virtualwallworld

KAWS in Atlanta

2012-02-14T21:40:00.000+01:00

Down Time
KAWS
High Museum of Art Atlanta
18.2.-20.5.12
Street art goes gallery

I wish I could be in Atlanta this weekend, as a show of artist KAWS is set to open the 18.2.12. At least I had a preview by the gigantic statue in front of High Museum of Art Atlanta, where the exhibition is scheduled.

Collection of High Museum of Art Atlanta

2012-02-14T21:36:00.000+01:00

High Museum of Art
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Collection exhibition

It is always interesting to see the collection of an art museum. In addition to the artwork itself, it is interesting to see which artists are chosen, and which selections are made. The great High Museum of Art in Atlanta exhibits its collection in the upper floor, with skylights designed by architect Renzo Piano. The house installation by Roy Liechtenstein is a eye-opener by the entrance, and I was impressed to see several great pieces by Anish Kapoor. Here are some highlights:

Roy Liechtenstein: House III

Interior by architect Renzo Piano

Anish Kapoor: Pot for Her

Anish Kapoor: Untitled

Anish Kapoor: Marsupial

Ellsworth Kelly: Untitled

Thomas Struth: Museum of Modern Art I, New York

Matthew Day Jackson: June 6, 1969

Edward Ruscha: Home Power

Anselm Kiefer: Dragon (Drache)

El Anatsui: Taago

Spencer Finch: Bright Star (Sirius)

Lights On - Bakspeilet 2012

2012-02-10T18:00:00.000+01:00

Lights On
Bakspeilet 2012
Rogaland Kunstsenter, Stavanger
9.2.12.-
Brede Korsmo (NO) The Search / Susanne Christensen (DK) The Himation / John Smith (UK) Leading Light / Sidsel Christensen (NO) Light
Curated by Daniela Arriado
Outdoor video art

Video art is a demanding art form. It requires the viewers to spend their time and patience to see the whole video. You never know, some videos are uniform from start to end, some contain surprises. Thus video art is depending on the surroundings of how it will be percieved. A comfortable seat may trigger a different perception than an uncomfortable surrounding.

The "Lights On" exhibition takes the environment to the extreme. The videos are shown on the facade of Rogaland Kunstsenter at Nytorget in Stavanger. The viewers must stand between parked and moving cars in temperatures below zero for 27 minutes to see the entire program. This exhibition will get two types of viewers: Those who deliberately come here and those who happen to notice it passing by. If you want people to stop and see the artworks, the videos must be really interesting and tempting. To attain this, Daniela Arriado has curated an exhibition focusing on what is really missing in a Stavanger winter: Light. In all videos light is a crucial element.

John Smith: Leading Light

In "Leading Light" the sun rays are shining into a room, increasing in strength. Instead of revealing, light is at first a disturbing element, showing only parts of the interior. Light is a disturbance, showing some fractions of what is there, but not enough to understand what it is. But slowly the lit areas grow until all is revealed. It is a rather long video for outdoor shows (11 minutes), so instead of seeing a story of change, most viewers will see fractions, appearing as abstract forms. In this way the video gets a new appearance in this context.

Sidsel Christensen: Light

In "Light" we see a bright light that appears to emerge from a female mouth. Knowing that this is part of a series Sidsel Christensen made of women in nightclubs holding a mirror inside their mouth, gives a feeling of freezing time. Being able to make a person in party mood stand still for five minutes instead of dancing and partying is impressive, and add the glow, and the moment becomes magic. Not knowing where and what is happening, the figure appears as a mystical alien or saint spreading her holy light of knowledge or magic words.

"The Himation" shows a sculpture/person partly hidden in strongly lit curtains, barely moving. In this setting, where the video is shown on a window, you feel like looking into a home. You see something moving in the curtains, but cannot really make out if it is a person or not. It shows nothing of the background or interior. The video itself has no references to any geographical place, but when the location is known, it changes my perception of it. Susanne Christensen filmed this in Damascus, Syria. My limited knowledge of Damascus is triggered: cultural heritage, ancient history, dictatorship, civil war. How is this video related to ancient or present Damascus, or is it related at all? Would I react differently if I was told it was filmed in Barcelona?

The background story of "The Search" is even greater than the video itself. The artist lost his camera into the water in Rio, and it kept filming until he found it again. We see the shifting light through the water surface, swimmers passing over, and the happy ending where the artist picks up the camera.

*

exhibition web page here

Ingunn Fyllingen: Iscenesatt natur

2012-02-05T21:13:00.001+01:00

Iscenesatt natur (Staged Nature)
Ingunn Fyllingen
2.-18.2.12
Neo galleri & studio, Stavanger
Abstract paintings and prints

Nature is made abstract, or abstracts looks like nature. I like the simpleness, the limited use of strokes and colours, especially on the paintings. Is it something in us that makes us see nature in abstract forms? Or is nature an important basis for her abstracts?

untitled

Lilla fantasi (purple fantasy), monotypie

Marisa Ferreira: Colour + Form

2012-02-05T20:06:00.002+01:00

Colour + Form
Marisa Ferreira
2.-27.2.12
Galleri Sult, Stavanger
Geometrical and three-dimensional paintings

The first impressions of Marisa Ferreiras work are her bright colours and strict geometrical shapes. This is apparent both in her canvas and aluminium 3D works. Random bright colour rectangular shapes on a canvas could have been boring, and only to be used as a decorative element. But Ferreiras work is far from random, and far from boring. I was lucky to hear how she thinks about her works at the opening at Galleri Sult. She explained that the shapes, the composition and the choice of colours are a result of long prosess. Therefore it is not a coincidence that her work seems so well proportioned and balanced.

Martin Worts and Marisa Ferreira at the opening dialogue

Marisa Ferreira and one of her "Homage to Fibonacci" paintings

Homage to Fibonacci

The "Homage to Fibonacci" paintings use a formula for the composition, shown in increasing sizes of the forms. This is enchanced with her intricate choices of colour. The same process is used in the architectural series in a different but slightly more visible way.

Homage to Fibonacci
A three-in-one painting, to be seen from left, right, and straight on.

Serie architectural facades

I find Marisa Ferreira's works bright, fresh and impressive. The contrast to a grey, dark January day in Stavanger is stunning. I become curious about the numbers of Fibonacci (1170-1250), about how Ferreira are able to keep track of the system of colour and form, and I am eager to see what her works will look like next time.

Streetart in Cancun

2012-02-01T16:58:00.001+01:00

When travelling, I always look for signs of graffiti, street art or similar expression. For me the amount of urban art reflects the amount of creativity, the degree of freedom, the possibility of being critical, and the presence of humoristic sense. A clean, sterile city or suburb is boring, depressive and claustrophobic.

After a walk around in Cancun center, I give thumbs up for a lot of stickers and some murals as well. I guess the murals are commissioned, while the stickers probably are illegal. Some of the stickers may be ads as far as I know. Sometimes the difference between ads and art is hard to distinguish.

It's all about getting up high

Sometimes the pieces just expand and evolve

Not sure whether this is art or an accident

Mural Mayas. By the way they are also famous for their murals, on stucco

This beautiful piece probably increases the rent on the building

Weird stuff

Even weirder stuff

Some prepare their stickers with cuts to make them impossible to remove

Best of 2011

2012-01-06T17:00:00.000+01:00

It is time to look back on what happened during the last year on contemporary art in the Stavanger region. I consider it a great art year, with many noteworthy happenings and exhibitions. All posts from 2011 are about what I find worth mentioning. But if I have to point out five that gave me the strongest impression, I'll choose these (in chronological order):

Elin Melberg: I wish I wish I wish in vain

After having seen the wonderful wish box in NYC, it was a treat to see it on home ground. Crowds of visitors lined up to get a glimpse of the inside. All had happy faces when they exited the box.

http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/03/elin-melberg-and-frido-evers-at-pulse.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/04/elin-melberg-i-wish-i-wish-i-wish-in.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/04/elin-melberg-i-wish-i-wish-i-wish-in_29.html

Tou Camp

Tou Camp was a brave project of displaying the possibilities of the culture venue Tou Scene to the politicians and the public. During a month in June-July all of the former brewery was taken in use to show what a great possibility here is for artist studios, concert venues, exhibition halls, outdoor festivals. Up to now only part of the complex is used, while the rest of the buildings need serious rehabilitation. Tou Camp was a great success, with crowds of visitors, and probably worked as a catalysator to a political decition to support the development plans.

http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/06/tou-camp.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/06/events-at-tou-camp.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/06/tou-camp-exhibition-opening.html

Nuart

Nuart secured its position as an internationally important festival of street art / urban art. Great top level artists left their marks in the large beer halls at Tou scene and in the streets of Stavanger. This year the six year history of Nuart was documented in a beautiful book, launched at the finissage of the festival.

http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/09/nuart-2011.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/09/nuart2011-work-in-progress.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/nuart-2011-inside.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/escif-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/hyuro-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/phlegm-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/lucy-mclauchlan-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/vhils-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/tellas-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/herakut-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/roberto-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/herbert-baglione-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/dan-witz-at-nuart.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/10/david-choe-dvs1-at-nuart.html

R-open

R-open is a festival where artists in the county open up their studios to the public. More than 100 artists participated all over Rogaland, and lots of people visited them. In addition to the open studio days there was a program of artist talks, exhibition openings and an outdoor video art exhibition in the streets. A great happening that hopefully will continue as a biennal.

http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/11/r-open-artist-talks.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/11/r-open-haugesund.html
http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/11/r-open-in-sandnes.html

Jorunn Mæland: Frukter av skuronna

A wonderful debut of Jorunn Mæland, connecting fine art, farming tradition, love for nature and a creative eye for details and materials.

http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/11/jorunn-mland-frukter-av-skuronna.html

I could also have said something about the great new exhibition venues that opened in 2011, the other great female artists that exhibited in 2011, the very last exhibitions at Stavanger Kunstforening, and the daring exhibitions at Kinokino. But you find it all in the posts.

Urban destruction

2011-12-21T05:30:00.000+01:00

Stavanger / Sandnes
Architecture / streetart&graffiti

These are sad times for urban art in both Sandnes and Stavanger. In both towns architectural landmarks are torn down to give way to urban renewal. Together with the buildings important artwork are lost as well.

The high tower at Tou Scene has been a landmark, a beacon for the spot. The "Tou" logo on the tower has been visible from far, from the town bridge, and from the ferry across the fjord to Tau, where the original Tou brewery was situated. It became a symbol of the former brewery, now creative culture venue of Tou Scene. The first ones to use the tower as a canvas were the local urban artist duo Pøbel & Østrem, who on the seafront side painted a great streetart/graffiti piece that lasted for about one year. After them came the Nuart festival with famous Italian artists Blu and Erica il Cane. They covered three of the sides with their collaboration work, commenting on Stavanger's richness due to oil, and the oil production's side effects. It is quite ironic that the painting was removed due to exactly that prosperity.

The destruction did not come as a surprise, it has been in the municipal plans for a long time already. As part of the seafront renewal the tower was torn down to give way to an apartment building. This will break Tou Scene's direct connection to the sea, in the worst case turning the seafront into a private area. In the best case this area will offer seaside promenades and parks all related to the Tou Scene area and accessible for everybody.

Somehow it seems like poverty is the conservator of history and heritage, while prosperity and wealth wipes out everything old and out-of-fashion. Towns like Stavanger have gained their uniqueness due to a poor population that had no other choice than to continue living in their old houses. While the wealth bring in higher living standards, but not necessarily higher aestethical knowledge.

In Sandnes there is also destruction going on. A parking house, build by the aestethical standards of its time, not much liked anymore, is now demolished. This is a part of the rather infamous, unstructured, bad planned bus station/train station/parking lot called Ruten. I could write a lot about the planning, politics and architecture of the square, but I prefer to focus on the art.

The parking house has been the scene for a brave experiment, it has provided legal walls for the graffiti writers of Sandnes. Since May 2010 different pieces have come and gone. Some have lasted for a long time, some have been painted over immediately. It has always been a pleasure to monitor the changes on the walls. As I understand the local boys have appreciated having a place where they are allowed improve their creative skills in art. This opportunity is now gone. It will be interesting if the municipality of Sandnes understands that the guys need a new legal wall now. There are plenty of possibilities. There is plenty of boring concrete that would look better covered with colourful paint and skillfull letters.

Link to the Tou tower by Pøbel&Østrem here
Link to the Tou tower by Blu&Erica il Cane here
Links to graffiti at Ruten here

Pia Myrvold

2011-12-19T21:00:00.000+01:00

Galleri Amare, Stavanger
2.-24.12.11
paintings, watercolor and digital

Pia Myrfold shows some familiar and some new artwork in this pre-Christmas exhibiton at Galleri Amare. Here are colourful paintings and watercolours, but I prefer the digital works. The animated shapes are my favourites, they animations are like a crossover between sculpture and engineering 3D instructions. And the surprise is her autoportrait, where her portrait is inside her creations. Are she directing the shapes, or are they commanding her? Is she the creator or is she created?

Sophie Calle: Take Care of Yourself

2011-12-18T00:00:00.000+01:00

Take Care of Yourself
Sophie Calle
30.11.11-8.1.12
Tallinn Art Hall/Kunstihoone
Relational art/photography

It all started with Sophie Calle recieving an email from her boyfriend, where he ended their relationship. The email ended with the words "Take care of yourself." The exhibition was made for the French pavillion at the Venice Biennale in 2007.

