move to the United States nowadays. ...
UNREALIZEABLE PROJECT A000013. As the political times have changed after 911, even my Unrealizeable Projects reflected this change. This one plays with the difficulties foreigners face when trying to move to the United States nowadays. ...
W5079
06.09.2012
Urban Void 04  - Toornend & Post
WWW
Urban Void 04 (Church), Breidscheidplatz, Berlin (D) 2006 (lambdaprint 2480×5100 pixels) Urban Voids offer spatial relief, unexpected views and twisted collective memories by the apparently simple act of removal; Urban Voids are architectures antipo ...
Urban Void 04 (Church), Breidscheidplatz, Berlin (D) 2006 (lambdaprint 2480×5100 pixels) Urban Voids offer spatial relief, unexpected views and twisted collective memories by the apparently simple act of removal; Urban Voids are architectures antipo ...
W5435
20.10.2012
ART FOR THE CITY - Matej Metlikovič
WWW
Unrealised projects ART FOR THE CITY, 2008 I'm sending you two photos of the unrealised projects created in 2008 on the theme »Art for the city«. The Society of Ljubljana's visual artists invited artists of Ljubljana to contribute ideas how to make ...
Unrealised projects ART FOR THE CITY, 2008 I'm sending you two photos of the unrealised projects created in 2008 on the theme »Art for the city«. The Society of Ljubljana's visual artists invited artists of Ljubljana to contribute ideas how to make ...
W5367
19.10.2012
STATIC REVOLVER - Jessie Stead
WWW
Known for bad food but impressive panoramas, hundreds of revolving restaurants rotate imperceptibly on oversized turntables high above cities worldwide. This unrealized project is an experimental motion picture. ...
Known for bad food but impressive panoramas, hundreds of revolving restaurants rotate imperceptibly on oversized turntables high above cities worldwide. This unrealized project is an experimental motion picture. ...
U9811
01.01.1960
Monument with Rust - Gustav Metzger
Unbuilt Roads
three projects about which I have been thinking for some time. The first construction is to be about 18 feet high with a base about 24 ft. by 18 ft. The principle of this technique was suggested by Mr. E. LI. Evans, who worked in the corrosion of meta ...
three projects about which I have been thinking for some time. The first construction is to be about 18 feet high with a base about 24 ft. by 18 ft. The principle of this technique was suggested by Mr. E. LI. Evans, who worked in the corrosion of meta ...
W4234
24.05.2011
Elise Lammer
WWW
This work is an homage to the lost artwork by John Baldessari "Untitled (after Palm Tree (for Charlemagne)" 1975. This unrealized project aims to collect similar postcards as the ones displayed in Peter Kirby's documentary and recreate Baldessari's lost ...
This work is an homage to the lost artwork by John Baldessari "Untitled (after Palm Tree (for Charlemagne)" 1975. This unrealized project aims to collect similar postcards as the ones displayed in Peter Kirby's documentary and recreate Baldessari's lost ...
U9858
01.01.1995
"400" - Manfred Pernice
Unbuilt Roads
1995-96 Weile bestand ein Zusammenhang. eng. [unleserlich] ihn nicht gesucht. Möglichkeiten nahm er nicht wahr. Das Sockel (1) ergibt 11-fach vervielfältigt, Modell einer grosser Wohn- und Geschäftsanlag; [M?]aßtab 1:100, welches im Ausstellung ...
1995-96 Weile bestand ein Zusammenhang. eng. [unleserlich] ihn nicht gesucht. Möglichkeiten nahm er nicht wahr. Das Sockel (1) ergibt 11-fach vervielfältigt, Modell einer grosser Wohn- und Geschäftsanlag; [M?]aßtab 1:100, welches im Ausstellung ...
W4642
25.05.2011
WHEN YOU CUT INTO THE PRESENT THE FUTURE LEAKS OUT (PRODUCTION OF SPACE) - ELENA BAJO
WWW
WHEN YOU CUT INTO THE PRESENT THE FUTURE LEAKS OUT (PRODUCTION OF SPACE) “The form of social space is encounter, assembly, simultaneity; social space implies actual or potential assembly at a single point or around that point.” - Henri Lefebvre, from ...
WHEN YOU CUT INTO THE PRESENT THE FUTURE LEAKS OUT (PRODUCTION OF SPACE) “The form of social space is encounter, assembly, simultaneity; social space implies actual or potential assembly at a single point or around that point.” - Henri Lefebvre, from ...
W5063
04.09.2012
TheStore - Tine Wilde
WWW
TheStore: The Construct of a Life Package. Proposal for Arhus Kunstbygning 2011. The exhibition space is piled with boxes, containing (fragments of) works of art, gathered around a wooden framework. The visitor is invited to fill up the framework with ...
TheStore: The Construct of a Life Package. Proposal for Arhus Kunstbygning 2011. The exhibition space is piled with boxes, containing (fragments of) works of art, gathered around a wooden framework. The visitor is invited to fill up the framework with ...
W4888
10.08.2012
Replay - Warren Neidich
WWW
Replay Introduction: The word Replay takes its name from the phenomena usually associated with sporting events, for instance football matches, in which a replay of a fabulous and exciting goal is projected upon a large digital screen in full view of ...
Replay Introduction: The word Replay takes its name from the phenomena usually associated with sporting events, for instance football matches, in which a replay of a fabulous and exciting goal is projected upon a large digital screen in full view of ...
U9684
01.01.1992
Entwurf für einen erneuerten Malkasten 1992 - 1994 - Ulrike Holthöfer
Unbuilt Roads
„Entwurf für einen erneuerten Malkasten" 1992 - 1994 Gemeinschaftsprojekt Jacobischer Garten/ Malkasten Düsseldorf: 22000 m2 großer historischer Garten und Gebäudesubstanz (Jacobihaus, Hentrichbau, Randgebäude) im Zentrum der Stadt Düsse ...
„Entwurf für einen erneuerten Malkasten" 1992 - 1994 Gemeinschaftsprojekt Jacobischer Garten/ Malkasten Düsseldorf: 22000 m2 großer historischer Garten und Gebäudesubstanz (Jacobihaus, Hentrichbau, Randgebäude) im Zentrum der Stadt Düsse ...