The Museum of Intimate Memories explored memory and connection through ritual archiving and storytelling.
THE FIRST MUSEUM
In September 2014 the tiny pop up museum opened it’s doors in Alice Springs, offering audiences the opportunity to liberate their keepsakes.
Patrons were invited to exchange their mementos for a private tour. Initially assembled from the detritus of my own life, the collection quickly expanded to hold a plethora of ephemera from friends, strangers and the occasional nemesis.
The museum was crowd funded as a feature project of the experimental arts festival Free BBQ Cash Give Away. As part of the rewards I created a series of video confessionals for project supporters, including a found poem created out of archived family letters.
A catalogue was created to document the installation. Selected artefacts were rendered in drawing by Lyn Hazelwood – slightly removed from their original selves. The writing too is reflective of the essence of the private exchanges – much of the detail removed so only the meaning and connection remains. This incarnation of The Museum continues as a digital archive
WOODFORD FOLK FESTIVAL
In 2016 the Museum toured to Woodford, with audiences offered to liberate their emotional baggage in private consultation sessions. These were later transformed into a found poem, and performed on the final day of the festival.
SHOW AND TELL
In 2018, the Museum of Intimate Memories hosted a Show and Tell Party as part of Watch This Space studios Still Alive After 25 program, celebrating 25 years of the Artist Run Space. Part still life drawing class, part Q&A, 3 key figures from Watch This Space’s history shared their stories through an object. Community members, shared food, stories and documented their memories through drawings during the discussion and on a giant timeline created on the gallery wall.
Download a Museum Catalouge MOIM program
