DERBY.- A new exhibition at QUAD, in Derby, will look at the relationship between success and failure by looking at common place materials and repetitive processes. Accidentally on Purpose is a mixed media group show which will be on display from 27th July until 7th October 2012.

Accidentally on Purpose will be an exhibition, online publication and audio project exploring the occurrence of repeating problems, and the strategies for (re)approaching them.

Accidentally on Purpose takes its title from an American Sitcom situated in the banality of the everyday. Its characters strive to make the best of an unfortunate situation, repetitively re-negotiating the uncertainty of their lives. The desire for escapism through the consumption of mass broadcasts and episodic formulas offers an interesting context for the curator’s approach to this exhibition; which connects the structure of the sitcom to an exploration of the relationship between success and failure, looking at common place materials and repetitious processes as a point of departure.

The works in this exhibition grapple with materiality, context and the processes that brought them into being. They challenge the frameworks we use to judge a successful artwork, or validate an aesthetic decision, sincere gesture, or logical action. Objects, people, materials and ideas test their own limits. And in doing so, return to and redefine notions of success and failure, intention and meaning. A series of artists will also be invited to create audio soundtracks to the exhibition. These collated recordings will offer brief and unique interpretations of the exhibition; charting new connections and creating unique atmospheres.

Curated by Candice Jacobs and Fay Nicolson, Accidentally on Purpose will feature artists Becky Beasley, Karen Cunningham, Michael Dean, Cyprien Gaillard, Ryan Gander, Paul Graham, Jonathan Monk, Rose O’Gallivan, Edit Oderbolz, Dan Rees, Clunie Reid, George Shaw, and Ryszard Wasko.

Candice Jacobs and Fay Nicolson will also be developing the specially designed web project, Accidental Purpose. Accidental Purpose will contain responses by 100 invited artists, curators and writers on the theme of success, failure and reoccurring problems and will soon be online at www.accidentalpurpose.net. The exhibition will end with a series of talks and live events; bringing together leading writers, curators and artists with interests in failure, repetition and the everyday.