Reshaping the Collectible: When Artworks Live in the Museum is a major research project focused on recent and contemporary artworks that challenge the practices of the museum. It will contribute to theory and practice in collection care, curation and museum management.

The research is grounded in six case studies drawn from works in the Tate collection; works that unfold over time and exist in multiple forms. These challenge the boundaries between artwork, record and archive and rely on complex networks of people, skills and technologies outside of the museum.

At the heart of this initiative is a desire to open up the museum and provide a generous invitation to Tate’s public, making visible the invisible lives of artworks as they unfold within, and in dialogue with, the museum.

About us & our work

Led by Professor Pip Laurenson, working in close collaboration with staff in the Collection Care Division, researchers are embedded within various teams across Tate and all work in close collaboration with a range of staff across the organisation. The initiative also hosts four visiting fellowships and two collaborative doctoral students.

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For general enquiries or to join our mailing list, please contact ReshapingTheCollectible@tate.org.uk

Reshaping the Collectible: When Artworks Live in the Museum is funded by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and runs until 2021