Photos of the participants

Exhibition view

She distributed the text to 107 different women, who all interpreted the letter according to their own profession. Thus the letter is psychoanalyzed, turned into code language, used as target for shooting, turned into a childrens' book and a romantic story, danced, sung, textanalyzed by a schoolgirl, used as background for a medical prescription, and analyzed according to syntax, use of words and so on, all in 107 totally different ways. Each interpretation is followed by a photo or a video of the woman.You can spend hours in the gallery reading all the texts and watching the videos.

Syntax approach

The idea is wonderful: Take any text and see how it is percieved by different people according to their background. It is great fun to see how the profession influences on the result. In this way the exhibition could just be a harmless portrait series of a random set of women and their ways of thinking.

But it is not harmess, due to the text in question, its origin and its contents. This is an important text, sent from someone important for the artist, and the content is dynamite. By distributing the email, Sophie Calle is not only sharing her troubles with the other women, she is making it public, visible for all the exhibition visitors. She is forcing her private matters onto the public. This act is at the same time both understandable and problematic. Sharing your grief with friends is a natural way of coping with problems. But sharing it with everyone could easily be regarded as self-centered and egoistic. This smells of revenge, even if Calle claims this is not the case. One of the women comments: she is mobilising hordes of women on an attack of the guy, while she should rather have dealt with it herself.

"The choir you have formed around this letter is the choir of death"

Structural approach

Calle also set focus on the feminine approach to a text: "What did he really mean, why did he choose these exact words, maybe there is some hidden meaning?" Showing how many ways any text can be percieved, this can be seen as a critique of this wish to interpret everything. Maybe the letter is nothing more than a guy ending a relationship, decorating the content with random words and sentences. Maybe he did not mean anything about the ending "Take care of yourself", maybe it was just an empty phrase.

A childrens' story

This is not the first time Calle deals with the intimate private sphere, and balance of the border of what is ethical acceptable. Here lies the power and controversy of her art. She is taking advantage of her ex-boyfriend, using him in art (probably) without his consent. Are we accepting this? Are we accepting that he is not given any possibility to defend himself? Or is he represented well enough by the letter? Or maybe, by writing such a letter, does he deserve to be turned into a scapegoat? Our feelings are involved, our ethical judgement is triggered, we become part of the artwork.

The medical approach

Somehow I also think: how fortunate that Sophie Calle recieved this email. A love letter would not have hade the same potential, would it? Is this what triggers the artist, a challenge? Is suffering needed to make great art? And, honestly, is the letter real? If it is not, would that change something?

Videos of the participants

The most direct approach is made by the only non-human participant, a parrot. According to the concept it must be female, but I am seriously wondering whether it might be male. (Who can tell anyway.) It does not care at all about what is written on the paper, it just eats it and gets over it.

*

Exhibition page here

Anne Helene Gjelstad: Big Heart, Strong Hands

2011-12-15T19:00:00.000+01:00

Big Heart, Strong Hands
Anne Helene Gjelstad
16.11.-15.12.11
the Estonian Parliament, Tallinn
photos - portraits of women from Kihnu and Manija

The portraits of Kihnu and Manija women photographed by Norwegian artist Anne Helene Gjelstad was first on display in Kihnu museum. (Link here) Now the exhibition has moved into the corridors of power, the Estonian Parliament. Before entering the parliament hall, the powerful politicians have to pass these strong women.

This is a decent and symbolic setting. The politicians must never forget who they are working for, who are their voters. Walking by these photos they are constantly reminded on who are their equal citizens. In this way the hard working island women are represented in the Parliament.

The portraits are full of grace, respect and beauty, showing the struggle and the joy of the daily life on the small islands Kihnu and Manija. As the men mostly work at sea, the women rule at home on the farm, and are also the carriers of the strong and unique traditions. The hard work needs strong hands, but it also takes a big heart to appreciate and share the moments of happiness.

Beyond

2011-12-15T18:29:00.000+01:00

Beyond
International Curator Exhibition of Tallinn Month of Photography
07.10.2011 - 08.01.2012
Kumu, Tallinn
Photography

An exhibition focusing on the possibilities and limits of photography. All works have in common their creative approach to the photography, twisting the borders of what is possible.

Denes Farkas: Substructures

Marlo Pascual: Untitled

Marlo Pascual: Untitled

Helena Almeida: Study for Inner Improvement

Caroline Heider: Oh, a phenomenon!
Exhibition page here

EAL 90 "Traces"

2011-12-13T19:00:00.000+01:00

"Traces"
Estonian Architects Union 90 year anniversary exhibition
7.09 - 04.12.11
The Museum of Estonian Architecture, Tallinn
Exhibition design and architectural history

An interesting exhibition showing the history of 90 years of the Estonian Architects' Union in The Museum of Estonian Architecture. The wonderful design is made by Kai Süda, Risto Parve, Diana Taalfeld and Mait Väljas. A great labyrinth made all by cardboard.

Ene-Liis Semper

2011-12-13T18:56:00.000+01:00

Kumu - The Estonian Art Museum
Tallinn, Estonia
14.10.-31.12.11
videos, installations

Welcome to the largest exhibition of Ene-Liis Semper's work so far. As the probably most profiled Estonian contemporary artist, Semper works with both video, installation and performance, and use herself and her family in her works.

The exhibition shows several new works, both video and installations. Her earlier works are hidden in a gigantic labyrinth built into the 5th floor of Kumu. Some works are beautiful, some disturbing, and some rather shocking. At one moment you see children running around playing, the next you see a person pushed along in a hospital bed. One moment there is a beautiful video of arranging furniture on top of each other, the next moment the sound of pianos crashing into each other grabs your attention.

Semper deserves such a retrospective and onward-looking exhibition. It is a great opportunity to be aquainted with her very wide specter of works. Here are glimpses of some of the works.

Let's first enter the labyrinth of the past:

Sun
Two children play running around in a room. The sunlight through the window is obscured for a short moment as the children pass in front of it. As the sunray reappear, the screen turns almost all white for a moment, before the camera adjusts to the light. At the same time a short signal sounds. The game leaves a mark, even the sun can be overwon for a moment.

Into New Home
A person in a hospital bed is rolled through the landscape. The background is changing, but the bed seems to not getting anywhere. The person in the bed seems forlorn and sad, holding tight a small rat in her hands. The only sign of other people is a graveyard the bed passes by on the way, but it is not stopping there. Is the patient going from one place to another, or is she on an eternal journey? Is she moving from home to her new home, the hospital, or is she moving from the hospital back home?

Red Line
A red line is dividing a landscape in two. As a red line usually symbolises a connection, here it is a partition, where something that obviously fits together is parted. Suddenly a person is swinging across the scene, a human pendulum hanging from her legs. She flies with grace, her dress flowing around her. Is she happy, is this a game? Or is she forced to swing like this, like a grotesque metronome?

And then on to the present works:

Untitled
A porn movie parody, fake exitement, real joy. This is obviously a guy jerking off in front of a girl, but then again it is not. It is all fake, nothing is real. The actors are dressed in costumes that could either be some weird fetish dress, or some teletubbyish animation costumes. The "male body part" is made of rubber. As the guy gets more intense, the girl's joy increases, until it is all rounded up by the girl being covered in whipped cream. As porn itself is fake, this fake porn is double fake. A quite disturbing, but very funny piece.

Untitled
From time to time there is a strong noise in the exhibition hall. This installation is the source of that. Suddenly this small cottage leans over to one side, then there is a sound of something rolling, that ends in a great crash. Three pianos are standing free inside the box, mounted on rails. And the all smash into each other from side to side as the box tilts. Each time they crash they are further destroyed, some parts were on the floor already.

Untitled
It is rather disturbing to see such fine pieces of furniture detoriating. The pianos that can be the source of the most wonderful music, now only make a horrible noise. By every crash, the chance of ever hearing soothing tones from these pianos gets smaller.

My Home
A beautiful movie about how the artist collect furniture to decorate her home. As she says in the move: "This is the best idea I ever had." At first there are only some few chairs. But then the furniture piles up, until the room is filled from floor to roof. The three pianos of the former mentioned installation are here as well, all in perfect shape, even with candlelightholders intact. This movie stirs thoughts on how we keep on collecting stuff until it is too much, but it also points to how much aestetics there is in a piece of furniture. And how many and which furniture does it take to make a home?

Exhibition page here

Metropolis – City Life in the Urban Age

2011-12-13T07:30:00.000+01:00

Noorderlicht Photofestival presents:
Metropolis – City Life in the Urban Age, a group exhibition
28.10-11.12.2011
The Museum of Estonian Architecture, Tallinn
Photography

A great photo exhibition of urban landscapes and settings from all around the world.

Christoph Gielen: Ciphers

Yang Yongliang: Heavenly City

Peter Bialobrzeski: The Raw and the Cooked

Edith Roux: Les Depossedes (Kashgar)

Katrin Koenning: Thirteen: Twenty Lacunae

Michael Wolf: Tokyo Impression

Brad Farwell: Rapture (Pantheon)

Minna Havukainen: Parturition

2011-12-12T18:25:00.000+01:00

Parturition
Minna Havukainen
29.10 - 04.12.11
Linnagalerii/City Gallery, Tallinn

Havukainen has for several years been following women during pregnancy and right after birth. The result is a photo series of women portrayed with a vulnerable honesty. The women seems exhausted and fragile but proud. This offer an insight into the moment that will probably be remembered as the highlight of their lives.

Streetart in Tallinn Dec'11

2011-12-11T18:50:00.001+01:00

I found these new pieces in Tallinn during November/December 2011:

The Century is yours

The logo of EKA - the Estonian Academy of Arts

Thankz to the net I am tired of zex

Is this a right way for you?

Batman wannabe

Bandage man

Bandage man

Multistab

And I shot some parts of Multistab pieces, have to get back another time to photograph it all:

I also found this new concept, some kind of geometrical wizard hat:

This is a figure I have seen around other places in the city as well:

And this friendly familiar fellow in the end:

PÖFF 2011

2011-12-08T18:37:00.001+01:00

The Black Nights Film Festival

Tallinn, Estonia

18.-30.11.11

Movies

For the 8th time I had the pleasure of enjoying the Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) in Tallinn, Estonia. During the last five days of the festival I managed to see 12 movies and several short documentaries. There was a special focus on Icelandic film this year, and Fridrik Thor Fridriksson was honored with a lifetime achievement price.

Here is my subjective priority list of which films I recommend:

Restless

Gus Van Sant

USA 2011

A beautiful story about two young people finding together through their mutual interest in death. A streamlined, well produced movie that play on the right strings to touch the viewers.

Undercurrent

Arni Olafur Asgeirsson

Iceland 2010

A strong drama about a microcosmos, the small community on board a fishing vessel in the harsh conditions off Iceland. The unique about this story is that even a strong story is tole, so many stories are untold. I get curious about all the people on the ship and their backgrounds.

Sons of Norway

Jens Lien

Norway 2011

A great comedy about how a suddenly single father and his son is seeking adventures in punk and nudism, a great story about growing up in the 70's in a Norwegian suburb. So exotic, but still so familiar. All filled with that Nordic black humour.

I Wish

Hirokazu Kore-Eda

Japan 2011

A beautiful story about two separated brothers dreaming of something magical to happen: when the two first trains of the Shinkansen superfast trains meet, your wishes come true. A nice mixture of contemporary Japanese life, a little magic, and the joy and energy of kids.

Our Own Oslo

Reynir Lyngdal

Iceland 2011

An Icelandic comedy, situated in something as exotic as an Icelandic cottage area. Fun and familiar. Well made, not exactly a complex story, but filled with slightly weird Icelandic humour.

Movie Days

Fridrik Thor Fridriksson

Iceland 1994

A beautiful story about growing up on Iceland. An autobiographical story about enjoying the movies. All the scenes seems like well staged tableaus. A masterpiece by Fridriksson, that shows why he earned the price of honour.

Children of Nature

Fridrik Thor Fridriksson

Iceland 1991

Another beautiful story from FTF, about two old people wanting to decide themselves where and how to die. Beautiful nature views combined with strong actors.

Devil's Island

Fridrik Thor Fridriksson

Iceland 1996

About the relations between Iceland and USA in the 50's, about life among the poor inhabitants of the abandoned US barracs on Iceland. About how US culture was glorified and how the oldest son pampered as a king. About the tragical conditions and hard life of the poor on Iceland. It feels like a visit to a totally unknown world, both the terrible weather and living standards, and the extreme impact of US culture.

Breakfast Lunch Dinner

Daz Cai, Wang Jing, Anocha Suwichakornpong

Singapore 2010

How to break up during a meal in three different countries. Silent and beautifully, three different directors from three countries each picture a different meal between two people.

Mother's Paradise

Aktan Arym Dubat

Kazakhstan

A tragic story about how a mother must sacrifice all to take care of her kids. A well made movie from Kazakhstan, showing how deep it is possible to sink into poverty and trouble.

Fish & Onions

Marc Brummund

Germany 2011

A beautiful documentary about the Old Believers living on the shores of Lake Peipsi in Estonia. As the Russian Orthodox church was reformed, some chose not to be reformed and moved into exile. The tradition still lives on in these few villages. But the congregation mostly consists of old people, the young have to move to get work. This is not so much about the religion, mostly about portraying the people.

