Press release

Artist collects false memories at free event

Have you ever remembered something a certain way, only to find that it never happened? A false memory is a distorted or entirely invented recollection of an experience… and we all have them. Now artist and creator of The WITH Collective, Alasdair Hopwood, is inviting you to contribute your own false memories to a new project called the False Memory Archive.

With support from a Wellcome Trust Arts Award, Hopwood is collaborating with scientific researchers as an Artist-In-Residence at the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths College, under the guidance of Professor Christopher C French.

At a free public presentation on Tuesday 17 January, Hopwood will introduce the False Memory Archive and invite audience members to contribute their own mistaken recollections.

Hopwood will provide an overview of his activity as WITH, outline his ambitions for the residency and present aspects of the rich history of false memory experiments. He will also attempt to rationalise the role of the artist within a scientific setting and touch on the possibilities and limitations of cross-disciplinary collaboration.

(False) Memories Are Made of This: A public presentation
Tuesday 17 January, 18.10
Room LG01, New Academic Building
Goldsmiths, University of London
New Cross, London SE14 6NW
Map | Admission free

Speaking about the project, Professor French said: "It's possible that much of what we take to be our personal autobiographical history is based upon false, or at least distorted, memories. We hope this project will get people thinking about the reliability of their own memories."

For more information about the False Memory Archive or to anonymously submit a memory, please visit We Need False Memories.