The consulta (enquiry) An Attempt to Exhaust an African Place is obviously modelled on George Perec’s Tentative d'épuisement d'un lieu parisien, and it also emulates his purpose of exploring, narrating and naming everything in a particular territory. Here, the territory is Africa and its Diaspora –along with its representations. As with Perec's inventory, the precincts of this consulta (enquiry) are scenes that are revisited from unusual perspectives, through the accounts of a variety of speakers. The project reflects upon the contemporary experience of the “archive” in African art and culture, exploring the documentation and visibilisation strategies that have been employed in recent times. The items contained in this archive are of multidisciplinary origins, encompassing art, literature, history, philosophy, cinema, and music. Likewise the physical supports are catalogues, books, clippings, magazines, fanzines, comics, films, videos, and files, also with radio and television programmes. Given the infinite and random character of its narratives, the attempt is, of course, to fail.

The purpose of the project is the create a temporary resource centre, an inventory based on an open structure that offers the opportunity to learn about –along with established experiences and internationally recognised artistic proposals—other initiatives from contemporary Africa that are nearly always absent from official narratives.