The Living Catalogue Raisonné

College Art Association Virtual Conference

Saturday, February 19, 2022

9.00am-10.30am (CST)

Live Zoom Session (Recording available until April 14)

Chairs: Joan Pachner, Tony Smith Catalogue Raisonné and Marin R. Sullivan, Director, Harry Bertoia Catalogue Raisonné

Traditionally the completed catalogue raisonné is thought of as a comprehensive and immutable definition of an artist’s oeuvre. While the overall goal remains constant, the digital catalogue raisonné has emerged as a tool that challenges notions of fixity. Recently, an increasing number of living artists have begun actively cataloging their body of work, making access to earlier projects easier than digging them out of deep storage or looking for old photographs. This session includes presentations from a diverse group of artists, scholars, and curators who are each actively examining the evolving, fluid structure, status, and use of catalogues raisonnés, particularly for those who worked in untraditional media.Through the case studies of a number of ongoing projects and approaches, this session seeks to interrogate traditional conventions of catalogues raisonnés and question how new models, resources, and tools may shape future approaches. The aim of this session is to broaden the conversation about the application and development of catalogues raisonnés, as they relate both to contemporary digital technologies and the practices of artists.

Papers

"A Case Study: Trisha Brown’s Born-Digital Catalogue Raisonné," Susan Rosenberg, St. John's University

"Inches Woven per Day: A Tapestry Artist’s Records and the Catalogue Raisonné," Mae Colburn, Helena Hernmarck Studio

"The Long Lives of Artworks: Cataloguing Sol LeWitt's Wall Drawings," Christopher Vacchio, Sol LeWitt Wall Drawings Catalogue Raisonné

"Re-imagining the Catalogue Raisonné as Generative Digital Scholarship," Liz Neely, Georgia O'Keeffe Museum and Ariel S. Plotek, Georgia O'Keeffe Museum