Archivorum Unwritten

The first Archivorum Unwritten award has been awarded to Ben Stanwix and Xhanti Zwelendaba, presented by Reservoir gallery. Introduced in 2026 for the Monologue/Dialogue section, the winners are awarded an overall contribution of 20,000 euros the realisation of an editorial project developed by the artist in collaboration with Archivorum. The publication is not intended as simple documentation, but as an integral part of the artistic practice: a space in which to give form to a research, a personal archive or a project still to be developed.

“The Archivorum Unwritten award is assigned to Ben Stanwix and Xhanti Zwelendaba for a collaborative practice that interweaves territory, memory and representation. Their research explores the colonial and apartheid legacies in contemporary South Africa, putting archive images, personal experiences and everyday materials in dialogue. Through these transformations, the artists interrogate the construction of historical narratives and bring out the tensions between official memory and individual lived experience. The jury recognises in their work a strong editorial potential, capable of finding in publication new possibilities of expression and transmission. The prize supports the book as an autonomous space of research, in which sources, images and voices can generate new shared readings.”