Reykjavík Grapevine - 11.09.2009, Blaðsíða 40

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The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 14 — 2009
Björk started an environmental awakening with the nattura.info ini-
tiative. We talked to her about environmental issues in her summer-
house by Lake Mývatn on one of the best days of the summer, which
incidently was also the fifth anniversary of the Grapevine. Illustration
by Bobby Breiðholt. SBB
This one features Iceland’s superstar female football player, Mar-
grét Lára Viðarsdóttir, in an iconic pose. And the tagline ‘Got Balls?’
What else do you need, really. HSM
For some reason, we managed to piss off some deconstructionalist
socialists (that also happen to be regular GV contributors) with this
issue and its cover story. They mainly felt we weren’t being critical
of Iceland’s attempt at image making. In hindsight, they were prob-
ably right. HSM
We are always trying to do the Gay Pride festival justice in our cov-
ers around that time. It’s kind of hard, though, as there are a lot of
clichés to avoid when depicting gay life. But Gay Pride deserves its
yearly cover, being the awesome festival it is, so we just trod right
along. HSM
It turned out that 2008 was pretty close to becoming the hottest
summer on record in Iceland. Office workers were especially de-
pressed. I haven't seen the numbers, but I would not be surprised
to learn that there was a slight bump in the suicide rate among the
forty-something white collar crowd. SBB
#77 - Issue 8 - 2008 #78 - Issue 9 - 2008
Grapevine 101
#79 - Issue 10 - 2008 #80 - Issue 11 - 2008 #81 - Issue 12 - 2008
Car provided by the good people
of CC Car Rental. Check them out at
www. citycar-rental.com
Travel | Hveravellir
It’s worth the drive to Hveravellir
It’s a long and arduous drive through the
rocky and oft barren interior of the coun-
try. Unpaved, unkempt, deeply rutted,
rock strewn roads force driving speeds
near the single digits for ill equipped ve-
hicles and will put a 4x4’s shock absorbers
to the test.
Hours on Kjölur (F35), while brim-
ming with sweeping views of Hofsjökull
and Langjökull and otherworldly terrains
(lots of rocks), become daunting. Legs beg
for a stretch and the body yearns for some
pampering. Once the cut off for the F735
draws nearer wisps of steam wafting up
from the ground catch the sunlight, creat-
ing a misty halo around the oasis that is
Hveravellir.
The bathing area of Hveravellir is
relatively small and would begin to feel
cramped with more than a dozen bodies
in it, but turning away from your fellow
bathers toward the steaming waterfall,
the sulphur in which has caused the
rocks to develop a slick porcelain-like
surface, accented with rich yellow-green
glossy, spongy moss, is a beautiful es-
cape. What’s more, bathers control their
experience, moving the hot water supply
closer to or further from the bathing pool
as desired to increase or decrease the flow
of 90 degree water added to the basin ev-
ery thirty seconds or so.
There is a cabin directly adjacent to
the bath for rental by overnight guests,
otherwise using the facilities on site costs
a paltry 300 ISK, and even that is only a
suggested donation—the area is well
preserved so why not part with a few hun-
dred krónur to keep it that way?
A short respite at Hveravellir will have
your body and mind relaxed and muscles
loosened and ready for a triumphant
return to the F35 to complete the cross-
country trek. This gem is only 90km
from Gullfoss, 110 km from Blönduós,
and is serviced by buses from Reykjavík
and Akureyri in the summer months and
open year-round. You should go. Seri-
ously.
CaTHaRIne FulTOn
JulIa STaPleS
When the unpredictability and trepida-
tion of the sea becomes symbolic for a na-
tion’s political saga, it’s not bewildering
that several contemporary Icelandic art-
ists feel perturbed. Maybe they see this
obscure juxtaposition as an ever-growing
concern within their art?
ROwInG BOuT POlITICS
The current “Lífróður” exhibition at Haf-
narborg literally translates into “Row For
Your Life.” When applied to the economic
situation, it has a frightful impact. Poli-
ticians have been indoctrinating these
metaphors and euphemisms into their
public speeches—incorporating the vola-
tile, uncontrollable seas in contrast to the
dangers of politic decision making. There
is no surprise, then, that the public has
grown wary about the oceans and politics
surrounding the island, believing their
fate may lie in a similar temperamental
way.
