We, (R. Wainwright and S. Stevens), studied and wrote about the 2016 MashUp Exhibit at the Vancouver Art Gallery, focusing on the materiality of museums, galleries, and their contents. We applied the concept of remix theory to our examination of the museum's physical building, board of directors, and the unceded land upon which it is built. We also looked at theories of attribution and property rights in relation to the culture industry.
As a result of our research, we produced two documents both of which are viewable by clicking the images to the right.
The first was published in a scholarly journal and the second one remains largely hidden from view, serving as a 'virtual scrapbook' of our research process, containing screenshots of our notes and source materials. It is an unstructured yet complex archive of the fragmentary, awaiting future re-assemblage. The journal's editorial board, however, raised concerns about possible copyright infringement and deemed the document unpublishable. They also declined to permit inclusion of even a hyperlink or URL address to the website where it resides.
The published article is considered to be relatively well-structured and loosely riffed, while the web-published companion piece is highly riffed and loosely structured, chaotic and not restricted by traditional academic writing standards. The parallel document digitally performs like Benjamin's Arcade and the notes, paper scraps and clipped articles, all of which serve as an axis between structure and riff.
References:
Steven, S., & Wainwright, R. (2017). Riffin' at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Unpublished.
Wainwright, R., & Stevens, S. (2017). MashUp at the Vancouver Art Gallery: “In review” [onto]riffologically. Art/Research International: A Transdisciplinary Journal, 2(1), 166- 184. https://doi.org/10.18432/R2G04T