Local archive, distant reading: Performance Space at Cleveland street and carriageworks

Founded in 1983, Sydney's Performance Space has been at the forefront of experimental performance and visual art ever since. In the process of presenting work over almost four decades, it has amassed a substantial archive. Still held and maintained by the organisation itself, rather than a state or national library, the archive contains four types of materials: a compelling audio-visual collection of about 1,000 items in every media format imaginable; a collection of 4,000 photographs, dating from the late 1980s onwards; an extensive but incomplete set of about 200 posters, dating from 1986; and finally, the organisation's administrative records, including board papers, grant applications, annual reports, programmes, and marketing materials.