Only one movie I saw was a disappointment this year, unfortunately this was also the only Estonian movie I saw:

The Idiot

Rainer Sarnet

Estonia 2011

I really wanted to like this movie. The top stars of Estonian film on the screen, a massive use of resources in the scenography, and based on "the Idiot" by Dostovjevsky, how can you fail? But in my opinion the dialogues, the personas and the story are failing. Maybe it is because I am not familiar with the original, maybe because I am not familiar with the actors and how they act. But I cannot get any connection with the persons in the movie, it all seems too pretencious and pompous. Is it because the Dostovjevsky text is not fit for film? Or has the intention to make this a grand, glamorous movie been on the cost of playing the story? I must admit that the camerawork, the scenes, the settings and the costumes are splendid, a feast for the eye. Maybe I should rather consider this as a costume play then a psychological drama.

Hop On Hop Off Art Bus

2011-12-07T18:27:00.001+01:00

Every Saturday during 2011
Tallinn, Estonia
Bus ride to art institutions

This is one of the many Tallinn European Capital of Culture 2011 project: Every Saturday you can join the Hop On Hop Off Art Bus, visiting the wide variety of the Tallinn art scene. It happens all year around and visit so many different culture institutions. Unfortunately I only had the opportunity to join two trips, on graphic art and on scenography. This offered a great insight into different worlds.

The Art Bus
Hop On Hop Off Art on every Saturday for only 1,5€

26.11.11 Graphic Art

Great to see so many familiar publications made by these guys

Norman Orro, Ivari Lipp, Daniel Kotsjoba, Hardi Niilo
The group designing the new visual images of the Tallinn public transport system

3.12.11 Scenography

Backstage visit at Estonia opera theatre
Set Designer Peter Docherty explaining the scenography of the play "Rosalinde"

Backstage visit at Estonia opera theatre
In one of the costume rooms

Visiting Stagecraft workshop

Waiting for EKA

2011-12-06T20:00:00.001+01:00

Tallinn, Estonia
Walls of the property of the future EKA building
Murals by students of the Estonian Art Academy (EKA)

This year the building of the Estonian Art Academy was demolished. This is done for building a brand new building, which takes time. While the planners and archaeologists do their work, the students are spread all over the city in different buildings. To shorten the waiting, or to lighten up this present emptly lot in the center, the students apparently have been invited to paint the security walls. Here are the results:

"In Tallinn there is zero tolerance against graffiti - absolutely no graffiti, nowhere."
Vice mayor Taavi Aas, news broadcast 24.10.11

The situation is S**T, but this is our time's fertilizer

Culture calls/balls - but EKA's home?

Warning! Give us our school back #&¤€!!

R-open in Sandnes

2011-11-22T17:09:00.001+01:00

R-open
19.11.11
Sandnes, Norway
Open artist studios in Rogaland county
www.r-open.no

Saturday 19.11. was the day of R-open in all municipalities in the south part of Rogaland except Stavanger. I had a look in Sandnes. I visited Nils Rostad's studio with maybe the best sea view in Sandnes. And I spent a lot of time at Stasjon K, a labyrinth of the old fire station and town hall/cinema, in the same building as the Kinokino culture venue. There I had the pleasure of seeing and talking about the works by the many artists, hearing the brilliant sound sculpture by Nils-Thomas Økland, and watching Turi Gramstad Oliver doing magic in making paper. After this wonderful place my mind was full, and I did not make it any further.

Great view from the studio of Nils Rostad

Stasjon K artist studios

Colorful geometrical figures in the studio of Inger A. Bruun

Delicate drawings in the studio of Marianne Løvvik

Wonderfully crazy installations by Nils-Thomas Økland

Amazed by hearing about the projects of Nils-Thomas Økland

Beautiful paintins in the studio of Liv Eiene

Turi Gramstad Oliver making delicate paper from a strange substance in the tray

Fantastic forms in the studio of Frank Åsnes

Letting Space in Pedersgata

2011-11-19T09:54:00.001+01:00

Letting Space
Kenneth Varpe, Anne Helen Robberstad, Eirik Lyster, Joakim Lund, Birgitte Løvås, Henrik Koppen, Sjur Aas

18.-20.11.11
Pedersgata, Stavanger
video art in public space

A fantastic project where video art is shown in windows along Pedersgata street. A great way to enjoy the dark, cold evenings of late autumn, just walking along the street to enjoy art. This is something that should definitely happen again.

Anne Helen Robberstad - To Be Seen
I really like how she brings nature and wolves into the town streets. And I like how it fits with the window lights on the other floors.

Birgitte Løvås - Koreografi
A tender video making you look closer to see what it really is.

Henrik Koppen: Freyr / Eirik Lyster: Superstar II
These two videos of two different artists fit so well together on both sides of this old print shop.

Kristen Rønnevik: Flick into the Swing - A Remix

2011-11-19T09:51:00.001+01:00

Flick into the Swing - A Remix
Kristen Rønnevik
17.-27.11.11
Prosjektrom Normanns, Stavanger
Multimedia installation

Entering the box you are kept within a small area surrounded by a fence. There is a disco light, and a large fern covering the sight of a video screen. On the screen seems to be a moving carpet, or maybe the behind of a woman dancing. You become a voyeur, you are an outsider even if you are inside the box.

Jorunn Mæland: Frukter av skuronna

2011-11-19T09:47:00.001+01:00

Frukter av skuronna
Jorunn Mæland
Trykk17, Stavanger
17.-27.11.11
mixed media

This is just a very enjoyable exhibition, the debut solo exhibition by Jorunn Mæland. It is a tribute to family, tradition, rural life and the nature. It is a thrill to see cement welded to look so fragile and soft, and tasty canned fruits are turned into art. And she has made beautiful sculptures of wool yarn and a bread cutting board. The opening was crowded, and contained a speech by her primary school teacher and girls from primary school singing traditional songs.

Opening

Opening

In the flock

In the field - Grandfather's hand - Off-white rectangle on grey rectangle - Tied up

Square ball of wool yarn

Newton's cradle

A patch of green - Order in chaos - Through the forest - Portal - Green and rust

Landscape and bread

Rock carving

Maja Nilsen: Taare af mine tørre Øine og Psalme at min tilukte Mund

2011-11-19T09:40:00.001+01:00

Taare af mine tørre Øine og Psalme at min tilukte Mund
Maja Nilsen
Rogaland kunstsenter
17.11.-18.12.11
installations

The exhibition creates a world based on the times of the Baroque, the poetess Dorothe Engelbretsdotter, the astronomer Johannes Kepler and the Venus passage. Here are a portable Camera Obscura, video scenes partially obscured by curtains, and the sun partially obscured by Venus. Here are a branch made to look like marble, and a Mary Magdalene sculpture of several layers of hair.

Vernissage

Det som skjuler hverandre

5.-6. juni 2012

Hav som himmel; en rekonstruksjon

Ambrosius

De 7 demoner; en studie

Exhibition webpage here

Blu in Krakow

2011-11-17T22:09:00.001+01:00

BluKrakow, PolandstreetartI found this wonderful mural by Blu (IT) along the shore of the river through Krakow.

Streetart in Krakow

2011-11-16T17:30:00.001+01:00

Krakow, PolandStreetartThis is what I found on the walls and in the streets of Krakow in October 2011:

The MOCAK collection

2011-11-15T20:04:00.001+01:00

Mocak - The Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow
Krakow, Poland
an overview of the museum's collection of contemporary art

Wilhelm Sasnal: Untitled
A first aid box is copied down to every tiny detail.

Matthias Jackisch: No Mad Pot Stops to be Nomad
A slow kinetic sculpture, an automatic painting machine. Paint are let to seep through several layers of canvases from a pot. The result is presented on the wall.

Josef Dabernig: Wars
A scene from the restaurant wagon of an old Communist-time Polish train. No customers, only the staff, constantly cleaning the interior.

Zbigniew Warpechowski: Clock
An archaeological find of an ancient clock. It must still be working even if it stands still, since it emanates a ticking sound.

Piotr Lutynski: Due to Usucaption
A nest with eggs inside a perfectly ordinary stool. Sitting on it you become a duck sitting on the nest.

Janek Simon: Clock
A clock challenging our perception of time.
AES+F: Déplé
Death is presented in beautiful clothes.

Kristof Kintera: All My Bad Thoughts
Is it really a bloody corpse lying there?

Robert Kusmirowski: Untitled
A surgery room / a basement store room. Creepy Frankenstein vibes.

Krzysztof Wodiczko: Imaz Tijuana
Stories of abuse are projected onto large public buildings, placing the sad stories under public light.

Mikolaj Smoczynski: Temporary (con) Temporary
The floor is covered with a thick adhesive, left to dry. The result seems like dry desert ground.

Rafal Bujnowski: Today We Recommend
A comment to consume society

Rafal Bujnowski: Painting of Whistler's Mother
A funny idea: reproducing the painting from the background wall of the famous painting Whistler's Mother

Rafal Bujnowski: The Pope
How to paint the pope - how to create an iconic picture easily

Charlotte Beaudry: Untitled
Just paintings of clothes, but everybody knows what is inside.

Tomasz Bajer: Minimalism of Guantanamo
A real copy of a prison room from Guantanamo

Halina Mrozek: Between Sculpture and Fashion

2011-11-15T20:01:00.001+01:00

Between Sculpture and Fashion
Halina Mrozek
7.9.-30.10.11
Mocak - Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow
Krakow, Poland
Fashion/sculptures

Fashion so extreme you can not really wear it. Sculptures shaped to the body, you could almost call them clothes. The artwork looks like fashion, but it really does not function as clothing. It does not cover crucial areas, and the materials (glass, plastic, spikes) does more harm than good to the body. On the other hand, as sculptures the artwork are helpless withouth the body. The sculptures are dependent on a body to stand and be filled, otherwise it would just be a heap of material on the floor.

Mona Nordaas: Generator

2011-11-14T21:12:00.001+01:00

Generator
Mona Nordaas
Haugesund billedgalleri, Norway
21.10.-13.11.11
installation

A fantastic cascade of memories, leftovers and surprises. The colorful sculpture is made of all kinds of small and medium-sized things, all with their own stories. I recognise boys' books, beer bottle tops, lottery tickets, sunday school paper figures, old records, napkins, silverware. Many things bring back memories of childhood or forgotten times, or they are exotic items, or even mystical objects. You could stand for hours just identifying the different things, enjoying the sight of each one.

This is a generator of dreams and memories, powered through recycling of found materials.

Seeing all the things she decided to include in the sculpture, I wonder how many things she have left in her studio. I wonder which items she chose to not use this time.

The sculpture follow the same idea in the similar sculpture she made at Hå gamle prestegård in august 2010. About "Fra sans og samling" here

Lucid Dreaming: Ingrid Toogood Hovland, Liv Tandrevold Eriksen, Maren Juell Kristensen

2011-11-14T21:06:00.001+01:00

Lucid Dreaming
Ingrid Toogood Hovland, Liv Tandrevold Eriksen, Maren Juell Kristensen
Haugesund billedgalleri, Norway
21.10.-13.11.11
Installations, video and drawings

work by Liv Tandrevold Eriksen

Iscenesettelser by Ingrid Toogood Hovland

Run by Maren Juell Kristensen

R-open Haugesund

2011-11-14T19:55:00.001+01:00

R-open
13.11.11
Haugesund, Norway
Open artist studios in Rogaland county

I had the pleasure of joining the organised bus trip from Sandnes/Stavanger to Haugesund for the day of open galleries and studios during R-open 2011. This trip was a part of the R-open program, offering the possibility for cultural exchange across the fjord, within the county. Even if Haugesund is quite close to Stavanger, it feels far. So this was a great opportunity to get aquainted with the Haugesund art scene. Here are some impressions

At Bernhard Østebø's studio:

At Haugaland Kunstverk:

The beautiful building of Haugaland Kunstverk artist collective

Studio of Njål Lunde, showing some very interesting public commission projects

Johan Ask Vikse showing some of his wonderful and intricate drawings

Anne-Kjersti Hermanrud presenting her geometrical paintings

Crowds in Stein-Magnus Opedal's studio, admiring his uniqe stamp collages

Vernissage of the exhibition "Sværisk svermer" by Norunn Fresvig

At Haugesund Billedgalleri:

Astrid Sæverhagen's home studio:

Last stop at the culture building Gamle Slaktehuset:

Olaug Braa Vik

More about the exhibitions at Haugesund Billedgalleri in the next posts

More about the artists and the program at the R-open webpage www.r-open.no

R-open artist talks

2011-11-11T21:37:00.001+01:00

R-open

all over Rogaland county, Norway

7.-20.11.11

open artist studios and art events

R-open has started again, for the second time. This is becoming the time of the year where the artists of Rogaland open their doors for each other and for the public. This is a unique opportunity to become more aquainted with the artists and the art scene of Rogaland. The main focus is on the days of open studios, on three different days artists of respectively North Rogaland, South Rogaland and Stavanger invite everybody into their studios. But the program contains so much more: Several exhibition openings, artist talks, open art school, and a video art project in the houses along Pedersgata in Stavanger. So far there has been very interesting talks by Nils Eger and Kristian Skylstad in Prosjektrom Normanns, and Anne Helen Robberstad and Odd Sama at Kinokino. If you missed those, be sure not to miss the next happenings. Program, maps and artist info on R-open's web page www.r-open.no

Nils Eger

Kristian Skylstad

Anne Helen Robberstad

Odd Sama

Ai Weiwei and Liu Wei

2011-11-10T22:32:00.000+01:00

Ai Weiwei, Liu Wei
works from the collection
Faurschou Foundation Beijing
7.10-31.12.11
installations

It is always a pleasure to see the works of Ai Weiwei, probably the most famous Chinese artist at the moment. The Copenhagen/Beijing based Faurschou gallery has gained a substantial part of his work, which is now on display in their gallery in the 798 art district in Beijing. The exhibition shows three of his works: "Map of China", "Sun Flower Seeds" and "Namelist of student earthquake victims found by the citizen investigation".

