Personal collection of 9000 vinyl records goes on display as an artwork

The art of collecting.

A new exhibition at Melbourne’s fortyfivedownstairs, displays artist Stephen William’s personal collection of original ’60s soul 45s.

The footprint of 35 years of collecting, the records are accompanied by a complete indexed catalogue, text, video and recorded music which relate directly to the records themselves. There’s also a “readymade painting” assembled from 200 record sleeves.

Housed in white sleeves on a white bookshelf, the 45s are presented as a unified artwork, inviting discussion around the aesthetics of the collecting, cataloguing and displaying objects.

Following the “the archival turn” in contemporary art, the exhibition hopes to encourage viewers to reflect on their own impulses to collect.

A DJ and painter by trade, Williams said to SMH: “I thought if I was going to turn this into a show how would I do that? What would be the elements? I’d been cataloguing all of the records anyway so in effect I’d been building an archive without really thinking about it, I suppose.”

9000 vinyl records opens on Tuesday October 27 at fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne.

Photo via SMH