Welcome to Archive – Kirsten Justesen

This is a digital catalogue of Kirsten Justesen’s oeuvre, making it accessible in its entirety to the public for the first time. The catalogue is the result of research conducted by art historian Anna Holm from 2022-2024 hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art in Roskilde.

Kirsten Justesen (b. 1943) trained as a classical sculptor, but as part of the Danish avant-garde of the 1960s developed a performative and conceptual sculpture practice based on time, process and action at an early stage of her career as an artist. This can be seen in individual works and forms a connecting thread between them when she brings existing works into new artistic contexts. Upon the launch of this catalogue in 2024 Justesen continues to produce new works. As a result, this catalogue will continue to develop. New works will be added, just as unknown works may emerge or change hands. The main question in the creation of the catalogue has therefore been how to provide an overview of a dynamic body of works that continues to be in flux.

The catalogue of works is based on Kirsten Justesen’s own extensive and still expanding archive. Since the early 1960s she has gathered documentation of her works, newspaper clippings and correspondence. The artist has also registered information on the sale and production of works archived according to year and material, an invaluable source in tracing her works, the conditions under which they were created, and their movements. In addition Justesen herself and a large number of museums, galleries, auction houses and private collectors have contributed with information to supplement the archive.

A digital format seemed the natural choice to get to grips with this vast material and its changeable nature, partly to represent the artist’s time-based and intermedial works with video and sound, and partly so new works and data can be added. The choice of a digital infrastructure is also based on the nature of her oeuvre, which imposes specific demands on the registration process where no established standard yet exists. The first stages of the project have therefore involved the development of a registration model that can encompass hybrid and transient works and map aspects not otherwise visible in the existing documentation. The registration is based on the internationally recognised bibliographic FRBR model, which has made it possible to describe the conceptual and variable layers in Justesen’s works in a consistent manner. This registration method has been further adapted to enable works to traverse entries in the catalogue, thus avoiding double registration. This has, however, given rise to questions regarding the relationship between the parts and the whole: when is a component of a work a work in its own right? A pragmatic principle has been applied: any component that solely figures as part of a composite work is only registered as such, whereas ‘nomadic’ components that features in multiple contexts are registered as part of these and as independent works.

Another characteristic of the artist’s body of works is that the boundaries between models, sketches, preparatory and complete works is often undefined. The catalogue therefore makes no hierarchical distinction between them. The aim is also to provide insight into artistic developments over time, as well as previously overlooked connecting threads in Justesen’s oeuvre. What has been included and excluded is based on what the artist has or intends to send out into the world. Furthermore, the catalogue includes exhibition posters and other printed matter by the artist. At the time of writing in 2024 the catalogue includes neither the artist’s set designs nor – with few exceptions – her radio productions.

Upon its launch in 2024 the catalogue has almost 400 work entries covering over 2,300 ‘objects’. Each individual entry can include numerous components: some works are comprised of multiple elements and others consist of series, whereas some have been grouped editorially to establish an overview and enable them to be viewed in context. Like the top of an iceberg, the horizontal layers of works in the catalogue have vertical depths with more detail. The same applies to the information listed under each work entry.

The catalogue has two contextualising sections drawing out the thematic and conceptual contours of Justesen’s work as an artist. The section 'Mappings' presents aspects of the artist’s oeuvre through selected bodies of works accompanied by introductory texts providing clarification and perspective, whereas the texts in 'Lexicon' presents brief accounts of concepts, people, places and other factors relevant to the artist’s work. The different sections of the catalogue are clearly distinguished by the more factual elements having a white background, and the interpretative elements a black background. Like the catalogue itself these texts are open to new research results. Presented in its entirety for the first time, it is hoped that the catalogue can also form a solid basis for new readings of Justesen’s oeuvre.

User Guide and Registration System

Catalogue searches

The catalogue can be searched using work category and/or year. Searches can include multiple categories and years. The circled numbers next to work category and year indicate the number of works that fulfil the search criteria in question. The free-text search function can also be used to find works using their title and individual words. Searches in 'Exhibitions' and 'Bibliography' can be made on the basis of category and year.

Categorisation

The work categories are standard for art museums, but given that Justesen’s works can fall between traditional categories the same work can be searched for in multiple categories. This applies to the categories ‘Photography’ and ‘Actions for Camera’ in particular. The latter is a new category providing an overview of the artist’s photography-based body works.

