History/Reality: An Attic Archive Installation, Solo Exhibition, DJCAD, Dundee

Exhibition Venue: Matthew Gallery, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee, UK
Exhibition Dates: 2-4 April 2024

Output from an RSE Research Network Award. History/Reality is an installation of The Attic Archive, established by artist Pete Horobin in 1975 at 37 Union Street, Dundee, and now dispersed across collections in Scotland, Ireland, and Hungary. This three-day exhibition is the first in a series, with future editions in Budapest and Dublin. It brings together rarely or never-seen video art, correspondence, drawings, and artefacts from distinct decades of an artist's life through the works of four personalities including Pete Horobin, Marshall Anderson, Peter Haining, and aitch. A common thread across the four decades is the exploration of the landscape; the relationship between constructed histories and lived realities, particularly personal and cultural identity; the material basis of everyday life; and the critique of the art world and its institutions. The works on display are accompanied by an introductory essay ‘A History’, written by ha in February 2024 (See Exhibit 18).In addition to the archival installation History/Reality in Dundee features an evening of performances and film screening on the 4th April to explore the works’ relevance to contemporary cultural and social experience with artists from different generations and different relationship to The Attic Archive. History/Reality is part of the wider project, 'The Digital Attic Archive', funded by the Royal Society of Edinburgh Research Network Award and led by Dr Judit Bodor (DJCAD) and Dr Roddy Hunter (The Glasgow School of Art). This project aims to establish an international 'network of care' to sustainably secure The Attic Archive's legacy through the development of an open-source web platform. The exhibition series functions as a vehicle for research identifying key works and gaps in the archive. The network partners include the University of Dundee Archive Services, the National Library of Scotland, Artpool Art Research Center at the Central European Institute for Art History (KEMKI), Budapest, and the National Irish Visual Arts Library (NIVAL) at the National College of Art & Design, Dublin. Curated by Dr Judit Bodor.