Anne Helen Robberstad
Hå gamle prestegard
20.4.-2.6.13
Videos of farmers, animals and scholars about farmlife and nature at Jæren
It takes some effort to sit down to enjoy these works. The cold draft in this old barn, the limited number of headphones and the length of the videos may scare some off. But if you DO sit down you are entering a world you thought you knew all about but probably did not.
Anne Helen Robberstad has turned her attention to the most visible occupation at Jæren - the farms. She has interviewed farmers, but also scholars and animal-rights-activists. The result is a wide portrait of the life as a farmer, the life as a farm animal, the relation between them, and a portrait of the cultural landscape at Jæren. We take so much for granted, we buy our meat from the shop, and are happy if we stay ignorant about the killing of the animals and the smell of manure. What is it like to choose not only an occupation, but also an all-consuming way of living for the rest of your life? Which relation is it really between farmers and animals, do the farmers care about each animal? Those are some of the questions to be answered in the barn.
