Reykjavík Grapevine - 27.06.2003, Side 20

- the reykjavík grapevine -20 june 27th - july 10th, 2003 - the reykjavík grapevine - 21june 27th - july 10th, 2003
“World domination or death” was the
Bad Taste motto. Björk opted for the
former; for the others, the result
was somewhere in between. Still, it
must be said that Bad Taste and the
people associated with it managed to
put not only Icelandic music but also
Iceland itself on the map. Before
them, the only bands who had come
anywhere close to international
success were Thor´s Hammer, who
released an English language album
that was widely ignored at the time
but has since become something of
a collector’s item, and the jazz-pop
instrumental group Mezzoforte, who
had a Top 20 UK hit with the song
Garden Party. As one frustrated
pretender, Herbert Guðmundsson,
put it so heartbreakingly, “When
you say you´re from Iceland, people
just laugh.” After Björk however,
anything is possible.
The exhibition, currently in
Hafnarhúsið, documents this revolution.
Naturally the main focus is on Björk and
the Sugarcubes, whose members were
formerly in various notable underground
bands such as Tappi Tíkarass, Purkur
Pillnikk, Þeyr and Kukl. They would play
at various events around the city, usually
for no money, and try to sell their self
produced albums on street corners
while being ignored by passers by. Then
in 1987 Birthday became single of the
week in NME, and nothing would ever
be the same. World domination seemed
possible, even probable. Björk might
have been the only one of the first wave
who actually went on to achieve this, but
at the exhibition we get to meet various
other bands who could have, should
have, might have, and even some who
might still. And then of course, there´s
Sigur Rós, the first band since the Cubes
themselves to have managed a bone fide
breakout.
The exhibition consists mostly of old
pictures and posters, along with some
odd items on display. One of these is the
Regina doll seen in the video, another is
the mock national costume designed by
Bad Taste for the 50th Independence
Anniversary in 1994. We also get to see
a dress worn by Björk in concert, and
the suits of the surf band Brim. Some
of the events on the posters make you
regret you weren’t there, such as a
collaboration between Iceland’s greatest
lyricist, Megas, and Kukl, featuring a
young Björk. Another interesting event
advertised is a blasphemy exhibition,
featuring a poster of a priest sodomizing
a cat. Perhaps this is something the
Reykjavik Art Museum should look into
reviving. The most surprising piece is
a framed front page of Morgunblaðið
showing the war criminals Ariel Sharon
and Halldór Ásgrímsson shaking hands.
The exhibition as such is not very
extensive but for those with plenty of
time there is a constant loop of great
Bad Taste related material on television,
all subtitled and nicely placed in front of
a couch.
The exhibition shows you what can
be achieved by young people with big
dreams in obscure places, even when
demanding to do things on their own
terms. But perhaps it is time for a new
revolution to displace the old.
The second floor of the Museum
holds an exhibition of the works of Erró,
a painter from Ólafsvík who has lived
most of his working life in France. This
shows some of his war themed works,
and is very timely. Most of the paintings
are from 73-74, and show a brave
and talented artist. There is a painting
illustrating the coup in Chile which
portrays a general riding a swastika
bedecked axe, and millstones being
placed around people’s necks so they
can no longer walk upright. Another
one shows an Israeli junta planning
further wars of conquest, while a soldier
greedily suckles a breast marked with a
dollar sign. But Erró´s criticism works
both ways, from a painting called CIA-
KGB illustrating the similarities between
the methods of the superpowers,
to some newer work from the 1991
Persian Gulf War showing Iraqis being
bombarded with consumerism, while
Saddam Hussein wipes his ass on a UN
resolution. Sadly, some of the conflicts
Erró deals with are still ongoing, so
the exhibition plays an important role
in demonstrating to us how art can put
things into perspective, sometimes more
than we may feel entirely comfortable
with.
The third exhibition is a collection
of modern art, which is not something
Grapevine pretends to understand.
Vladur
LISTINGS
E V E N T S
LOBSTER OF LOVE
especially welcome.
Reykjavik Museum of Photography, The Five
Elements. Photographs and etchings from French-
Vietnamese artist Claire Xuan.
Ásmundarsafn, Sculpture museum, The
Modern Man, works of popular sculptor Ásmundar
Sveinsson, who believed sculpture should be part
of the urban environment.
Skemmtihúsið Theatre, -18:00- The Saga of
Gudridur. A play about a Viking woman in America
performed in English.
Skemmtihúsið Theatre, -starts 20:30- The
Saga of Gudridur. A play about a Viking woman in
America performed in English.
Einar Jónsson Sculpture Museum, The works
of Iceland´s first modern sculptor, whose works
are partly based on Icelandic folklore.
Tuesday, July 1
Both Day and Night
Austurvöllur out door exhibition, Earth from
Above. Aerial Photographs by Yann Arthus-
Bertrand.
Café Sólon, Exhibiton - Mosaic mirrors by Rósa.
Day
Reðursafnið, Phallological Museum, A fine
penis and penis related selection from various
mammals. First human specimen still awaited.
Hafnarborg Art Gallery, Anniversary exhibition
from the museum collection.
National and University Library, Exhibition of
Lárus Sigurbjörnsson, the founder of the citys
documentation.
National Gallery of Iceland, Exhibition of
selected works by Icelandic artists from the
National Gallery’s collection.
Norræna Húsið, Nordic House, -12:00 to 17:
00- Exhibition; photos of people, culture and nature
from Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands
Saga Museum, -10:00 to 18:00- History face
to face, historical figures and major events in
Icelandic history from the settlers up to the
Reformation presented in a unique way. Admission
800 krónur.
