Marcia Farquhar: THE OPEN UNIVERSITY

27–29 October 2011

Toynbee Studios (outside)

The Open University composed of a functioning outdoor lecture theatre constructed in a roadside refuse skip, as well as an ad hoc lecture series of variable proportions, presented in situ therein, on the subject of what is and what is not trash. The University’s wooden furnishings can be installed in any skip, and include parquet flooring, a lectern and stepped seating.

As the creator, curator, and hostess of this forum, Marcia Farquhar extended a standing invitation to a range of experts and would-be experts from a variety of cultural and academic fields, including music (both popular and classical), psychology, theology and cultural theory. This invitation was intended to solicit lecture contributions on as wide a range of subjects as possible, within the leading theme of what is, what should be and what should never be considered trash.

Full video documentation is available to view at the Live Art Development Agency Study Room and the British Library