Exhibition view

"Map of China" is a three-dimensional map of China made of wood from dismantled temples from the Qing dynasty (1644-1911). Just like any country is a result of its history, China is a product of its heritage. This is not a flat two-dimensional map. This is a map of an immense number of layers, of a history as old as time itself. The thickness is so massive you almost cannot see the surface anymore. The heritage is so large you have no chance of getting an overview anymore.

Ai Weiwei: Map of China

The "Sun Flower Seeds" show just a small version of the massive installation that filled the gigantic machine hall of Tate Modern in London earlier this year. They both consist of a large number of small, handpainted porcelain sculptures shaped like sunflower seeds. While the large version displayed 100 000 000 such seeds, this one has "only" 1 ton (the actual number unknown). This must be the most flexible artwork ever. It may be displayed in all kinds of numbers, from one seed to one hundred million. Any number displayed will always point to the total number of seeds produced. The sunflower seeds may symbolise the Chinese people. The handpainted seeds may seem conform, they are all slightly different, just like all people are. Displaying only one portion of the seeds, can be like focusing on some groups of Chinese, like minority groups, women, teenagers or other groups. The seeds are travelling all over the world, just like there are Chinese all over the world.

Ai Weiwei: Sunflower Seeds

"Namelist of student earthquake victims found by the citizen investigation" is as the title states a list of the victims of the earthquake in Sichuan some years ago. As a result of questionnable building techniques and materials schools and public buildings collapsed, and the scope of the disaster was hushed down. The artist set out to investigate, with a target to identify every single victim. After all, nobody can be blamed for an earthquake happening, and the artwork does not seem to look for scapegoats for building unsafe building. It is all about the innocent people that disappeared twice, first they died in the earthquake, then their names did not appear on the official lists. This is just one of the many disasters and hardships the people have had to endure during centuries, no, millennias. But the sunflower seeds still offer hope and optimism.

Ai Weiwei: Namelist of student earthquake victims found by the citizen investigation

The exhibition also featured an installation by Liu Wei called "Don't Touch". This is a skin sculpture showing the Potala palace of Lhasa, Tibet. Who are not allowed to touch it, is it the viewers that could otherwise destroy the fragile sculpture, or is there a deeper meaning? Maybe someone else are not supposed to mess with the object on display?

Liu Wei: Don't touch

Liu Wei: Don't touch (detail)

About Sunflower Seeds at Tate Modern here
About Sunflower Seeds at Faurschou in Copenhagen here

Tatsuo Miyajima: Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

2011-11-10T18:12:00.000+01:00

Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust
Tatsuo Miyajima
16.7.-8.10.11
Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing
Installations of numbers

A massive, impressive exhibition based on the digits 1-9. As objective and void of meaning they may seem, they all can be used to express something important.

Floating Time

A giant wall of illuminated numbers, all counting down from 9 to 1, then starting all over again. They never reach 0. All units run in different speed, and the order of counting is turned in to a massive chaos, where the eye is not allowed to rest.

Floating Time detail

Mega Death
A large fallic statue of changing numbers in all kinds of sizes and colours, all working in different speed. They are supposed to add up to 167,000,000, the estimated number of lives lost to war, revolution, violent conflict and genocide in the 20th century. But just as impossible it would be to count exactly the number of lives lost, it is impossible to add all the number displayed in one instant.

Exhibition web page here

Walead Beshty: Securities and Exchanges

2011-11-06T09:55:00.000+01:00

Securities and Exchanges
Walead Beshty
24.9.-20.11.11
Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing
Installations

There are many important creative stages during the creation of an artwork. The idea, the material, the production methods and the presentation. But this is the first time I have seen the focus has been on an ignored stage: the transport and handling between the studio and the gallery.

WB got the idea when photographic film was destroyed or transformed in the x-ray machine at an airport. The impact the radiation had on the film made patterns and forms quite unintended by the artist. From this he has developed several techniques enchancing the performance from when an object leaves the artist's studio until it reaches the gallery. This is usually a space-and-time span where neither the artist or the gallery are in control.

WB created glass sculptures perfectly fitting into the transport firm FedEx standard boxes. During the handling and transport cracks appear, making the sculpture look quite different. Brass boxes were sent without no shell at all, thus receiving spots and marks from the carriers. On the walls are pictures inspired by the films transformed by the x-ray machines. Walking among these sculptures and pictures you need to thread on mirrors loosely mounted on the floor. The viewers make the mirrors crack, creating both a new pattern and sound.

It may seem like the artist leaves the sculptures to coincidence, where anything can happen. This is not the case. The artist is actually controlling the process of how the artwork will be influenced. The glass boxes are laminated, so that they keep their shape even when cracked. The brass boxes were to be handled without gloves. And the viewers are forced to walk on the mirror floor. The artist is forcing other people to contribute to his artwork, whether it is through their work tasks or through curiosity.

This could be a tribute to both the transport firms and the viewers. But it could also be a critical view on how they may influence strongly on artwork. There will always be a risk that an artwork is destroyed during transport. And the toll of many visitors may destroy artwork as well. But what is the value of art if it disappears or is destroyed in transport? Or if nobody see it?

Lu Yang: The Anatomy of Rage

2011-11-06T09:50:00.000+01:00

The Anatomy of Rage
Lu Yang
24.9.-20.11.11
Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing
Religion/art/science

Lu Yang is analysing a religious figure, finding rage in it. There is something very controversial in this, mixing religion, art and science. By analysing a religious figure, it may be controversial both what you do find and what you do not find. If an x-ray photo shows a hollow plastic figure, this could be a strong critique of religion. Instead, through her analysis she finds rage.

I am not familiar with all the deities of Buddhism. This one is supposed to be the Wrathful Vajrasattva, a god that seems violent, but is the god of mercy of compassion. Lu Yang presents a god fully prepared for war and violence. The x-ray photo show a body built to carry and use a wide specter of weapons. And the video show in detail each weapon, how it is used and its skills. It is like seeing the spesifications of a computer game hero. I can not find any mild and merciful skills in the analysis.

How is it possible for a deity to be so full of rage and violence, and at the same time be the god of mercy and compassion? Or is it only about rage?

Liu Jianhua: Screaming Walls

2011-11-06T09:36:00.001+01:00

Screaming Walls
Liu Jianhua
24.9.-20.11.11
Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing
Ceramic installation

What seemes like large drops of paint dripping on the walls are actually ceramic sculptures.

Guanxi: Contemporary Chinese Art

2011-11-05T12:35:00.000+01:00

Guanxi 关系
Contemporary Chinese Art
10.-23.10.11
Today Art Museum, Beijing

Installations

Today Art Museum show an exhibition by contemporary Chinese artists, based on the concept "Guanxi".
Guanxi describes the basic dynamic in personalized networks of influence, and is a central idea in Chinese society. In Western media, the pinyin romanization of this Chinese word is becoming more widely used instead of the two common translations—"connections" and "relationships"—as neither of those terms sufficiently reflects the wide cultural implications that guanxi describes. ... At its most basic, guanxi describes a personal connection between two people in which one is able to prevail upon another to perform a favor or service, or be prevailed upon. (From Wikipedia)

What I find in this exhibition is rather the absense of personal connections and relationships. The people of Zhang Dali's "Brownian Movement" are connected through the intricate structure, but they seem rather trapped and isolated, in the maze they have made. Otherwise there is an interesting variety of "nonsense-machines" - machines with no purpose, but with personalities like "scholar" and "fortune-teller". And a very interesting project turning Chang'an Avenue into technical structures.

Zhang Dali: Brownian Movement

Qiu Zijie: The Scholar

Qiu Zijie: The Fortune-Teller

Shi Jinsong: The Code of Chang'an Avenue

Shi Jinsong: The Code of Chang'an Avenue

Zhou Xianglin: History & Reality

2011-11-05T08:38:00.002+01:00

History & Reality
Zhou Xianglin Solo Exhibition
9.-25.10.11
Today Art Museum, Beijing
Paintings and installations of vehicles and Barbiedolls

Model 1 - 24x24 - Jiefang CA 10

"Model" series exhibition view

"Barbie-ization" exhibition view

The Queen

Xiang Ying: Will things ever get better?

2011-11-05T08:36:00.000+01:00

Will things ever get better?
Xiang Ying

24.9.-15.10.11
Today Art Museum, Beijing
Circus and animal sculptures

Untitled - KiR

2011-11-02T21:02:00.000+01:00

Untitled
1st level students of Kunstskolen i Rogaland (Rogaland Art School)
Rogaland Kunstsenter, Stavanger
20.-30.10.11

After a two week long workshop with guest lecturer Lisa Torell at Rogaland Art School, the students of the 1st grade present their work at Rogaland Kunstsenter. It is always interesting to see what creativity grows among the KiR students. Some of them may become the future artists in the region. This year's first grades show a very interesting potential. Here are some highlights:

Alexander Nærbø: Menneske: skapt for bevegelse

Sunniva Dybvig: Ekthet

Sunita Shaw: Individens vilja

Tanja Komarova: Bånd

Neringa Zibate: Neverending - Fear

Sophie Berntsen: Fortell meg hva du drømte i natt

Sanne Eikeland Nilsen: Paragraf 3-3, Armlaus

Stine Horgen Bø: Mute mutation

Dugnad - Trykk 17

2011-11-02T20:49:00.000+01:00

Dugnad

20.-23.10.11
Trykk 17, Nytorget, Stavanger
Graphic art

There is a new gallery in town. The graphical studio at Nytorget in Stavanger opened up a new artist-owned venue, exhibiting mostly graphic art. The opening exhibition "Dugnad" (voluntaries working together) show teasers of the work of artists related to the studio. It is great to see such initiative and creativity, and I look forward to see the continuation.

Exhibition view

Annette Bryne: Vinter

Kjersti Haga: Natures violence I

Exhibition view

Snøfrid Hunsbedt Eiene - Inka-serien

(My apologies for not being able to present the names of all the work.)

David Choe + DVS1 at Nuart

2011-10-25T16:02:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Give David Choe and DVS1 some spraycans, and they go crazy. Enjoy walking around in the east parts of town discovering their work. The whales are everywhere, as well as beautiful girls and horrible monsters. Prepare for a picture frenzy of what I have found so far:

a Sleipner (Odin's eight-legged horse) for Stavanger

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Dan Witz at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:27:00.001+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

The work of Dan Witz may appear where you least expect it. Look around for surprises. Here are some, I know there are more somewhere.

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Herbert Baglione at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:22:00.001+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Herbert Baglione creates art in many stages. On several steps during his outdoor work, the result was artwork packed with symbolism and stories. Here are the chronology of his outdoor work at Tou Scene:

Herbert started out painting faceless figures, like spirits or ghosts.

On the next step, he gave the spirits faces, making them human.

Then he erased the people. He creates, gives life, and takes lives. Instead of waiting for his work to get buffed, he buffs himself. I do not know about any other artist that buffs his own work.

This makes me angry and disappointed. Why does he destroy his own beautiful work? But at the same time the work is still there, under the paint, and I feel privileged to have seen it. Just like I feel privileged to have met people who are no longer among us.

A self portrait of the artist, holding destruction in his hands?

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Roberto at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:10:00.001+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Roberto was the extra bonus at this year's festival. Tellas needed to bring an assistant to paint all the details of his work. He brought his friend Roberto, who is also an artist. When he chose which wall to paint he also chose his topic, a spiked bench. First afterwards it turned out that the wall was on a shop restoring old furniture. What a great combination! This is truly public art communicating with its context.

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Herakut at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:10:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

In addition to the crowd of monkeys inside the beer halls, Herakut went out to paint some public monkeys as well. At first it seemed it would be monkeys running free, but eventually they were caged. The little king envied them because they were two, so he caged them in. A beautiful addition to what has become the new hotspot of East Stavanger. Within the same block are several works by Dotmasters, two works by Dolk & Østrem, and a great wall by Roa.

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor works here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Tellas at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:09:00.001+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Like a fresh breath of air, Tellas arrived in Stavanger to bring more nature into the eastern part of town. He usually paints nature elements, like he painted leaves and pebbles in the beer halls at Tou Scene. The green patch of grass at Nytorget is an art project from 2008. What would be better than to combine that nature-art with another art piece inspired by nature? Tellas painted what he figured was typical Stavanger: fish. Stavanger was filled with fish industries some generations ago. Now the oil industry has taken over. The same happens in Tellas' wall painting. Black oil drips from the fishes, and some fishes are totally black. Nature is fragile, almost as fragile as the paper boat he painted.

