OUTCAST REGISTRATION

The Client

As the developer for OUTCAST REGISTRATION, my first step was understanding the client, Ulrike Möntmann, and the initiative behind the site. Möntmann operates as both an artist and researcher, primarily based in Amsterdam and Vienna, with a PhD and ongoing academic work. Since the late 90s, her focus has been consistently on the often-overlooked experiences of drug-addicted women in European prisons and related institutions, conducting long-term, collaborative projects across multiple countries. The core initiative, OUTCAST REGISTRATION, aims to systematically document these women's lives, challenge their societal invisibility, and consolidate findings from her arts-based research. My role was to translate this complex, sensitive, and long-term research vision into a functional digital archive.

The Project: A digital archive

The main project was building OUTCAST REGISTRATION itself – not just a website, but a specialized digital archive to house and disseminate Möntmann's extensive arts-based research dating back to 1998. The key task was structuring the site to effectively present the core research components: detailed participant Biographies developed using the unique Matrix Method, analyses of the participants' environments through the lens of different Spaces (isolated, cultural, public), visual diagrams of life trajectories, and comprehensive information on specific research projects like the long-running "THIS BABY DOLL WILL BE A JUNKIE" (TBDWBAJ) and the current "Parrhesia" project. We needed to ensure the platform could handle diverse content types – text, images, project documentation, geographical locations – and make this sensitive material accessible, offering it in both English and German to reflect its European scope.

We designed an interactive globe with the birth locations of all participants.

The Challenge: Ethics, complexity, and access

Developing OUTCAST REGISTRATION presented unique challenges rooted in the project's sensitive subject matter and methodology. The primary technical and ethical challenge was building a platform to amplify the voices of a highly marginalized group – drug-addicted women in prison, often dealing with trauma and violence – without causing further harm or exploitation. This meant carefully considering how to represent sensitive biographical data, collected via the specific Matrix Method, in a way that was both factual and respectful. Furthermore, the site needed to translate complex arts-based research concepts, like Foucault's 'Parrhesia' (the risky act of truth-telling) central to one project , into an accessible web structure suitable for diverse audiences, bridging the gap between academic research, artistic practice, and public awareness.

Approach: Structuring arts-based research

Our approach to building the site was directly informed by Möntmann's arts-based research methodology. We designed the information architecture to mirror the core components of her work. This involved creating dedicated sections and structures to house the Biographies generated via the specific Matrix Method – a system using keyword selection to articulate difficult experiences factually. We also implemented the conceptual framework of Topological Spaces, ensuring the site could present analyses categorized into 'isolated', 'cultural', and 'public' spheres to contextualize the participants' lives. The overall site structure, including navigation and content relationships, was built to reflect these key research methods and theoretical underpinnings like Parrhesia, making the research logic transparent to the user.

Impact: A hub for ongoing work

From a development perspective, OUTCAST REGISTRATION was designed to be more than a static archive; it needed to function as a dynamic hub supporting the ongoing impact and dissemination of Möntmann's research. We built functionalities to facilitate knowledge circulation, including sections for documenting Expert Meetings, publications, press coverage ("In Writing"), and project news like awards or conference participation. The site serves as the central online point for an initiative that uses multiple dissemination methods (art interventions, exhibitions, video), ensuring the research remains accessible as projects like Parrhesia continue to evolve. A particularly poignant feature we included was the "In Memoriam" section, underscoring the human reality and vulnerability behind the research data the site archives.