case study: Edmund de Waal
long-term digital stewardship

long-term collaboration enables different kinds of work to become possible

seachange studio has worked with Edmund de Waal and his studio since 2015. What began with the development of a new website has grown into an ongoing role supporting the digital life of an international practice across exhibitions, publications, writing and new projects.

As the practice develops, seachange studio maintains and expands its digital presence, responding to immediate needs while considering how each development fits within the whole. Regular strategic review sits alongside day-to-day management, allowing the website to evolve with the practice rather than simply accumulate content.

seeing the potential in what already exists, and finding the structure to develop it

A recent project grew from de Waal’s substantial body of writing. While his website held an extensive record of objects and exhibitions, essays, lectures and other texts were dispersed across publications, private files and recordings, with much of the material unavailable online. Bringing them together offered an opportunity to make writing visible as a significant part of the practice in its own right.

seachange sourced and verified the texts, secured permissions, transcribed recordings and developed the structure for a dedicated writing archive. The result brings previously dispersed material into one place and creates a framework through which the writing can be explored, understood and expanded over time.

knowing what to maintain, what to change and when there is an opportunity to do more

Eleven years on, seachange continues to provide continuity across the everyday and the substantial. Each new piece of work builds on knowledge accumulated through the relationship, allowing the digital presence to develop alongside the practice and creating the conditions for new ideas to emerge.