Titles

The titles of some of Justesen’s works are also a work in progress. At times the artist has changed the title of a work, and at times the title has been added much later than the work was produced. As far as possible the titles in the catalogue have been agreed with the artist or are based on the most recent titles published in exhibition catalogues. Over the years Justesen herself has translated a number of her titles into English. These are used in the English edition of the catalogue, whereas more descriptive titles have been translated by the editor. In some instances it has not been possible to find an adequate translation into English, in which case the Danish title has been retained. Works with an original English title have not been translated into Danish.

Dating

The dating of works in the catalogue follows the artist’s own system and is defined by the time span between the point at which the artist started working on or gathering material for a specific work and its completion. Since the artist has rarely printed entire editions of photo-based works at the same time, the year when the work was conceptualised figures as the primary date alongside the title, and the year of printing alongside individual editions. Similarly the specific year of production is indicated in series of works where these vary or are known, as well as in intermedial work complexes incorporating earlier works.

Editions

The majority of the artist’s photo-based works have editions, although the artist has rarely printed an entire edition at the same time. The catalogue only includes prints that have been produced. Due to the passage of time and advances in technical production the same edition can vary in size and printing technique. In the catalogue the following abbreviations are used: AP = Artist's Proof, EC = Exhibition Copy, NN = Not Numbered, PP = Print Proof, UP = Unique Print

Definition of Technique and Material

The information about materials and technique in the catalogue are based on archival notes, inspection and consultation with the artist. In some instances other specialists have been consulted. Existing data from museums and collections has also been used. It has, however, been beyond the resources of the current catalogue project to conduct a specialised survey of every work. As a result inaccuracies and missing information are to be expected.

Dating and Signature

The catalogue only indicates whether a work is dated and/or signed, not the manner in which this is done. This information is registered in the project’s internal database and is available upon request for relevant purposes. See 'Contact'.

Ownership and Provenance

Private ownership of works is anonymised in the catalogue and provenance is not disclosed. This information is registered in the project’s internal database and is available upon request for relevant purposes. Where large numbers of prints exist (posters, for example) ownership is only indicated if they are part of a public collection and/or in the artist’s possession. In rare instances private ownership is indicated in order to enable the localisation of copies for relevant purposes. See 'Contact'.

Sources and References

Sources and references are only included in entries for individual works if the source in question gives a thorough presentation of the work in question.

Documentation

The documentation of works in the catalogue is based on concept, i.e. works with an identical motif are only shown once rather than in every physical form they take. Variations in measurements, definition and signature are given solely as text.

Credits

Project management, researcher, author and editor
Anna Holm

Data model and registration system
Mads Kullberg

Graphic design
Asger Behncke Jacobsen

Development
Mads Kullberg & Asger Behncke Jacobsen

Typeface
Justesen Plakatskabelon
Mads Wildgaard

Translation (Mappings, Introduction, Biography)
Jane Rowley

Danish proofreading (Mappings, Introduction, Biography, Bibliography)
Anja Lollesgaard

Photo & video credits

Per Ahlmann, Ole Akhøj, Claus Altschul, Artspace – Visual Arts Centre, Auktionshuset.com, Anders Sune Berg, Ulrik Brask, Bruun Rasmussen Kunstauktioner, Vahid Evazzadeh, Faaborg Museum / Andreas Bastiansen, Frida Gregersen, Sonja Iskov, Kirsten Justesen, JydskeVestkysten / Hans Christian Gabelgaard, Boje Hauch Kaufmann, Kimmo Koskela, Mogens Laier, Le Lieu – Centre en Art Actuel, Hans Ole Madsen, Odense Performance Festival, Ole Bole, Poul Pedersen, Statens Kunstfonds arkiver, SMK Foto / Jacob Skou-Hansen, Steen Møller Rasmussen, Jo Selsing, Axel Søgaard, Jan Søndergaard, Svend Thomsen, Klavs Weiss, Jan Wibrand

Every attempt has been made to trace all copyright holders. This has not, however been possible in every instance. Any violation of copyright is unintentional. Please do not hesitate to contact us if this is the case. See 'Contact'.

Copyright

All texts, images and videos on the site are protected by Danish laws on copyright. It is not permitted to use or copy the catalogue in part or whole without prior written permission from the respective copyright holders. Citations from the site are to be furnished with a link according to standard citation practice.