Scratchcards placed on the floor in colour-coded circles by Barbara Taylor for her work shown at the Keepers - an exhibition of personal collections exhibition held at The Basement, Brighton, in July 2011. Opening in Brighton this weekend is a new exhibition that allows people with a passion for collecting the opportunity to show their possessions to the public. One of the contributors is Barbara Taylor of the Design Archives, a recent University of Brighton MA Photography graduate, who is showing her collection of losing scratch cards alongside her photographs of hotel beds. Barbara is quick to acknowledge the importance collecting has on her practice as a photographer. She says “working in the Design Archives has most definitely influenced the way I approach my work as an artist. It has taught me to view the items I collect in a different way, and has opened my imagination on using them as an artistic resource.”

Over the years the Design Archives have hosted various projects with artists, from Neil Cummings and Marysia Lewandowska’s residency in 2000, to Gabriel Kuri’s reconstructed breakfast for the 2006 Brighton Photo Biennial. For all of them, questions about the archive, seriality and the rhythms and rituals of everyday life have played a central role.

Keepers – an exhibition of personal collections is open 16 & 17 July, 10-6pm, at The Basement, Kensington Street, Brighton.