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.

Chen H.V.O + G.T. - Bertrand Lavier

Isometric Projection - Sol Lewitt

La Guerra De Los Simbolos - Victor Grippo

Catwalk - Sylive Fleury

654 THINGS from The United States - Edward Ruscha

Relatum (Iron Plate and Stone) - Lee Ufan

Ceinture - Huang Ping Yong

Unrealized Turtles 1967 - Joseph Grigely

Messages to the Public - Nancy Spero

Grand Concours International D'Architecture  - Mahe Gilles

Agency of Unrealised Projects
Logo by Liam Gillick
#
Date
Title
Source
Description
Tags
W4988
28.08.2012
mamila pOOl - c a l c (omi - Thomas Scheiderbauer)
WWW
mamila pOOl* we call a project which we wanted to realize downtown Jerusalem. During a visit in Israel 2003 our friend Tal Adler showed us this amazing huge and empty space/pool - and we started do a research and to imagine.. For the Mamilla Pool we e ...
mamila pOOl* we call a project which we wanted to realize downtown Jerusalem. During a visit in Israel 2003 our friend Tal Adler showed us this amazing huge and empty space/pool - and we started do a research and to imagine.. For the Mamilla Pool we e ...
W4807
07.08.2012
Wreck  - Boris Ondreička
WWW
sitting on the driver´s seat of the car wreck reading poems / singing lyrics aloud a couple having sex under that wreck 30 minutes 30 people listening / watching silently standing around and around midnight Wreck, Boris Ondreička ...
sitting on the driver´s seat of the car wreck reading poems / singing lyrics aloud a couple having sex under that wreck 30 minutes 30 people listening / watching silently standing around and around midnight Wreck, Boris Ondreička ...
W4602
25.05.2011
Alexander Vaindorf
WWW
"In the Shadow of the Monument" 2009 PROPOSAL # 2 Images from the solo exhibition at Art Center Gävle, Sweden. And a temporary public monument "In the shadow of the double" in City Hall Courtyard in the city of Gävle, Sweden. more info http://a ...
"In the Shadow of the Monument" 2009 PROPOSAL # 2 Images from the solo exhibition at Art Center Gävle, Sweden. And a temporary public monument "In the shadow of the double" in City Hall Courtyard in the city of Gävle, Sweden. more info http://a ...
W3557
12.05.2011
Liberties - Esin Turan
WWW
Abstract Liberties is an experiment in giving and receiving and working together peacefully to create something of universal value and at the same time benefit individually. It is an interactive lear- ning experience, in which each participant learns tha ...
Abstract Liberties is an experiment in giving and receiving and working together peacefully to create something of universal value and at the same time benefit individually. It is an interactive lear- ning experience, in which each participant learns tha ...
W5186
30.09.2012
Untitled (‘Memory: Un/Successful, In/Complete’)  - Betty Nigianni
WWW
Untitled (‘Memory: Un/Successful, In/Complete’) - - Oil and acrylic paints, inkjet prints, tissue paper, and straw on canvas, 80X120 cm approx. (2010-11) Initiated during a course at the Slade School of Fine Art, this experimental painting develo ...
Untitled (‘Memory: Un/Successful, In/Complete’) - - Oil and acrylic paints, inkjet prints, tissue paper, and straw on canvas, 80X120 cm approx. (2010-11) Initiated during a course at the Slade School of Fine Art, this experimental painting develo ...
W5236
09.10.2012
Dislocations - Iain McPherson
WWW
Object: To create a system of signage which illustrates and informs city centre travellers. Areas are colour coded and image coded according to local history and culture. Works are wall mounted and 3 dimensional. Project could be self-funded by u ...
Object: To create a system of signage which illustrates and informs city centre travellers. Areas are colour coded and image coded according to local history and culture. Works are wall mounted and 3 dimensional. Project could be self-funded by u ...
W4826
07.08.2012
Fake It ‘Til You Make It - Sean Montgomery and Eric Simon
WWW
Sean Montgomery and Eric Simon - Fake It ‘Til You Make It Artist Biographies Omark van Pechstein Though van Pechstein has a genius-level intellect, an excellent memory and a profound gift for sculpture, for most of his life he worked as a janitor a ...
Sean Montgomery and Eric Simon - Fake It ‘Til You Make It Artist Biographies Omark van Pechstein Though van Pechstein has a genius-level intellect, an excellent memory and a profound gift for sculpture, for most of his life he worked as a janitor a ...
W4217
24.05.2011
24 hours Suicide  - Costa Vece
WWW
24 hours Suicide von Costa Vece für Art Unlimited Basel 2003 24 hours Suicide: Das Wort Suicide (Selbstmord) wird temporär auf das grösste Gebäude der Schweiz, den Messeturm in Basel, während der Art Basel ‘03 angebracht. Der Mes ...
