The ICA Communications team is pleased to announce the release of a new member-authored blog on Archives in Practice, continuing its commitment to highlighting the voices and expertise of International Council on Archives members worldwide.
We are delighted to feature the latest contribution:
“What AI Cannot Archive: The Vibration of Absence and the Salt of Memory”
Prepared by Renata Cavalcante, this article reflects on the relationship between archives, memory, materiality, and the limits of artificial intelligence in capturing human experience.
Through reflections on personal objects, sensory experiences, and the traces that shape memory, the article explores how archives can extend beyond systems of classification and preservation. It considers how meaning can emerge through relationships between bodies, materials, places, and experiences that cannot always be reduced to data.
The contribution examines the challenges of applying artificial intelligence to archival contexts, reflecting on what may be lost when complex forms of affect, presence, and lived experience are transformed into categories and patterns. Drawing on theoretical perspectives from authors including Derrida, Barad, Barthes, and Azoulay, the article invites reflection on the relationship between technical records and the meanings they carry.
This article highlights the ways in which archives can also be understood as evolving practices shaped by memory, material encounters, and the traces that remain beyond what can be fully captured or preserved.
We invite you to read the full contribution and explore Renata Cavalcante’s reflections on memory, archives, and what remains beyond the reach of artificial intelligence.
If you missed it, you can also explore previous member-authored article, “Why the ICA Human Rights Principles Still Matter in 2026”.
For any questions or if you are interested in contributing to Archives in Practice, please contact us at communications@ica.org.