He also painted rock, floating ones, on a residential building in the western part of town.

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Vhils at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:09:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Vhils seems to be in a skull mode at the moment. A skull has had different meanings through time. From the "Memento Mori" paintings filled with symbolics about the fragility of life, through times where death is a taboo topic, to the present popularisation of skulls. A skull is not that provoking anymore when you find it on fashion clothing, childrens' clothing and in commercials.

Vhils' skull work is located next to an important drive-through road in East Stavanger. This may be an interesting experiment on how provoking the skull is in the present. Earlier years promotions of underwear has been removed because it disturbed the drivers, will this artwork be ignored or provoke accidents?

At the site was until recently an old canning factory building, once the dominating industry of Stavanger. This was demolished and replaced by a parking lot, despite a lot of protests by the inhabitants. This is one of many historical buildings that has disappeared as Stavanger grow richer and the property owners want to maximize the value. Is this a process where the flesh of Stavanger is removed, leaving only a hollow skull?

work in progress

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Lucy McLauchlan at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:08:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Lucy McLauchlan is adding beauty and sensuality to the streets. After finishing painting Obrestad lighthouse on the coast 1 hour drive south of Stavanger, she painted this wall in Stavanger. The female forms soften the impression of the forgotten, abandoned building.

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Phlegm at Nuart

2011-10-24T13:07:00.002+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Phlegm left this wonderful piece on an abandoned building in Stavanger. With his work he is creating fairytales of balloon rides, exotic architecture and fantastic creations. His work has already changed my chosen path through this part of town, I now prefer this narrow street to the more convenient one.

More pictures from the exhibition and outdoor work here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Hyuro at Nuart

2011-10-23T22:31:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Hyuro just painted one wall outside during Nuart. But what a wonderful wall. Her fragile women tangled in long hair fit just perfectly among the ivy plant, framed by the old buildings at the Tou Scene complex. This will not be seen by those passing fast, you have to walk slowly along to discover this piece around the corner. You need time to feel this piece, to see that every hair of the massive hair veil is painted by hand.

work in progress

More pictures from the preparations and the exhibition here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Escif at Nuart

2011-10-23T22:19:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11

Escif was the first one to finish a work during Nuart 2011. His collaboration with Hyuro inside the beer halls will be painted over when the exhibition ends. But his pieces outside will stay as long as the wall owner decides. Three of his pieces are on the premises of Tou Scene, while the fourth is on a private wall by a parking lot.

Hang-over

Rise & Fall

Mental Power

Faith Moves Mountains - if you want it
(inspired by Yoko&John's billboard "War is Over - if you want it")
Do you recognize the iconic mountain?

More pictures from the preparations and the exhibition here
Link to Nuart's new webpage

Nuart 2011: Inside

2011-10-22T21:31:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11
Dan Witz (US), David Choe (US), Dolk (NO), Dvs1 (US), Escif (ES), Herakut (DE), Herbert Baglione (BR), Hyuro (ES), Lucy McLauchlan (UK), Phlegm (UK), Tellas (IT), Vhils (PO)

Artwork ranging from death to the joy of life. From claustrophobia to total freedom.

It is first now I have had the opportunity to really let the impressions of this year's Nuart festival soak in. It is again in the beer halls at Tou Scene in Stavanger, for the third time. The festival kind of belongs here, as well as in the streets of course.

The beer halls are not exactly regular gallery halls. There is darkness, moisture, cold, old rusty pipes portruding from the walls, echoing from footsteps and voices. It may seem like in some forgotten empty factory halls. This way it can be the perfect spot for street art, as long as it is not in the streets. Just as in the streets, the artists had few limitations, apart from being given a hall to work in. But the halls themselves have been challenging to some artists, as well as given freedom to others.

Dolk

By the entrance of the halls is this large black/white stencil piece by Dolk. Just as in the streets, he delivers fast, easy and witty art. Though not in an outside context, this work sets the tone for a major part of the exhibition. Death is a popular topic this year. We see Grim Reaper himself, but with a ghettoblaster in addition to his traditional tool. The Grim Reaper becomes The Grim Rapper. How to interpret this will depend on which music is played. Strong gangsta rap or death metal could be a loud warning of the death approaching, while some ballad would soften the message of death.
Or is it the other way around, is this a rapper on his way to do some decent farmwork?

Vhils

As usual, Vhils goes under the surface to see what is hidden there. Also he finds death there. Two men appear, but there is something sinister. They seem like zoombies. Under the sunglasses are hollows. The head are skulls with just a thin layer of facade. We all know the skull is underneath the skin, but by partly revealing this this suddenly becomes so creepy and uncomfortable. This is a Memento Mori with RayBans.

Herbert Baglione

Moving on to the first of the beer halls, is the work by Herbert Baglione, the far most depressing and emotionally challenging work. In a black hall, the walls are covered in calligraphy. This could seem like a room filled with tags of hordes of graffiti writers. It is not. The names on the walls are of people not existing anymore, they are the 77 victims of the July 22th massacre in Oslo. Herbert Baglione was deeply touched by this disaster, and wanted to memorize the victims in this way. He often uses death as a topic in this work, but this seems to be a brand new path for him. His skills in spraycan calligraphy is incredible, and the elaborate name tags pay a grand hommage to the 77. The names of the victims is not written once, but several times. Entangled like their names on the wall they all had the same fate, but the different sizes and fonts mark their individuality. This single catharsis of death will hopefully make it possible to move on.

Phlegm

If you do move on, you are rewarded by the epic work of Phlegm. He decided to paint nothing less than his own version of the evolution history. In his version the single cells evolve through fish or bird to similar, but still quite different humanoids. He had invented the two different persons, and then started contemplating on how they had achieved their characteristics. The humpback had evolved from four-winged birds, with one pair of wings grown into arms, and the others into a hump. The big-eye had got his characteristics from the fishes, first hollow-eyed fishes, then big-eyed ones. Through it all is a separate evolution of plants and trees from trees via bushes and grass to root-like moving creatures.

Tellas

If Phlegm did not convince you to be optimistic on behalf on mankind and the world, Tellas will give you peace of mind. He is like a fresh breath of air from beautiful Sardinia. He prefers to paint nature out in the fresh air, and did not feel that comfortable having to paint inside the concrete hall. So as he could not bring the walls to the outside, he had to bring the nature inside. With colllaborator Roberto he painted myriads of green leaves and white pebbles covering the floor and walls. Concrete bricks are presented in small symbolic parts, but the organic nature has totally taken over. It is like you can almost hear birds sing here.

Herakut

In the hall of Herakut the fun and circus starts. The hall is a festival of figures, colours, forms and stories. You spend a long time discovering all the details. The scope and the variety is incredible, knowing that they stayed in Stavanger for only a few days. They have taken full advantage of the time, material, space and resources available. Last time they were here they painted rats, now it is monkeys that are the carriers of the stories. All over there are stories about the monkeys and people blinded by beauty.

Hyuro + Escif

Hyuro and Escif also felt the claustrophobic of the concrete halls, but unlike Tellas they decided to increase that feeling. As they both prefer to paint outside on public walls, being inside represented limits. In their collaboration they enchanced this feeling by painting a wall on the wall. There are people present, but on the outside of the wall. Only their hands are visible, holding lines with black flags. This is not only a comment to the halls, but street art in general. Street art belongs in public space.When it is brought inside it becomes institutional, it does not talk to the public or the surroundings anymore. You need to be out there, in the public space.

David Choe + DVS1 (+ Herbert Baglione)

In the last hall the party starts for real. A representation of total freedom, celebrating art, colours and friendship. No limits, anything in any colour may be painted. Brutal, sexual, banal, beautiful, complex and childish figures all mix together. David Choe and DVS1 are painting what they are good at, but also taking big risks painting anything that slips into the mind. It never becomes too much.They also tried out the possibilities of UV-paint, creating glowing figures with secrets inside.

It also shows the joy of sharing the art with friends. Herbert Baglione also contributed to the room. As an antidote to the super-depressive room at the other end of the halls, he here is opening up to a world where anything can happening, just enjoying the fun of painting with friends.

Showing the wonders of UV-paint, here is a gif showing the difference in UV and normal light:

Dan Witz

All over the place are small surprises by Dan Witz and his young diciples. Hummingbirds, floating eyeballs or secret hatches. At several places at Tou Scene, new hatches have appeared, leading to the unknown. After a workshop for kids, eyeballs have appeared on the most incredible spots, suddenly turning things into personas.

As well as an exhibition putting together fantastic, but all quite different artists, Nuart 2011 also functions well as a curated exhibition. Somehow there is a link between all work, and the chronology works well. The journey through the exhibition is a journey through all kinds of emotions: shock, fear, sorrow, curiosity, peace, amusement, contemplation and laughter.

*

More pictures from the preparations and the exhibition here
There will also soon be posts about the outside work.
Link to Nuart's new webpage: http://www.nuartfestival.no

Nuart2011: work in progress Day1

2011-09-25T16:24:00.000+02:00

Nuart 2011
Streetart festival
Tou Scene, Stavanger, Norway
1.10.-1.11.11
Dan Witz, David Choe, Dolk, Dvs1, Escif, Herakut, Herbert Baglione, Hyuro, Lucy McLauchlan, Phlegm, Tellas, Vhils

Some of the artists of this year's Nuart streetart festival have arrived and started working. Looks like this will be another great year of Nuart, this time in the beer halls of Tou Scene and the streets of the East part of town

Herbert Baglione: work in progress

Escif: work in progress

Hariton Pushwagner

2011-09-22T23:20:00.000+02:00

Galleri Sult, Stavanger

21.9.-16.10.11

Graphic art

Get ready to be Pushwagnerized! It is the second time this autumn that art by Norwegian superstar Hariton Pushwagner is presented in Rogaland. In August Hå gamle prestegard presented the exhibition "Vertigo". Now Galleri Sult shows an exhibition in connection to the premiere of the movie about Pushwagner.

I have seen many of the pictures before, but a good story can be told several times. If you have not seen Pushwagner's work before, this exhibition will give you a certain glimpse of his world. At Hå gamle prestegard it was possible to get deeper into his world. The Galleri Sult exhibition offered a nice revisit to the visions of a world of a colorful totalitarian future.

There is a great hype about Pushwagner at the moment in relation to the movie "Pushwagner" by August B. Hanssen and Even G. Benestad. Pop art has become pop culture, the artist has rocketed from the gutter to the stars. There seems to always be fun and show when he is around, so just enjoy and get Pushwagnerized!

A long line waiting to get into the gallery

http://virtualwallworld.blogspot.com/2011/08/vertigo.html

http://www.gallerisult.no/

trailer of the movie here: http://www.filmweb.no/film/article399874.ece?show=trailer

Nuart 2011

2011-09-19T16:17:00.002+02:00

Street art festival
Tou scene, Stavanger + walls in town
1.10-1.11.11

The annual street art festival Nuart is about to begin: The arriving of artists began, and they will keep on coming and will work until the opening at Saturday October 1st. The wonderful program is now out, available online here:

Open publication - Free publishing - More art

Margrethe Aanestad: Light Breaking

2011-09-16T22:59:00.000+02:00

Light Breaking
Margrethe Aanestad
Prosjektrom Normanns, Stavanger
17.-25.9.11
Abstract drawings + New exhibition space

There has been enough talk about galleries closing down lately. Instead, here are great news of a new exhibition space opening up in Stavanger. The artists with workshops in Normanns street at Storhaug now opened a project room / exhibition space in their premises. The opening was crowded with people eager to see the place.

One of the inhabitants, Margrethe Aanestad, had the honor of inaugurating the space. She put on display her colorful geometrical shapes, that seems simple at first sight. But at closer inspection the forms are made by myriads of tiny stripes drawn with a crayon. This makes an uneven touch to the seemingly even forms. I can sense the time and effort that is put down in these drawings.

Gil&Moti: Totally devoted to you

2011-09-15T21:58:00.000+02:00

Gil&Moti
Totally devoted to you
Stavanger Kunstmuseum
8.9.-13.10.11
Relational art / feelgood art

I had the opportunity to see their exhibition twice, first in Copenhagen this spring and now in Stavanger. The exhibition is travelling between five spots in North Europe, adding a new, local project on every spot. My two visits to the exhibition gave two totally different impressions. On the Stavanger exhibition a local project was added, and I had the opportunity to meet the artists before the Stavanger exhibition. This made a large difference for my experience.

Gil&Moti are an Israeli artist couple living in Holland. They are an inseparable part of their work, living their art, or make their life into art. This is visible in their art, but also in how they live. I understood that this couple have a genuine interest in the people they meet, and this is reflected in their art. It is easy to be charmed by these guys. For instance, on the opening night they prepared heart-shaped hamburgers for the visitors.

Gil&Moti: Opening performance

In the project "You brought the light back to my life" Gil&Moti document their meeting and nine month correspondation with graffiti writer Tommy in Stavanger. They met by coincidence, while Gil&Moti were looking for people they could give a hand. They had made similar projects before, helping out Arab immigrants in Europe. But these were short-time projects, maybe cleaning or running a shop in one day. This is a long-term project, aquiring a lot of time and effort by both the artists and the local guy.