24 hours Suicide von Costa Vece für Art Unlimited Basel 2003 24 hours Suicide: Das Wort Suicide (Selbstmord) wird temporär auf das grösste Gebäude der Schweiz, den Messeturm in Basel, während der Art Basel ‘03 angebracht. Der Mes ...
W5340
18.10.2012
Didaskalia - Helly Mizrai
WWW
"Didaskalia" is a site-specific installation. Didaskalia divided into two acts, The two acts are almost similar, in Didaskalia the work creates repetitions by multiplying the three first spaces twice. About the work In the suggested work I contin ...
"Didaskalia" is a site-specific installation. Didaskalia divided into two acts, The two acts are almost similar, in Didaskalia the work creates repetitions by multiplying the three first spaces twice. About the work In the suggested work I contin ...
W4157
23.05.2011
UNDERGLOW - Carol Salmanson
WWW
UNDERGLOW Carol Salmanson PROJECT DESCRIPTION Underglow, a light installation inside six bays of a sidewalk shed, uses multiple kinds of light and reflective materials to create a many-hued, glowing experience. By marrying technology to aesthetic ...
UNDERGLOW Carol Salmanson PROJECT DESCRIPTION Underglow, a light installation inside six bays of a sidewalk shed, uses multiple kinds of light and reflective materials to create a many-hued, glowing experience. By marrying technology to aesthetic ...
W4113
23.05.2011
Xenia Imagines - Simon Chambers
WWW
Xenia Imagines is a proposed website telling a hyperfiction of a painter who allegedly paints xenia, an early form of Roman still life. The paintings, if they do exist may be part of an imaginary collection of paintings inspired by the descriptions of Phi ...
Xenia Imagines is a proposed website telling a hyperfiction of a painter who allegedly paints xenia, an early form of Roman still life. The paintings, if they do exist may be part of an imaginary collection of paintings inspired by the descriptions of Phi ...
W3864
19.05.2011
Nova Jiang
WWW
A rejected finalist proposal for a public sculpture designed by the public online. Each online participant determines the shape of a sculptural element, which can be assembled by visitors to the park. ...
A rejected finalist proposal for a public sculpture designed by the public online. Each online participant determines the shape of a sculptural element, which can be assembled by visitors to the park. ...
W4592
25.05.2011
Gap Ecology - David Brooks
WWW
Gap Ecology (5 Still Lives with Cherry Pickers and Palms) Conceptual Context: The current recession has halted dozens of construction projects around New York City at an alarming rate. The Building Trades Employersʼ Association is reporting nearly $5 b ...
Gap Ecology (5 Still Lives with Cherry Pickers and Palms) Conceptual Context: The current recession has halted dozens of construction projects around New York City at an alarming rate. The Building Trades Employersʼ Association is reporting nearly $5 b ...
W10252
10.04.2014
Contact - Bastiaan Arler
WWW
In the summer of 1975 a fresh wind blew over the world. At a distance of 225 km, in orbit around the Earth, the USA and the USSR made contact as two spacecraft docked together in a sign of peace. In an instant it lightened the spirit of all of those caugh ...
In the summer of 1975 a fresh wind blew over the world. At a distance of 225 km, in orbit around the Earth, the USA and the USSR made contact as two spacecraft docked together in a sign of peace. In an instant it lightened the spirit of all of those caugh ...
W3823
19.05.2011
Unproduction Network - Stefan Riebel
WWW
10 | to not realise | media space effort, time | June 2009 After one month of intense research and conceptual effort I have fully worked out a new interactive crossmedia project. Kunst ist heute fast überall zu jeder Zeit und für jeden Zweck v ...
10 | to not realise | media space effort, time | June 2009 After one month of intense research and conceptual effort I have fully worked out a new interactive crossmedia project. Kunst ist heute fast überall zu jeder Zeit und für jeden Zweck v ...
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 ...
W4391
25.05.2011
Getting Organized - Daniel Yovino
WWW
Getting Organized, 2008 Ink on copy paper with "giant" push pins 6 ft. x 8 ft. Living Productively Using Your Hipster PDA, 2008 Video still from speech 6 minutes Getting Organized is a collection of mind maps created a few months after a move a ...
Getting Organized, 2008 Ink on copy paper with "giant" push pins 6 ft. x 8 ft. Living Productively Using Your Hipster PDA, 2008 Video still from speech 6 minutes Getting Organized is a collection of mind maps created a few months after a move a ...
W11063
24.06.2016
Julian Assange's Mobile Balcony Installation at 1:1 - Muhammad Shamin Sahrum
