Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.07.2016, Qupperneq 14

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A Contemporary Twist
To An Old Friendship
The núna (now)
festival explores
artistic connections
between Reykjavík
and Winnipeg
The historic connections between
Reykjavík and Winnipeg run deep,
but these days the cultural connec-
tions between the two cities may run
even deeper. The núna (now) festival,
which is in its tenth year, brings Ice-
landic artists to Canada each sum-
mer, affirming deep international
bonds through art and music.
Winnipeg is the capital of the Ca-
nadian province of Manitoba, where
thousands of people are descended
from Icelanders who left their home-
land in the late 19th century. In Gimli,
a town just an hour north of Winni-
peg, Icelandic flags flap proudly on
the shores of a lake that stands in for
the Atlantic, and the annual Íslend-
ingadagurinn festival celebrates the
region’s unique history of Icelandic
settlement.
Finding Common Ground
Núna (now) curator Karina Hanney
Marrero says the goal of the festival
is to consider that historic connec-
tion between Iceland and Manitoba,
but with a “contemporary twist.”
Karina, who recently moved to Win-
nipeg from Reykjavík, says she sees
many similarities between the two
cities. “Winnipeg is so vibrant! And
you would never know that, but it is
so vibrant,” she says. “And maybe
being that surprised about it is also
sort of parallel to Iceland. Like, how
does this small population produce
so much stuff?”
This year, núna (now) is bringing
rap collective Reykjavíkurdætur and
visual artists Rúri and Hekla Dögg
Jónsdóttir to Winnipeg for the festi-
val. One of the first things Karina no-
ticed about Winnipeg was its emerg-
ing hip-hop scene. “So when I started
thinking about projects for this year,
that was the first thing that came to
mind,” she says. “I was like, ‘Yep! I’m
bringing the Daughters of Reykjavík
over.’”
“I know it’s really tacky and cheesy
to say so, but there is a creative kind of
energy that the winter brings,” Kari-
na explains when asked why Reykja-
vík and Winnipeg—two cities known
for their volatile weather—have such
thriving art communities. “The win-
ter sucks, but it produces art, it pro-
duces projects and films and music.
Simply because you’re stuck inside.”

Exchanging Ideas
Núna (now)’s main exhibition for this
year, which is being held at a number
of Winnipeg galleries, opened on June
10. Rúri and Hekla are representing
Iceland in the exhibition, and their
work is being displayed alongside that
of prominent Canadian artists, such as
Kent Monkman and Rebecca Belmore.
The exhibition runs until July 23.
The initial goal of núna (now) was
for Canadian artists to also travel and
share their art in Reykjavík, but that
has only happened twice in the festi-
val's ten-year history. “It’s really hard
to plan anything in Reykjavík if you’re
not there,” Karina says. “But the ideal
dream would be to have the festival
every other year in each place.”
Until then, núna (now) is making
sure that the cultural ties between
Canada and Iceland remain relevant.
“We try to think about artists who are
on the rise in Iceland, and younger
artists,” Karina says. “Giving them
exposure and bringing them over and
having them perform and exhibit in
a totally different continent is such a
good opportunity for them.”
INTERVIEW
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 9 — 2016
14
One of Iceland’s pre-
miere music festivals,
Secret Solstice, expe-
rienced considerable
trouble this year. The crux of the prob-
lem seemed to be selling thousands
more tickets than the Laugardalshöll
stadium, the venue for festival head-
liners Radiohead, had capacity to hold.
Complicating matters further was Die
Antwoord having their flight to Ice-
land delayed, prompting organisers
to have to move their concert indoors.
Numerous attendees complained of
long and poorly organised lines. To
their credit, Secret Solstice organisers
did apologise for the chaos, and some
attendees may receive a refund for
their trouble.
If you’re reading this on Friday, July 1,
and were wondering what to do with
yourself this weekend, you might be
happy to know that tomorrow there
will be a waterslide on Bankastræti.
Sponsored by the Icelandic telecom
Nova, the slide will presumably ex-
tend from the portion of Bankastræti
blocked to car traffic down to Lækjar-
gata, at the very furthest. Keep all your
fingers crossed that the weather will
be conducive to watersliding.
It’s been awhile since we had some
news on tourists behaving question-
ably to report, so you can imagine our
relief at seeing a news story about a
tourist camping on a golf course. The
intrepid camper was spotted at the
14th hole by a group of Icelanders play-
ing a late-night round. Far from being
angry or upset, the Icelanders in ques-
tion were bemused by the discovery.
In defense of the tourist in question,
he said he was forced to camp for the
night when he blew out a tire on his
bike. Let that be a lesson to would-be
cyclists in Iceland: remember to pack a
patching kit and some extra tubes.
NEWS IN
BRIEF
Words &
Photo
ISAAC
WÜRMANN
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