Call for Artworks for the Permanent Collection

The Ontological Museum is actively collecting artworks for the permanent collection of the museum. We are collecting at present around the exhibition concepts in the left column but will entertain works outside of these ideas. What we are looking for are works of modest scale and of high quality. Great things in small packages. We have designed the museum around economy of storage and with an eye to international traveling exhibitions that document the work of artists in the constructive arts – that is to say, art that is ‘put together’ from assembled parts or work done in that spirit. The Museum is in fact an “assemblage of assembled things”. Studio documentary materials are also good such as donated sketchbooks, scrapbooks, diaries, collections of papers, such as boxes, dossiers, photographs, ephemera; all of those things that surround the creative process of collage, assemblage and construction.

Unlike most art museums the Ontological Museum is not a product of one or several wealthy collectors donating their oversized collections to a well funded repository for a staff to take care of and exhibit. Rather it is a gathering together of art and objects by artists for artists as part of the Ontological Museum – a museum intended to collect direct first hand art specimens from current living artists like a scientific museum might collect field specimens for study and research.

Our interest is in constructed art as it began in the early 20th century around photography, film, advertising, printing, computers, mass media, etc.

This is not to say that we are not interested in acquiring significant works collected of historical, technical or aesthetic value. We absolutely are happy to entertain acquiring otherwise difficult or impossible to get items.

For the time being we will receive any small package sight unseen. Things larger than a briefcase we would like to see photographs or digital images of first. Don’t send things with animal or plant items that might not make it through customs. Send items regardless of value as -0- value  so that we don’t have to pay duties on your contributions (or tempt postal workers to steal them) and please sign up as a member of the Ontological Museum to help cover the costs of processing, storing and exhibiting your items online and in possible future exhibitions.

Send to:

ONTOLOGICAL MUSEUM
Attention Collections
4810 West Alameda Street
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87807 USA