Showcasing For Want of Not Measuring, an international creative research project led by Jim Hobbs.
The University of Greenwich is celebrating the ongoing international impact of For Want of (not) Measuring, led by Jim Hobbs, Senior Lecturer in the School of Design and Creative Industries. Developed over the past four years in collaboration with artist Patrick Adam Jones, the project continues to gain momentum across the global contemporary arts landscape, strengthening the university’s international research profile while fostering new pathways for collaboration.
Rooted in the artists’ longstanding shared interest in the relationships between time, uncertainty and perception, For Want of (not) Measuring brings together artists, curators, and cultural partners to explore how creative practice can interrogate shifting social, spatial, and environmental conditions.
Jones and Hobbs are interested in the problematic and poetic use of systems and measurement. Where measure often focuses on quantitative results, the two artists instead choose a more metaphysical approach to explore the use of measuring apparatus. As such, surveying sticks, physical grids and light meters are all used to point out the futility, absurdity and impossibility of truly knowing the world around us.
The project has evolved through a series of exhibitions, performances, talks, and publications, growing from its first iteration at Kingsgate Projects in 2022 into a multi-component international programme. Today, it stands as a model of interdisciplinary, outward-facing research aligned closely with the university’s strategic priority of championing world-leading, rigorous, and impactful and creative research.
At the heart of the project is a commitment to collaboration. Each exhibition is shaped in partnership with curators and institutions across cultural contexts, ensuring that every output responds to local concerns. Far from operating as a traditional touring exhibition, For Want of (not) Measuring instead cultivates site-specific approaches that encourage curators to reimagine the project anew. This model deepens dialogue between participating artists and institutions, while embedding knowledge exchange at the centre of the research process.
Exhibitions have been hosted at the Stephen Lawrence Gallery at the University of Greenwich, Tørreloft in Copenhagen, Project 78 and Solaris Gallery in Hastings, and The Revelator in Glasgow, each contributing to the development of a growing international network. These exhibitions have encouraged new curatorial perspectives and modes of engagement, allowing the project to expand both its conceptual and geographic reach. The resulting momentum has led to invitations from major cultural organisations and artist-run spaces worldwide. As a result, further exhibitions are in development in Mexico City, New York, Dublin, and Athens.
Each exhibition will include public talks, workshops, and artist-led events, engaging communities and academic partners in Denmark, Malta, and Chile. These collaborations will further strengthen the university’s global research partnerships, creating opportunities for shared learning and cross-cultural dialogue.
A significant strand of the project involves the development of bespoke publications that expand upon each exhibition – functioning as published critical essays as well as limited edition artworks. Produced in collaboration with CentrePress, the university’s in-house publishing initiative, these publications engage staff, students, and international curators in co-designed research outputs, including the badge image pictured above.
For each exhibition, host institutions have commissioned leading writers, including Paola Palaeri (Tørreloft), Professor Vince Briffa (Spazju Kreattiv), and Dr Joselyne Contreras Cerda (CEINA) to contribute critical essays. With contributions from University of Greenwich students, these publications not only support our strategic priorities around research excellence but also offer valuable professional experience for emerging designers.
The project’s digital presence is also rapidly expanding. A dedicated website and online archive are currently in development, providing open access to exhibition documentation, recorded talks and publications. This digital platform will capture the breadth of the project’s activity and ensure its continued visibility beyond physical venues.
For Want of (not) Measuring is also contributing to the university’s broader social impact and international mission. Through its collaborative exhibitions and engagement activities, the project creates tangible societal impact, offering public audiences the opportunity to engage with experimental art practices, supporting artists and curators through new commissions and partnerships, and generating professional pathways for students. By focusing on themes that resonate across contemporary culture, from environmental precarity to shifting temporalities, the project facilitates meaningful conversations that extend far beyond gallery spaces.
The university is proud to support and celebrate the continued achievements of this innovative and far-reaching project. Jim Hobbs is a member of the Sound/Image Research Centre.
For Want of (not) Measuring is currently on view at Spazju Kreattiv until 3 May 2026.
Follow along with the project on Instagram for further stories and highlights: @forwantofnotmeasuring