Árbæjarsafn, Folk Museum, History of Reykjavik
Culture House, Images of Iceland - milestones in
cartography
Hafnarhúsið, Reykjavík Art Museum, Insight
into international contemporary art in Iceland
Kjarvalsstaðir Art Museum, Some of the works
of painter Jóhannes Kjarval.
Norræna húsið, Nordic House, The Big Nordic
Elephant Show. Children dressed up as elephants
especially welcome.
Reykjavik Museum of Photography, The Five
Elements. Photographs and etchings from French-
Vietnamese artist Claire Xuan.
Ásmundarsafn, Sculpture museum, The
Modern Man, works of popular sculptor Ásmundar
Sveinsson, who believed sculpture should be part
of the urban environment.
Einar Jónsson Sculpture Museum, The works
of Iceland´s first modern sculptor, whose works
are partly based on Icelandic folklore.
Night
Kráin 73, Grand opening. Arnþór Hreinsson shows
his work (paintings).
Wednesday, July 2
Both Day and Night
Austurvöllur out door exhibition, Earth from
Above. Aerial Photographs by Yann Arthus-
Bertrand.
Café Sólon, Exhibiton - Mosaic mirrors by Rósa.
Day
Reðursafnið, Phallological Museum, A fine
penis and penis related selection from various
mammals. First human specimen still awaited.
Hafnarborg Art Gallery, Anniversary exhibition
from the museum collection.
National and University Library, Exhibition of
Lárus Sigurbjörnsson, the founder of the citys
documentation.
National Gallery of Iceland, Exhibition of
selected works by Icelandic artists from the
National Gallery’s collection.
Norræna Húsið, Nordic House, -12:00 to 17:
00- Exhibition; photos of people, culture and nature
from Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands
Saga Museum, -10:00 to 18:00- History face
to face, historical figures and major events in
Icelandic history from the settlers up to the
Reformation presented in a unique way. Admission
800 krónur.
Árbæjarsafn, Folk Museum, History of Reykjavik
Culture House, Images of Iceland - milestones in
cartography
Hafnarhúsið, Reykjavík Art Museum, Insight
into international contemporary art in Iceland
Kjarvalsstaðir Art Museum, Some of the works
of painter Jóhannes Kjarval.
Norræna húsið, Nordic House, The Big Nordic
Elephant Show. Children dressed up as elephants
especially welcome.
Reykjavik Museum of Photography, The Five
Elements. Photographs and etchings from French-
Vietnamese artist Claire Xuan.
Ásmundarsafn, Sculpture museum, The
Modern Man, works of popular sculptor Ásmundar
Sveinsson, who believed sculpture should be part
of the urban environment.
Einar Jónsson Sculpture Museum, The works
of Iceland´s first modern sculptor, whose works
are partly based on Icelandic folklore.
Night
Gaukur á Stöng, Lubricant: Heavy metal band.
Kaffibarinn, Wednesday Red Wine Evening, free
cheese and bread. DJ of the evening challenges
someone to DJ the next time.
Thursday, July 3
Both Day and Night
Austurvöllur out door exhibition, Earth from
Above. Aerial Photographs by Yann Arthus-
Bertrand.
Café Sólon, Exhibiton - Mosaic mirrors by Rósa.
Day
Reðursafnið, Phallological Museum, A fine
penis and penis related selection from various
mammals. First human specimen still awaited.
Hafnarborg Art Gallery, Anniversary exhibition
from the museum collection.
Handverk og Hönnun, -13:00 to 17:00-
The band Brim, Iceland´s Beach Boys, sadly starved for sun.
Erro has his say on the state of the world.
Photo: Aldís
Árbæjarsafn Folk Mu-
seum.
June 1st to August 31st.
A Day in the Life of Reykvikians.
The 50´s.
The exhibition follows a day in the life
of 6 Reykvikians of different ages in the
years between 1950 and 1960. Visi-
tors get to follow them from morning
to evening, and also to visit the home
of a six person family in 1958, where
the atmosphere has been authentically
reproduced. There is also an exhibi-
tion about Lárus Sigurbjörnsson, the
man who built the museum.
Museum opening hours:
In June, July and August the museum is
open Tuesday
to Friday 10:00 to 17:00, and 10:00
to 18:00 at weekends. On Mondays
the farm and church of Árbær on
the museum site are open 11:00 to
16:00. At other times of year the
museum is open by arrangement.
Outside the summer season, guided
tours of the museum are scheduled
on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays
at 13:00.
Guided tours for groups by arrange-
ment.
Grandrokk, Dikta.
Saturday night June 28th
Dikta is a four piece rock group that
has been playing together for years,
their singer joined in 1999, and a year
later they made it to the final round
in the Icelandic music experiments
competition (held every spring). Lit-
tle was heard from them after that,
but the reappeared by releasing the
record Andartak (Just a moment) late
last year. The album was recorded
with help from the founders of the
band Ensimi, and has received rather
good reveiwst here in Iceland.
After the release the band has used
most opportunities to perform.
Members are:
Jón Bjarni Pétursson - guitar
Jón Þór Sigurðsson - drums
Skúli Gestsson – bass guitar
Haukur Heiðar Hauksson – guitar &
vocals
Leikhúskjallarinn.
Saturday, June 28th
DJ’s Gullfoss and Geysir name themselves
after Iceland’s most popular tourist sights.
Travellers on a journey through Reykjavik´s
nightlife often find themselves dancing
wherever the DJ twins are playing, since
these two are probably the city’s most
popular disc jockeys. They have a way of
playing with the crowd like no others and
you’ll seldom find them playing anything you
don’t want to hear. Whatever they decide to
play, and they’ll play whatever, tquite simply
seems to fit the mood of the moment.
Admission 500 kr,-