Kingston School of Art

Supermarket Ruins: Archaeological stories for our times

The Kingston School of Art student posters present the results of a collaborative project between the Museum of London Archives (MOL Archives), Recycle Archaeology, the Transforming Data Reuse in Archaeology project (UCL branch), and BA Illustration Animation students from Kingston School of Art.

The students explored new interpretations and storytelling possibilities for archival data from the TETRARCHs database, specifically focusing on the Horse Fair excavation site in Kingston Upon Thames, uncovered during the 1980s construction of the John Lewis superstore. Through creative research, informed by archival documents, selected archaeological artifacts, and site visits, the students reimagined how this historical site could inform the future of superstores within evolving urban landscapes and in the context of late capitalism.

Participating BA Illustration Animation students:

James Lucas, Billy Rai, Jasmine Tokoya, Selin Charlton, Matt Molloy, Daniel O’Malia, Oscar Roberts, Lizzie Joyce, Katie Mitchell, Jack O’Connor, Freddy Claridge, Caitlin O’Toole, Sophia Vargas, Cresson Wilson, Elouise Sutton, Wendy Wang, Sanson Xie

Project facilitated by

Laura Copsey (Senior Lecturer, Illustration Animation, Kingston School of Art) Dr Sara Perry (Associate Professor, Institute of Archaeology, UCL) Dr Anna Simandiraki-Grimshaw (Research Fellow, Institute of Archaeology, UCL) Dr Helen Wickstead (Senior Lecturer in Museum Studies at Kingston University and founder and director of Recycle Archaeology)