Gil&Moti: Available for you

The relationship with Tommy is documented by a movie telling their story, photographs and examples of Tommy's work. As a graffiti writer, he sent pictures of his fresh work to Gil&Moti. On display are sketches, pieces on paper and photos of pieces in town. I believe this is the first time graffiti is on display in Stavanger Kunstmuseum.

Gil&Moti: You brought the light back to my life

Gil&Moti: You brought the light back to my life

*
Other projects at the exhibition:

Gil&Moti: Letters to Laylah

In this project, they sent love letters to their fictious Arab lover Laylah.

Installation view

Most of the art museum is taken in use for this exhibition, making the visit an exploration of not only Gil&Moti's work, but also the museum. You are invited to sit on their designed chairs or even in their wedding bed while viewing the artwork, like their impressions from Israel, their public wedding ceremony, or their different forms of contact across the historical and cultural barrier between Israelis and Arabs.

Gil&Moti: Laylah the creature beyond dreams

This installation document their project with having a relationship with a Lebanese guy. Everything is documented, from when they met at internet until the heartbreaking breakup.

*

All in all, this could be a large exhibitionistic exhibition with artists displaying all their lives and fantasies to the public. But the range of the projects shows their sincerity, and after talking to the artists and their local "project" guy, I understood that this is something they do with honesty. Gil&Moti are making the world better by sharing their love for each other and everybody.

Faded streetart in Stavanger

2011-09-13T21:07:00.000+02:00

I had a stroll in the east part of Stavanger looking for known and new streetart pieces. The weather has been harsh, giving the pieces of Nuart 2010 a beating. The giant piece by M-City has become quite faded:

I also found this new piece at Tou Scene:

But sometimes the wearing can also add an extra patina to a piece. This piece by Pøbel at Tou Scene looks even better with some golden rust on it:

Ka då ittepå: the end

2011-09-12T22:14:00.000+02:00

Ittepå Ittepå

29.8.11

Trond Hugo Haugen / Ka då ittepå?

Tou Scene / Cafe Sting, Stavanger

Political/community art project

This is the definite end of "Ka då ittepå?" (What then afterwards?), the artist initiated project that started as a reaction and correction to the Stavanger European Cultural Capital 2008, and ended up as an established part of the political and cultural scene of Stavanger.

"Ka då ittepå" as a political project:

As Stavanger in 2005 was selected to becoming European Cultural Capital in 2008, the process of choosing the profile and content started. At the same time artist Trond Hugo Haugen started asking questions about this, especially about the desired long-term effects of the 2008. Would the cultural activities only happen in 2008, or could that year rather be used for building up the cultural environment for the future?

The "Ittepå" movement soon became an established movement. Haugen was soon considered being THE critical voice before, during and after Stavanger 2008. The project led to political decisions for the art field, whether it was through direct of indirect influence. Establishments for maintaining the cultural life after 2008 were soon dubbed "Ittepå", like "Ittepå-fondet" (the afterwards found) and "Ittepå-sjefen" (the administrative head of the culture department).

At Cafe Sting: Portraits of Cecilie Bjelland and Cathrine Sagen Helgø. One of these two will rule as Stavanger's mayor the next four years, having a strong impact on the art scene.

Update: The election is over, and Cathrine Sagen Helgø will be the new mayor in town.

"Ka då ittepå" as an art project:

"Ka då ittepå" could also be viewed as a community art project, involving artists, media, politicians and the public in general. This makes "Ka då ittepå" the largest and most influential art project in the Stavanger area as far as I am aware of.

The project has activized politicians into becoming aware of the time after 2008, competing of becoming the most creative and positive in improving the cultural scene. The artists have been activized in using "Ka då ittepå" as a channel to reach both politicians and the public. The public has been involved by getting more information about the art scene and the political processes. And the media has been activized into asking critical questions about and covering the art scene after 2008. The project has even established the rather marginal dialect word "Ittepå" into a common word in public discourse.

At Tou Scene: This is not nourishment / business (word play in Norwegian, "næring" means both nourishment and business) Playing on the Stavanger Business Union leader's words during 2008: "Business is art and art is business. What would otherwise be the value of it?"

The end of "Ka då ittepå":

The activities on this final day of the "Ittepå"-project were contemplating the present state of the art scene, and mapping the political terrain now short time before the local elections. We are now not in Afterwards-time anymore, we are in the time After Afterwards. The art life is back to normal, or rather in a new normality.

It might not be the last we hear about "Ka då ittepå", though. The project was also called "Stavanger 2018" as a contrast to the original "Stavanger 2008". I would not be surprised if there will be a happening in 2018. And anyway, Trond Hugo Haugen is now working on a book to document the process. I am looking forward to it.

*

other "Ittepå"-walls at Sting: http://www.stavanger2018.no/stvg/ittepa_ittepa_sting.html

Ka då ittepå: http://www.stavanger2018.no/

At Tou Scene: This is possible

Anderson & Low: Manga Dreams

2011-09-08T22:02:00.000+02:00

Manga Dreams

Anderson & Low

Rogaland Teater, Stavanger

3.9.-14.11.11

photographic portraits

In connection to the premiere of Henrik Ibsen's "Peer Gynt", Rogaland Teater also opened an exhibition by Anderson & Low. The exhibition contains photographs of asian youngsters dressed as manga heroes.

The photographs are flawless and colourful, and could be commercial posters for the next manga movie or computer game. They are so perfect they seem like computer made, synthetical. But they are not. These are ordinary urban asian youngsters dressed as they usually are. In stead of, or in addition to, living their alternative lives as avatars in a computer games, they are living their lives as superheroes in the ordinary world. This could be confusing for us, but probably even more for them. The artists bring this confusion to a climax, by photographing the protagonists in neutral surroundings, with styling and makeup removing all signs of normality. It is impossible to understand whether the figures are in your reality or in some alternative reality. Maybe they exist in both? Or in none?

The exhibition is curated as related to the theatre play currently showed in the main hall, "Peer Gynt" by Henrik Ibsen. Extremely concentrated, the moral of the play is "Be true to yourself!" or "Be yourself!". My first thought is that the photographed youngsters are not themselves, in their dressing they want to be someone else. But are they really? Maybe they actually dress like they feel like, maybe this is exactly how they are? Who are we to claim that "Hey, you are not dressed like yourself!"? Why can we not let them act and dress as they like? Why can we not just let Peer Gynt be himself, the womanizer and adventurer afraid of commitment? Do we have the right to shape the asian youngsters or Peer Gynt into something WE consider normal and decent?

Mariusz Waras: Transformer

2011-09-01T20:00:00.001+02:00

Installation/video
Alternativa: Labour & Leisure
Hall 90B,Gdansk shipyard, Poland
29.5.-30.9.11

The video is out: The animation of the "Transformer" installation by Mariusz Waras at the Alternativa exhibition in Gdansk. The video shows how the installation floats into the dock area of Gdansk, breaking into the exact building where the real installation is present. The video is shown on a screen next to the "Transformer". Fantastic work by Mariusz Waras/M-City, a major work at the exhibition.

More about "Transformer" here.
About Alternativa:Labour&Leisure exhibition here.

Your Emotional Future

2011-08-30T21:58:00.002+02:00

Olafur Eliasson

PinchukArtCentre, Kiev, Ukraine

21.5.-2.10.11

Interactive installations

http://pinchukartcentre.org

Fun and adventure for everyone, but also an art experience. But this is not substance-less entertainment. You become a part of the art.

The PinchukArtCentre is almost hidden inside a shopping mall, behind century-old facades of central Kiev. The interior is ultrachic, with three floors of temporary exhibition rooms, two floors for the collection, and a flashy white café on the top floor with view to the main boulevard of the city. There was a long line waiting to get into the gallery through the obligatory security check. The entrance was free, and this was the spot in the city I heard most foreign tongues.

All together 15 works are on display, some brand new and made specifically for this exhibition and these rooms. Others are earlier works.

- Your Felt Future

The room seems totally empty, but something is strange. It is the ceiling. It is a wavy mirror, reflecting everything that might be in the room into weird, amorphic patterns.

- Your Disappearing Garden

The floor of the room is covered by black lava rocks. Is this a rock garden, or is the garden underneath it, being covered by a vulcano eruption?

- Your Blind Movement

You enter the room and are lost. The room is covered with smoke. Your only way of orientation is the different light colors of different parts of the room.

- Model for a Timeless Garden

In the dark room the light flashes in short, frequent pulses. This makes the splashing water seem like standing still the moment the light is on. Flowing water is creating ever changing sculptures.

- Kepler Was Right Bike

A perfectly ordinary bike, except the wheels are made of mirrors. The reflection of the wheels are creating a second pair of wheels on the floor.

- Happiness

You need to peek through a narrow slit in the wall to see this work. In front of you is a vast landscape of water and soap bubbles. The bubbles are created and vanishing constantly, making a fragile, fluctating landscape.

- Room for One Colour

With only one color of light - yellow - you and everything else in the room turn yellow/black. Details that otherwise are camouflaged in colour become visual, and colorful details become invisible.

- Reflection Magnet

The mirror ball in the yellow room makes the experience even weirder. The monochrome you get reshaped in the concave mirror of the ball.

- Your Uncertain Shadow

Passing through the room you cast multiple shadows on the wall. This makes you want to dance and make strange movements, seeing how the shadow will react to it.

- Camera Obscura

In a dark room you see the reflection of the outside through a tiny hole. The outside is brought inside into this primitive camera, but it is turned upside down.

- Parabolic Planet

A lava stone is hanging in front of an enlarging mirror. From the dark side you see only the contours of the rock, but in the mirror you see all the fine details of the porous stone.

- Your Star House

Seeing into this triangle of mirrors, you see your multiple reflections like in a caleidoscope.

- Water Pendulum

Like in "Model for a Timeless Garden" time is frozen by the rapid flashing of the light. But here the water flows from a tube, swaying randomly from the ceiling. Thin curvous sculpture are created on your retina, until a different sculpture appears by the next flash of light.

- Beauty

Light is sent through a water mist, and you may find the rainbow in there.

Your experiences are a crucial part of the artwork. Some may exit from the exhibition saying: "that was fun", yet others may say "that was an experience that made me look at things differently". It would be impossible to stay totally untouched by this exhibition.

Forced to leave my camera at the entrance, I realised that most of the works could not be experiences through a camera lens. It had to be experienced with my senses, and not only by seeing. Some works you look at (water sculptures, rocks on the floor, mirror ceiling), some you need to participate with (peeking though the tiny slit to see the soap bubbles, navigating in the fog-filled room, creating a multiple shadow), some even may make you act in a way you never acted before (making the multiple shadow dance, navigating through the fog-filled room).

Not only the viewer and his emotions are part of the artwork, the location and the rooms are as well. Some works use the room as an important part of the installation (mirror ceiling, walls hidden in the fog, yellow light). Some works communicate with the location (camera obscura).

My strongest experiences at the exhibition:

I enjoyed how I was forced to use my senses in a new way. I have never before seen water this beautiful as in the "water sculptures". Well, maybe on photos, but never with my own eyes.

Losing my vision and sense of space in the smoke-filled rooms, I was using other senses to explore the area, careful not to bump into others lost in the fog. I managed to emerge from the fog, but it changed how I look at spaces, and it changed how I look at the sense of sight. I have hardly experienced artwork with this strong impact on my senses.

Pictures from the website, copyright information: Courtesy the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin, Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York © Olafur Eliasson 2011. Photo by Dmitry Baranov; courtesy PinchukArtCentre

Arcadia

2011-08-29T22:45:00.002+02:00

Serina Erfjord, Ragnhild Johansen, Sandra Vaka Olsen, Nina Torp
Curated by Gunhild Moe
Rogaland Kunstsenter, Stavanger
25.8.-25.9.11
Installations, videos, photos

At first glance this exhibition looks rather boring. Plywood plates leaned against the wall, a large blue glass plate hanging on the wall, a grainy picture of a beach, and video of a waterfall. But things are not what they seem. Every object contain a surprise. I like surprises.

In this fourth exhibition curated by Gunhild Moe four female artists present their quite diffent works. They all have in common a fascination for nature and natural materials. And they all seem to enjoy surprising the viewers.

Arcadia opening at Rogaland Kunstsenter

Ragnhild Johansen: Leaning 3-ply

On three locations plywood plates are leaned against the wall. They seem like perfectly ordinary plywood. But at second glance, the pattern of the wood seems rather extraordinary. It would truly be a sensation if plywood with this pattern were found in the material shop. The wood lines are dancing, blending into each other and on the whole acting quite unusual. With a close examination I see that the extraordinary pattern is painted onto the real plywood pattern, with such a skill that it looks very natural.

Ragnhild Johansen: Class A EUR-pallet

Ragnhild Johansen's fourth object is also about painting wood on wood, but in a different way. The reflection of the pallet is painted on the plywood piece it is standing on, like if the plywood has become a mirror.

Nina Torp: But outside, everything is immeasurable

A postcard shows some kind of restaurant interiour. The decorations are a nature scene in the indoor location. It seems like some scene from the old days. But seen through the adjoining mirror the scene seems to change character. The scene comes alive, it becomes three-dimensional, and drags you into it. You are drawn into the fairytale land of the postcard.

