Rosanna Lang

Archive for the Negative Image

The Archive for the Negative Image is a center devoted to documentation, research and exhibition of historical photographs, providing democratic access with the aim of reforming the socio-cultural narrative of Cypriot history. Situated within the Ledra Street buffer zone, this unique archive democratically caters to both Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities. Predominantly analogue photographic exhibition material focus upon the socio-cultural experience and memory embedded within the city, subverting traditionally politicised narratives to re-write a cohesive bi-communal history.

Exhibition spaces allow interactive engagement with archival material through creative displays and projections in accordance with new-museology principles, deviating from traditional exhibitionism for a unique user-experience. Intentionally non-prescriptive in layout, non-chronological movement allowing visitors to form their own conclusions regarding the historical information presented. The three-story archival center consists of both Permanent and Temporary Exhibitions, a Lecture Theater and Cinema Space, Darkroom, Artist in Residence Studio, Archival Storage, Café, Bar and Courtyard Space as well as housing the Pavilion for subverted surveillance within the Checkpoint Zone.

The Pavilion uses early pinhole camera technology to subvert surveillance within the contested and monitored site, documenting, distorting, and internally projecting images from its surrounds, representing politicised themes of displacement, contestation and abandonment. An example of this is recording can be viewed in the “Art Installation” video.