WWW
Proposal extending from Master's thesis work in architecture, titled "The Diplomatic Envelope". A research into the various case studies within embassies where overlaps of legal principles with the physical and digital territories occur. This gray area em ...
Proposal extending from Master's thesis work in architecture, titled "The Diplomatic Envelope". A research into the various case studies within embassies where overlaps of legal principles with the physical and digital territories occur. This gray area em ...
W4778
02.06.2011
Twin Towers - Joao Felino
WWW
The work title is Twin Towers, and is constituted by two piles of Letter size office paper sheets with overall dimensions around 21.5" x 22" and 60" high, according not with scale but with the proportions of the World Trade Center buildings 1 and 2 once e ...
The work title is Twin Towers, and is constituted by two piles of Letter size office paper sheets with overall dimensions around 21.5" x 22" and 60" high, according not with scale but with the proportions of the World Trade Center buildings 1 and 2 once e ...
W4407
25.05.2011
The Great Pyramid - Ingo Niermann
WWW
The Great Pyramid—a gradually growing tomb for potentially every human being in the world. Every stone in this pyramid could house the ashes of a deceased individual. It would grow, layer per layer, over decades and centuries. ...
The Great Pyramid—a gradually growing tomb for potentially every human being in the world. Every stone in this pyramid could house the ashes of a deceased individual. It would grow, layer per layer, over decades and centuries. ...
W5343
18.10.2012
Unrealized project proposal for AUP  - Lito Kattou & Leontios Toumpouris
WWW
Unrealized project proposal for AUP Willing to continue investigating our relationship with natural components of the environment and expanding the development of the project in progress “Untitled dualism”, it would be a matter of great interest f ...
Unrealized project proposal for AUP Willing to continue investigating our relationship with natural components of the environment and expanding the development of the project in progress “Untitled dualism”, it would be a matter of great interest f ...
W4430
25.05.2011
Fountains - Giuseppe Gabellone
WWW
Fountains Project for the wood of sculptures of Vassivière island, France February 2010 ...
Fountains Project for the wood of sculptures of Vassivière island, France February 2010 ...
U9478
01.01.1984
Projets non réalisés: - Daniel Buren
Unbuilt Roads
La liste non exhaustive qui suit correspond une á série de projets qui n'ont pas abouti. Ils sont de plusieurs types et les raisons de leur non aboutissement sont également différentes. Tout d'abord, tous sont liés des situations précises et dict ...
La liste non exhaustive qui suit correspond une á série de projets qui n'ont pas abouti. Ils sont de plusieurs types et les raisons de leur non aboutissement sont également différentes. Tout d'abord, tous sont liés des situations précises et dict ...
W3689
16.05.2011
Mike Mosher
WWW
Painting community murals in early 1980s San Francisco, California [see "Artist!" on Bad Subjects website], I made many sketches and proposals, like the "Children's Checkerboard". After 1984, I began to link imagery in paintings with symbols & schematics ...
Painting community murals in early 1980s San Francisco, California [see "Artist!" on Bad Subjects website], I made many sketches and proposals, like the "Children's Checkerboard". After 1984, I began to link imagery in paintings with symbols & schematics ...
W5136
19.09.2012
Cormac McCarthy Searching - Rick Martin
WWW
CORMAC McCARTHY SEARCHING In the winter of 1999 I was artist in residence at BEMIS CCA in Omaha Nebraska. I travelled to El Paso to meet the writer Cormac McCarthy, The WWW informed me he ate breakfast at Furrs every day. At Furrs I was told they didn't. ...
CORMAC McCARTHY SEARCHING In the winter of 1999 I was artist in residence at BEMIS CCA in Omaha Nebraska. I travelled to El Paso to meet the writer Cormac McCarthy, The WWW informed me he ate breakfast at Furrs every day. At Furrs I was told they didn't. ...
W4346
24.05.2011
Sane Jung
WWW
Through my art, I can go fishing, I can eat burgers, I can play with balls, I can go to the sea and go to mountain. I can meet people and talk to people, I can see the sky and I can see the moon. How gorgeous it is and what a wonderful, exciting privilege ...
Through my art, I can go fishing, I can eat burgers, I can play with balls, I can go to the sea and go to mountain. I can meet people and talk to people, I can see the sky and I can see the moon. How gorgeous it is and what a wonderful, exciting privilege ...