Curators Dorothée Kirch & Markús
Þór Andrésson, who also curated the
Icelandic Pavilion at the 2009 Venice Bi-
ennale, observed this national spirit and
invited artists to comment on the con-
trasting symbolisms between the politi-
cal turmoil and the traitorous seas.
TOuRInG THe exHIBITIOn
“Our bankers became like the new fish-
ermen,” said public relations manager,
Gunnhildur Þórðardóttir as she guided
me through the show. She related that
traditionally Iceland looked towards the
sea for salvation, brought about by the im-
ports of the fishermen. As the economy
expanded, the financial sector took over
these old necessities. Now, it seems to
have fallen back on the fishermen to be-
come the main providers once again, but
is this an unrealistic dependency? She
told of how ex-prime minister, Geir H.
Haarde referred to the fishing industry
as the last thing to hold on to, and how
those words made Icelanders feel their
lives were uncontrollably entwined to the
yields of the sea.
IMPReSSIVe aRRay OF aRTIST
With such an interesting topic in discus-
sion, it is undoubtedly one of the largest
co-exhibitions of contemporary Icelandic
artists that we’ve seen over the past few
years. If ever you had wished to gain
insight into a cross-section of who are
important contributors to the modern
art scene in Iceland, this would be the
exhibition to visit. We have The Icelandic
Love Corporation, Ragnar Kjartansson,
husband and wife duo Libia Castro & Óla-
fur Ólafsson and so forth, all seen as ma-
jor contemporaries in Icelandic art today.
wHaT THe aRTIST HaD TO Say
Many of the artists had interesting takes
on the subjects. Hulda Hákon displayed
a crudely made sculpture series, entitled
“EBITA” (2005-2006). The work showed
her satirical slant on modern politics, in-
corporating historical mythical sea crea-
tures seen on ancient maps with slogans
like “It’s better for us if we know they’re
drunk whilst controlling the country,”
which refers to the rumours that the pre-
vious head of the Central Bank, Davíð
Oddsson, was regularly drunk at work.
The artist’s work conjures questions such
as: Are the political views of politicians
outdated? Are they themselves as mythi-
cal to the people as the creatures? The
work provokes the viewer into thinking of
their relationship to modern politics, and
perhaps how they allow the present to be
presented in myths rather than partici-
pating within the outcome of their own
future.
Politician and artist Hlynur Halls-
son’s work “Guð blessi…” (2009) features
his own take on the words of Geir H.
Haarde, “God bless Iceland,” the infa-
mous statement that shocked the nation
in one of the first public statements re-
garding the crisis last year. He compares
the sentiments with that of its prosper-
ous American counterpart “God Bless
America.” In doing so, he reflects on how
culturally out of touch parliament had
become to Iceland by saying something
completely foreign in its nature, and re-
ciprocating a totally different meaning.
The work I felt conveyed the greatest
inspiration and captured the essence of
the exhibition was that of the Icelandic
Love Corporation, “Thank You” (2005).
This video performance sees the three
artists dressed in elegant gowns with fac-
es covered in diamantes. The artists pro-
ceed to an operating table with a financial
briefcase, containing the guts of fish ly-
ing on the table. As the artists proceed to
re-gut the fish, it begins to visually echo
the conflict Iceland has to contend with:
an over exploited fishing industry that
allowed the financial sector to grow and
now conversely the greed of a few will be
reaped onto many. Although, unlike the
performance, we cannot undo the past!
Iceland will have to re-examine its prac-
tices and look to more sustainable ways of
handle the economy in the future.
art | Hafnarborg
Metaphors To Save
You At Sea
RICHaRD P. FOley
Lífróður- In Deep Water
August 28 – November 1
Hafnarborg
Strandgata 34
220 Hafnarfjörður
www.hafnarborg.is
1. Hrafnkell Sigurðsson
2. Guðjón Ketilsson
3. Ragnar Kjartansson