Covenant Concerning the Schwitters’ Army Collection of Collage Art

The "Covenant Concerning the Schwitters’ Army Collection of Collage Art" is a witnessed agreement that creates and names the collection and places it in the custody of MERZ. Ten copies were signed by seven signatories on 16 February 2020. Declared by Ric Kasini Kadour, V.S.A, Convenor, Curator and Representative of The Schwitters’ Army, the Covenant appoints Quartermaster of the Schwitter’s Army Collection of Collage Art David Rushton, V.S.A, as Custodian and Caretaker of The Collection. The Covenant also appoints James Gracie as Counsellor of the Covenant. Witnesses for Kadour were Michael Argue and Jade Davidson and witnesses for Rushton were Denise Zygadlo and Morane Le Coz. Each of the signatories received a copy. Copies were placed in the Ephemera Archive of the collection (SA137SW20EPM) and in the archives of Kolaj Institute. A copy was sent to a representative of the Dumfries and Galloway Museums.

The Covenant is both a real legal document and a piece of performance art in the vein of Yves Klein's Zones of Immaterial Pictorial Sensibility. It is an act of history making by documenting an event and placing that documentation in archives. A limited edition Commemorative Covenant is available.