Humans are quite literally ‘party animals’. Festivals and gatherings show a universal appetite for revelry and celebration. Historically, many festivals were linked to seasonal cycles and local climate conditions.

Archive of Old and New Events is a speculative archive from the year 2030 conceived and created by Jodi Newcombe of Carbon Arts with artist and collaborator, Tega Brain. On show are two collections: The Collection of Lost Festivals holds materials from events that have gone out of existence due to a changing environment while The Collection of New Festivals imagines novel cultural phenomena that have emerged. Both explore the consequences of strange weather and the extraordinary human capacity for adaptation and celebration.

The archive was on exhibition at The Science Gallery in Dublin from 17 July – 5 October 2014 as part of the Strange Weather exhibition. It is also available online at: archiveofoldandnew.com. This project has been assisted by the Australia Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.

The archive reached Australian audiences for the first time at The Australian Design Centre in Sydney from 24 August – 4 October 2015 as part of the Future Nature exhibition in collaboration with the Australian Museum.