Nina Torp: Memoirs of A Tourist. Waterfall #1. Cascade de Barberin

In a dark room and on a pedestal videos of two different waterfalls are shown. But something seems to be unnatural about the movies. The water is moving, but the surroundings and the rocks in the river seems to be isolated from the water. In fact these are collages of video and photo, where the water is shot in one location and the surroundings in another. The location of the waterfall is where the water is not flowing anymore. The photo of the site would just show a dry waterfall. The video of running water is cut into the picture. She is bringing life back to the waterfall, even if it feels slightly unnatural.

Sandra Vaka Olsen: Pixel drops (Stromboli)

A print of a blurry scene, decorated with some colourful dots. This it what this seems like at first glance. This is actually a photo of a monitor showing a scene from the movie "Stromboli", and the dots are water drops that magnify the color units on the screen.

Sandra Vaka Olsen: Grain Picture Sand Place

The Italian island Stromboli is the motive of all Sandra Vaka Olsen's work in the exhibition. Her giant printout show a picture from a beach at real life Stromboli. The picture is coarse and grainy, like it had been shot with high ISO on a dark day. But this is also the grain structure of the sand. Here the grains of the sand have affected also the sky, the sea and the rock. All surroundings has got the sandy structure, just like all your clothes and things are filled with sand after a day on the beach.

Serina Erfjord: Headache

On a pedestal is a green lump of something undefinable. It seems like some jelly, slime or something else disgusting. But if you dare to look closer, there is a movement. The lump is silently, constantly trembling. The title is "headache", like it could be a visualisation of a headache, or it may give you a headache if you stare at it too long.

Serina Erfjord: Normal. Blue

A large, shiny blue plate is hanging on the wall. At first it seem like some giant glazed salad bowl. But the plate is moving, it is slowly turning. And looking closer, the surface on the plate is floating, the rotation keeps the liquid from dripping down to the floor.

*

This is an exhibition that I really enjoyed, because it was surprising and challenged me. The works fit well together, creating a whole of a collection of quite different works and expressions.

Some of the artworks have visible surprises, if you really look for it. This is the case for the works of Serina Erfjord and Ragnhild Johansen. Still, some viewers did not notice the surprise until it was pointed out. Other surprises are more subtle, and will pass unnoticed if you do not happen to get a guided tour in the exhibition. This is the case for the works of Nina Torp and Sandra Vaka Olsen. I believe this exhibition will not give its full potential without a guide. If you do not know how and why the waterfall videos are made, they will just seem like videos of waterfalls. Without knowing the connection to the movie "Stromboli", the works by Sandra Vaka Olsen will just seem like some coarse nature photos.

KONT

2011-08-28T17:19:00.001+02:00

Street Art in Tallinn
8.-21.8.11
www.kont.ee
Anton (EST), Keuz (FRA), Yusk (BRA), Joys (ITA), Peeta (ITA), Made (ITA), Multistab (EST, Tone (POL), Honet (FRA)

KONT is festival arranged for the second time, bringing street art to the people of Tallinn. Street art have not yet emerged widely in Estonia, probably due to strong law enforcement and bureaucratic obstacles.

The crew behind KONT have created a concept that was possible to get permission for. Eight shipping containers were placed on the urban shoreline at Kalasadam, providing painting space for an impressive selection of international artists. Estonia's own street art heroes Multistab are on the visit list as well. Unfortunately the containers were due to be removed after only two weeks. But the crew had put together a very interesting program during those two weeks. Each artist stayed for two days to do his work, and each artist held an artist talk for the public.

Unfortunately I was only able to visit the site in the beginning of the period. But I am hoping this turns into an annual happening. Here are some impressions:

The Kont installation in Kalasadam. The obligatory 24/7 security guard makes sure nobody gets hurt by the containers.

Finished work by Joys

Work in progress by Peeta and Made

Work by Yusk

Visions

2011-08-26T20:30:00.001+02:00

Kumi Machida
Hå gamle prestegard, Hå, Norway
11.6.-28.8.11
Nihonga paintings

In a unique mix of traditional Japanese art and contemporary Japanese pop art Kumi Machida presents a representative collection of her work. She presents persons without personality, sex and age. They are like face-less robots, some even have USB-connections or an empty head. At the same time the techniques she is using adds a thick layer of personality to the motives. The outlines are made from hundreds of strokes with a thin, dry brush, and the color fields seems like three-dimensional. This gives an effect like the paintings have different thickness, it makes me want to touch these intriguing forms.

Somehow Machidas paintings fit very well with the Pushwagner exhibition in the other building. Both artists show persons without personality, but they do it with a very personal touch, adding personality to the faceless people.

Recall

2011-08-26T20:19:00.002+02:00

Beili Liu
Hå gamle prestegard, Hå, Norway
11.6.-28.8.11
Site specific installations

On the second floor of the barn, under a leaky roof, is a strange building. It has the shape of a simplified house, but at the same time it seems fragile. Coming closer I notice that it is made from about 600 white 1,5-2m long units hanging from the ceiling. It is actually made from wax drippings, which makes it extremely fragile. Some parts are even broken off, by visitors or maybe by the draft. This just shows how fragile the construction is, and I get a sense of how massive work it must have been to construct this.

On the other side of the same hall is a spider web of white string connected to the ceiling and floor. In the center is not a spider, but a scissor completely wrapped in the string. In a scissor-paper-rock game scissor would win over paper, like it would over string. But here string is the winner. The web has won over the spider.

Vertigo

2011-08-25T17:04:00.002+02:00

Pushwagner
Hå gamle prestegard, Hå, Norway
11.6.-28.8.11
prints, paintings and video

Entering the world of Pushwagner is entering a world of extreme conformity in extreme colors. Myriads of identical people are living identical lives, while the authorities control that the conformity is total. It is the world of George Orwell's "1984", or the sci-fi movies and novels of the 70s. But Pushwagner creates this black-and-white world in a wide variety of colors. This world seems horrible and repulsive, but with Pushwagners colors it becomes almost tolerable, maybe even tempting.

This is visible in the large paintings of multistorey buildings with identical inhabitants, or in the massive amount of persons inhabiting the inside of the artist's head in his self portrait.

The picture series "A day in the Man family's life" shows a pink-and-black story of a typical day in a typical family in this world. A boy wakes up, dad goes to work together with all other dads, in the evening they watch tv and go to sleep. Nothing extraordinary at all. But hey, isn't that a typical day of our lives as well? Are we really in Pushwagnerland already?

Anthology of video experiments

2011-08-23T20:11:00.002+02:00

Erikk McKenzie
Beer halls, Tou Scene, Stavanger
18.8.-11.9.11
video art

Walking into the darkness of the beer halls at Tou Scene, I head for the light in the innermost hall. There are several screens showing different work by Erikk McKenzie. Some tell a story about a special place, some are time- and spaceless, and only one is staged. McKenzie presents his videos as experiments, and they are very different experiments. One video tells the story about ordinary people facing multinational companies in a struggle for drinking water. Another video features a man in dress dancing in a churchyard. And one is a wild mix of super-8 clips. My favourite is the only video with a script. Workers in orange overalls pop out of a pipe on the roof of Tou scene. It is filled with humour and aestetics.

I enjoyed how the videos were presented: on a screen in a shopping cart, on a tv in front of a sofa, projected on the wall. This is a landscape of videos.

Erikk McKenzie: Thruth spat me into a world of conventions

Already seen

2011-08-23T20:01:00.001+02:00

Kamilla Skrinde: Allerede sett
Bunkersen, Tou Scene, Stavanger
at Tou Scene, 18.8.-11.9.11
Photos

Kamilla Skrinde presents her photos both framed on the walls and in her do-it-yourself fanzine. She shows staged photos, exploring the possibilities of the body. I was most impressed by a photo of an arm on a table. I suppose the rest of the body is there as well, but I can not be sure. This could be a crime scene, or this is somebody that fell under the table. The hand shows a gesture like it wants to tell something, but I do not understand what.

I also like her nice idea of making a limited-edition fanzine to display her other works. The fanzines were laid out on a table in the middle of the room, like a sculpture.

Structures by the Sea

2011-08-23T19:46:00.000+02:00

Mona Orstad Hansen
Galleri Sult, Stavanger
18.8.-11.9.11
Paintings and prints

Celebrating 10 years of Gallery Sult, this year's Stavanger artist exhibits her work. Her paintings have infinite layers, and the sea theme is in there for sure. In the prints the sea is even more present. There is a depth in her pictures that is always engaging.

artist web page here

Lost in Transition

2011-08-21T21:59:00.000+02:00

Contemporary Art Museum of Estonia, Tallinn
22.7.-28.8.11
An exhibition about contemporary Eastern Europe.
Part of the "Your Periphery Is My Center" exhibition series.

It is a lot about crossing borders in this exhibition curated by Rael Artel. Most of all geographical borders in Eastern Europe:

Crossing the borders from Latvia to UK in search for a future with love and money.
Crossing the former closed border from Serbia to Croatia in search for a lost past.
Crossing the border to the world of the ugly and the outcasts.
Crossing the border to Finland and Norway for work.
Crossing the borders of time and space in Chisniau, Moldova.

Many different stories are told, many are familiar, but with a certain twist of black humour. Some stories are certainly fictious, like the drawing of the the teacher so ugly she makes the students throw up. But sometimes life is stranger than fiction, like how the street names of Chisniau have changed so much that nobody knowns them anymore.

Here are some of the highlights:

Gergely Laszló & Katarina Śević: Home Museum

After years with a closed border between Serbia and Croatia, Serbians were finally allowed to visit their summer houses in Croatia. In the meantime several people have used the houses. When the original owners returned to their house they had no idea what had happened in the meantime, they had only clues. The garbage and leftovers become a documentary of what happened on the other side of the border.

Zampa di Leone: Selected drawings

The cartoons of Zampa di Leone poke fun at the art world in a rough and brutal way. In this one a curator from the Estonian forest (an obvious hint to this exhibition's curator) does not get funding as her plans are not mainstream enough. Art life in the Baltics is not like in Basel.

Alexei Gordin: Disgusting Teacher

The disgusting and repulsive drawings by Alexei Gordin contain loads of black humour, leading us into a world of outcasts, horrible situations and the underworld of any town.

Wojtek Doroszuk: Special Features

Here we meet Norwegian nature and Polish workers. They travel to Norway dreaming of beautiful nature and easily earned money, but meet hard work and problematic work conditions.

Flo Kasearu: Basic Navigation for Chisinau

As the street names were renamed for every change of politics and rulers, the inhabitants do not know the names of the streets anymore. As the Estonian artist ask for different contemporary probable names, the moldovians struggle to be able to show the right direction. The traveller is lost, but the inhabitants are lost as well. She asks for names like "Liberty", "Dalai Lama", "Nobel", but they are nowhere to be found.

Arnis Balćus: Contemporary Latvians

A typical Latvian from a typical Latvian family follows the typical pattern of travelling abroad in search of a better future. But his future turns out to be rather untypical. The story is laid out like a family album in frames on the wall in a typical Latvian living room. He starts out in a Latvian school uniform, with a normal family, even a rich relative with BMW. But he travels to the UK, gets a job and a girlfriend. But in the end he marries a muslim woman, and instead of them finding a future abroad, she becomes a Latvian citizen. He is not the only one gaining from his border crossing.

Anna-Stina Treumund: Loser

A female dressed as a man talks about himself. He is an Estonian, working in Finland, having several kids with several women, and he hates foreigners and homosexuals. The movie is showing a normal interview with a typical Estonian man. But in the background is the laughter of a tv-comedy, turning this into a comedy. The typical Estonian becomes a parody.

*

Rael Artel has curated an exhibition with a wide variety of artists and art, all well fitting to the theme. In Estonia many of the stories told are like familiar stories about someone you know. Had the exhibition been displayed in for example Norway, these would be stories about others, about East Europeans. I believe it would work well also in that context, maybe it would even be stronger.

What gets lost in transition? What do you lose when you cross a border? Do you lose your past or your future? Or your identity? Judging from this exhibition you rather gain something in transition: a past, a future or an identity.

Exhibition page here

Multistab

2011-08-21T14:29:00.000+02:00

I found some new Multistab pieces in Tallinn:

Multistab webpage here

Streetart in Tallinn

2011-08-20T23:59:00.000+02:00

This is what I found this time:

This Harlequin is everywhere:

-and this figure as well:

Celebrities in the streets:

Lydia Koidula

Anton Hansen Tammsaare

Darth Vader

Jimi Hendrix' siamese twin sisters

The Trafo queen

Art references:

-talking about art:

-and talking about sexual preferences:

this is part of an art project called "sticker collection" - one of several project of art in public space: www.lift11.ee

Animals:

- and in the end, this sweet one:

Grandpa and Grandma

Jasper Zoova

2011-08-19T22:20:00.001+02:00

Hoov, Tallinn
21.7.11
Exhibition, movie screening, book launch

Pure

2011-08-19T22:20:00.000+02:00

März project room, Tallinn
15.-30.7.11
Laura Põld, Eva Labotkia, Taavi Piibemann, Kylm Lumi, Veiko Klemmer, Frindo Kveiks

März projektiruum is a gem in Tallinn old town, a venue on the base floor in a large building at Olevimägi. This exhibition showed the work of young, aspiring Estonian artists.

