Franko B’s archive is held as part of the Live Art Archives at the University of Bristol Theatre Collection.

The archive covers the last 30 years of Franko’s work and includes material in a wide variety of formats related to his performances, screenings, exhibitions, collaborations, mentoring, books and visual art. There are posters and many photographs of Franko and his work, plus a number of items made from the cloth Franko has bled onto during his performances, including several garments.

In 2018 the University of Bristol Theatre Collection received an award from the Wellcome Trust to conserve and catalogue Franko’s extensive archive. A detailed catalogue of over 3,500 entries published in 2020 is available here. All items listed are available to view at the Theatre Collection.

The project, Challenging Archives, culminated in a public exhibition and symposium in 2020, together with an exhibition catalogue. Visit the archive’s collection page here for more information, including a 360º scan of the exhibition and a series of blog posts by writers in residence Maddie Costa and Mary Paterson.

For further information, and access to the archive, please contact Siân Williams, Keeper: Digital and Live Art Archives on +44(0)117 331 5045, or email theatre-collection@bristol.ac.uk.