Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.07.2018, Page 31

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Different dining in
Hannes Hafstein’s
historic home
A hidden gem a
few paces off the
beaten track
HANNESARHOLT
GRUNDARSTÍGUR 10 · 101 REYKJAVÍK
HANNESARHOLT.IS
FOR OPENING HOURS AND RESERVATIONS
CALL +(354) 511 1904
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believing in themselves and sup-
porting each other—in the creative
sector, as well as the fishing in-
dustry, produc-
tion and sports,
to name a few.
We are the small
town with the big
heart. There is
something in the
mountains that
draws energetic
people towards
th i s f jord a nd
makes great things happen. A local
myth says that Mountain Bjólfur
has a crystal core that protects the
town. Maybe that’s the most rea-
sonable answer,” she laughs. “The
crystal core of Mountain Bjólfur.”
Lighting up
The town legacy as a trailblazer
goes back further. In the 1900s,
Seyðisfjörður was the closest port
to mainland Europe, so some Nor-
wegians settled there, teaching the
locals about handling fish. “The
town made the national news, and
an entrepreneurial spirit started
to grow,” says Björt. “When the
phone and inter-
net lines came
to Iceland, they
entered in Seyð-
isfjörður. There
was a soda fac-
tory and a candy
factory, and it
w a s t he f i rst
t o w n i n I c e -
land to capture
enough natural electricity to light
and heat a whole town.”
Then the artist wave struck.
“I’m sure you can find a lot of ar-
tistic practice before this time, but
in my mind it started with Dieter
Roth,” says Björt. “He came here
and fell in love with the place, and
spent a lot of time here with his
son Björn Roth, and his grandsons.
Dieter brought artist friends here
from all over the world, many of
whom have come back on a regular
basis. The energy around Dieter
and his friends, family, and his lo-
cal crew was one of the sparks for
this creative community we have
today.”
LungA LAB
The festival continues to grow and
evolve with each edition. This year,
it will include a new LungA LAB.
“We’ve been working on this for
the last few years, and it seems to
be manifesting properly this year,”
says Björt. “We call it LungA LAB
because it’s experimental, and we
don’t know what will come out
of it—but we hope it will bring
awareness around a topic we focus
on each time, sparking interesting
conversations, kindness in people’s
interrelations, and hopefully some
collaborations. This year it’ll be a
series of international talks and
events around the topic of gender.”
So if you happen to be in Iceland
between July 15th-22nd, find a way
to get over to Seyðisfjörður, and
who knows—maybe you’ll end up
in joining a LungA kindness cult
yourself.
31The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 12 — 2018
Sigurður Guðjónsson
Tumi Magnússon
Unnar Örn
Þórdís Aðalsteinsdóttir
Þórdís Jóhannesdóttir
Curators:
Aðalheiður Valgeirsdóttir & Aldís Arnardóttir
Skaftfell - Center for Visual Art
Seyðisfjörður, East Iceland
www.skaftfell.is
OPEN DAILY 12.00-18.00, WEDNESDAYS UNTIL 20.00.
June 16. - Sept. 2. 2018
SKAFTFELL GALLERY
K A PA L L
C
A
B
L
E
Art abounds!
Such a pretty town
“A local myth says
that Mountain
Bjólfur has a
crystal core that
protects the
town.”
The House at Eyrarbakki
Árnessýsla folk museum is located in Húsið, the House, historical
home of the Danish merchants built in 1765. Húsið is one of
the oldest houses in Iceland and a beautiful monument of
Eyrarbakki´s time as the biggest trading place on the south coast.
Today one can enjoy exhibitions about the story and culture of
the region, famous piano, shawl made out of human hair and the
kings pot, are among items. Húsið prides itself with warm and
homelike atmosphere.
Opening hours:
May 1st - September 30th
daily 11.00-18.00 or by an agreement
Tel: +354 483 1504 & +354 483 1082
husid@husid.com I husid.com