It was a joy to experience that Laura Põld's work at this group exhibition were much more to my taste than her solo exhibition at Linnagalerii earlier this summer. The artists display a playfullness with techniques, material, themes and titles. This was a great opportunity to get familiar with promising artists.

Laura Põld: A Smaller Sexual Achievement

Laura Põld: Erased

Laura Põld: Untitled

Eva Labotkia: Magamajäämine taevas

Taavi Piibemann: hermetic no. 002

Taavi Piibemann: Pixel Mort

Veiko Klemmer: Light Constructions: Mono, Prototype, Screen

Kylm Lumi: Birdie 1, Birdie 2 and Birdie 3

Exhibition page here

Overheard Stories

2011-08-19T22:19:00.000+02:00

Liisa Kruusmägi
Draakoni Galerii, Tallinn
11.7.-23.7.11
Drawings

A wonderful exhibition of drawings of ordinary people and their overheard conversations about nothing and everything.

"95 year olds are kids, look"
"Those useless people should be paid to clean the beaches, to clean away the algae"

(click here for larger picture with English texts)

"Like a kitten, sticks his nose in and ... The only way would be to take the children away - I thought I would go and yell at them. A couple of drunkards were there. A pink house with a red roof. - He said what a jerk. And then apologized. Who am I then? I'm home at 5 every day. A Tiiu gave it to me. - It's probably a dreadful business. You have to fuss around and."

Multistability

2011-07-18T07:50:00.000+02:00

Street art
All over Tallinn

Here are some of my latest discoveries of work by the productive Estonian duo Multistab. It is always a pleasure to find their monsters and creatures. As rules against public art is rather strict in Tallinn, most of the art in the streets are small stencils or tags. But these guys are adorning the city and the suburbs with their large freehand pieces. Have also a look at their nice blog here, where Signor Sick and Karma write about their pieces and how it was like painting them.

Post from last year's discoveries here

Outside-In

2011-07-13T19:23:00.002+02:00

Street art / urban art
Skur 2, Stavanger, Norway
1.7.-7.8.11
Banksy (UK), Bäst (US), Ed Templeton (US), José Parla (US), Dan Witz (US), Blu (IT), Escif (ESP), Blek Le Rat (FR), Logan Hicks (US), Dolk (NO), Swoon (US), Barry McGee (US), David Choe (US), Shepard Fairey (US), Charles Krafft (US), Jeremy Geddes (AUS), Borf (US), JR (FR), Herakut (DE), Skewville (US), Eine (UK), Chris Stain (US), Mark Gonzales (US), Kaws (US), Mark Jenkins (US), Invader (FR), Os Gemeos (BR), Stephen Powers (US), Martha Cooper (US), Date Farmers (US), Retna (US), Dotmasters (UK), M-City (PL), Vhils (PO), Tinho (BR), Nick Walker (UK) etc.

Bringing it all inside this time, Reed projects presents an exhibition of street artists' work on canvases. Closely connected to the Nuart festival, this is something that brings joy during the rather dull summertime in Stavanger. And at the same time it is a teaser of this year's Nuart. It is great to see so many established artists in one venue. What gets most attention is the large wall of Banksy pieces, the largest collection in Norway. But I am also thrilled by the two walls of works by Dolk, some so fresh the paint is almost still wet. This is an exhibition where many of the works are for sale. And the movie about the Nuart festival, "Eloquent Vandals" is presented on a screen.

Enjoy some of the highlights. This is not all, to see it you have to go by yourselves.

Exhibition view

The Banksy wall

The JR wall

José Parla

Dotmasters

Skewville

Swoon

Logan Hicks

Escif

Fresh canvases from Dolk

Shepard Fairey

Blu

Exhibition link
Exhibition catalogue

Gateways

2011-07-13T18:51:00.000+02:00

Art and network culture
13.5.-25.9.11
KUMU

It is always worth the time going to the national art museum KUMU at the far end of Kadriorg park in Tallinn. You might spend a whole day exploring the temporary exhibition at the first floor, or the classical and modern art display at the second to fourth floor. But the real thrill is usually on the upper floor, the contemporary section.

At the moment all the fifth floor is dedicated to the exhibition Gateways - art and network culture. The artists are exploring the possibilities of the available technologies, and inventing new technologies. They are inviting us to interact with the artwork, maybe more than we are comfortable with. Some works give us a new way of looking at the world, and some works give us a new way of looking at art. Some works are entertaining, some puzzling, and some even frightening.

Jenny Marketou: Red Eyed Sky Walkers - Silver Series I
- silver helium balloons in the foyer at KUMU

Timo Toots: MEMOПOΛ II
- if you enter your id code into this machine, it searches the web for all information that is available about you. It is quite frightening and surprising how much there is to find.

Julius Popp: Bit Fall
- random words from internet searches are written in sequences of falling water. It is like magic: water spouts out from the ceiling, spelling a word, just to disappear immediately after when it hits the floor.

boredomresearch (Vicky Isley & Paul Smith): Real Snail Mail
- snails are the carriers of emails. You can send an email at a computer nearby. As a snail passes an electronical spot, it picks up the email, and deliver it the next time it passes a spot. It may take an hour, a day, a week.

Christina Kubisch: Wave Catcher
- exploring the city in an new way, discovering the electromagnetic fields. Wearing these headphones you discover the sounds of the tram, ATMs, billboards and revolving doors.

Karel Koplimets & Ivar Veermäe: Don't Be Evil Extended
- the city is mapped with tons of photos, like in googlemaps. But all commercial signs have been erased. You can virtually walk around and create your own advertisements.

Ingo Günther: World Processor
- mapping the world in a brand new way. Before the globus showed the national borders or the topographical borders of the world. These globes show the networks, the global brands, the international connections, that now define the world and its borders.

You Must Relax (Riin Rõõs & Eve Arpo): Astrid Mobile Phone
- this giant phone is a fully functioning mobile phone. Only it is not that mobile anymore according to its size. And all the museum will hear it when you talk to somebody.

Abstract

2011-07-12T19:23:00.001+02:00

Annual exhibition of Estonian Artists' Union
2.7.-14.8.11

According to the tradition, the Estonian Artists' Union also present their annual exhibition this summer. This year's curator is Leonhard Lapin, professor at the Art Academy. As abstract art was forbidden or disfavoured during Soviet rule, abstract art has another value and history than in West-European countries. This exhibition gives an insight to the grand old men and women of Estonian abstract art, but also with some of the younger, ascending artists.

Exhibition overview

Kunstihoone offer large spaces for exhibition, and I get rather overwhelmed by the mass of abstract colourful paintings. The large number of works are somehow overflowing, and makes it difficult to inhale the energy from just one work. I understand that the motive of such an exhibition is to show off as much art and as many artists as possible, but for me it is just too much. But I was still able to point out some of my favourites, in many cases works that were a bit different than the majority. Here is my personal selection of the works:

Aili Vahtrapuu & Viivian Jõemets: Sound Installation
- talking about songs with meaningless words

Anne Parmasto: Red Ones

Ilmar Kruusamäe: Estonian Radishes

Tiiu Kirsipuu: Factura Natura

Valeri Vinogradov: Graphology 2011

Tiina Tammetalu: Exodus I-III (Part of a series)

Katrin Pere: Pain Treatment II. Stroke Me
- needles in formation on a fabric

Erki Kasemets: Lights
- made of many cigarette packages

Untold Stories

2011-07-11T22:41:00.002+02:00

exhibition
8.5.-26.6.11
Kunstihoone, Tallinn

This exhibition brings up the topic of being different, especially being gay, lesbian, bisexual or transsexual. Still a quite controversial topic in Estonia, this large exhibition has got a positive reception. Most of the works are videos; documentaries, field studies and interviews.

I found the works by Liisi Eelmaa & Minna Hint, and the works by Minna Hint the most interesting. These counterpieces show the opposide points of view. On one hand is interviews with different Estonians that have been visible in the public with their views against different lifestyles. On the other hand is Mare Tralla's touching diary of her difficulties discovering and pronouncing that she is a lesbian. To loosen up a bit, Flemming Rolighet's word plays with brand names completes the exhibition.

Liisi Eelmaa & Minna Hint: Heard story

Flemming Rolighet: Often Straight + Tobehomo

Mare Tralla: Written into space

Mare Tralla: Diary

Perceptual Zones

2011-07-11T22:27:00.000+02:00

Marje Len Murusalu
Paintings, video
20.6.-9.7.11.
Draakoni Galerii, Tallinn

Marje Len murusalu turned the world upside down and looked at the contrasts of the view on world issues in this nice exhibition in Draakoni Galerii. I like her fabulating and creative way to approach the world, especially how she shows the contrasts between the coverage of natural disasters in Island and India.

Blue Conglomerate

Pandemonium

Eyjafjallajökull, Iceland / Kaliyaganj, India

Lost & Found

2011-07-11T20:30:00.000+02:00

Laura Põld
30.6.-17.7.11
Paintings
Linnagalerii, Tallinn

I had large expectations for this solo exhibition by Laura Põld. This young artist just graduated from her master studies at Tartu University, but is already quite established as an artist. Her painting/video work was part of the Estonian Artists' Union annual exhibition last year.

I was hoping to see new video works, but was a bit disappointed to discover that the exhibition was all about abstract painting. It is about surfaces and patterns. It seems her ceramic background has influenced on this work, the surfaces resemble pottery, or maybe old painted house walls. I was hardly able to get any energy from these paintings. But I am curious about what she will do next, I believe she is an artist to look out for in the future.

A day after

2011-07-06T18:49:00.000+02:00

Jaan Elken
8.6.-27.6.11
Hobusepea galerii, Tallinn

A nice insight into the well established artist's work, his unique rough, hairy and dirty paintings.

Meel & Michael Jackson

2011-07-06T18:46:00.000+02:00

Mari-Liis Laanemaa
9.-26.6.11
Linnagalerii, Tallinn

A strange exhibition focusing on a young Estonian tv-show "X-factor" contestant, dancing and dressing like Michael Jackson. I like the picture with the absurd setting of Meel in an Estonian bog, dressed and posing like MJ.

Dreams and Destruction

2011-07-06T18:41:00.000+02:00

Elis Saareväli
17.06.-18.07.2011
Kunstihoone Galerii, Tallinn

Interesting black and white oil paintings in large format of easily recognizable, but not the usual choice of, scenes. Here are some of the interesting items:

Baby, you're the right kind of wrong

Forever Poetic

Just because the things aren't what they seem, it doesn't mean you shouldn't dream

Self portrait

Exhibition page here

virtualwallworld

KAWS in Atlanta

Collection of High Museum of Art Atlanta

Lights On - Bakspeilet 2012

Ingunn Fyllingen: Iscenesatt natur

Marisa Ferreira: Colour + Form

Streetart in Cancun

Best of 2011

Urban destruction

Pia Myrvold

Sophie Calle: Take Care of Yourself

Anne Helene Gjelstad: Big Heart, Strong Hands

Beyond

EAL 90 "Traces"

Ene-Liis Semper

Metropolis – City Life in the Urban Age

Minna Havukainen: Parturition

Streetart in Tallinn Dec'11

PÖFF 2011

Hop On Hop Off Art Bus

Waiting for EKA

R-open in Sandnes

Letting Space in Pedersgata

Kristen Rønnevik: Flick into the Swing - A Remix

Jorunn Mæland: Frukter av skuronna

Maja Nilsen: Taare af mine tørre Øine og Psalme at min tilukte Mund

Blu in Krakow

Streetart in Krakow

The MOCAK collection

Halina Mrozek: Between Sculpture and Fashion

Mona Nordaas: Generator

Lucid Dreaming: Ingrid Toogood Hovland, Liv Tandrevold Eriksen, Maren Juell Kristensen

R-open Haugesund

R-open artist talks

Ai Weiwei and Liu Wei

Tatsuo Miyajima: Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

Walead Beshty: Securities and Exchanges

Lu Yang: The Anatomy of Rage

Liu Jianhua: Screaming Walls

Guanxi: Contemporary Chinese Art

Zhou Xianglin: History & Reality

Xiang Ying: Will things ever get better?

Untitled - KiR

Dugnad - Trykk 17

David Choe + DVS1 at Nuart

Dan Witz at Nuart

Herbert Baglione at Nuart

Roberto at Nuart

Herakut at Nuart

Tellas at Nuart

Vhils at Nuart

Lucy McLauchlan at Nuart

Phlegm at Nuart

Hyuro at Nuart

Escif at Nuart

Nuart 2011: Inside

Nuart2011: work in progress Day1

Hariton Pushwagner

Nuart 2011

Margrethe Aanestad: Light Breaking

Light BreakingMargrethe AanestadProsjektrom Normanns, Stavanger17.-25.9.11Abstract drawings + New exhibition space

Gil&Moti: Totally devoted to you

Faded streetart in Stavanger

Ka då ittepå: the end

Anderson & Low: Manga Dreams

Mariusz Waras: Transformer

Your Emotional Future

Arcadia

KONT

Visions

Recall

Vertigo

Anthology of video experiments

Already seen

Structures by the Sea

Lost in Transition

Multistab

Streetart in Tallinn

Jasper Zoova

Pure

Light Breaking
Margrethe Aanestad
Prosjektrom Normanns, Stavanger
17.-25.9.11
Abstract drawings + New exhibition space