Reykjavík Grapevine - 18.05.2018, Blaðsíða 36

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The Turning Wheel
One unapologetic businesswoman is finding a
place for Icelandic art in the International scene
Words: Alice Demurtas Photo: Art Bicnick
Sitting in a sleek downtown restau-
rant in a pink tulle skirt, Sigríður
L. Gunnarsdóttir peruses the menu
for less than a minute before she
orders, with the unmistakable non-
chalance reserved for a daily habit.
It’s immediately clear that such
confidence is a necessity in her line
of work. As the director of Hver-
fisgallerí, one of the longest-lived
commercial art galleries in Reyk-
javík, Sigríður knows who she is
and what she wants—and she’s un-
apologetic about it.
“Art is so intangible in many
senses, so having some continuity
reassures people that this is worth
their attention,” she explains as she
rolls a bundle of spaghetti around
her fork. “This is why art needs in-
termediaries like me. It may not be
the most interesting aspect of art,
but the gallery-artist relationship is
basically what releases the energy
to create more.”
True to the beginning
When she took over the day to day
running of Hverfisgallerí in 2016,
Sigríður had recently left Brus-
sels. She was fresh from a degree
in contemporary art at Sotheby’s
in London and a career in organ-
isational psychology. Open to a new
challenge, she researched galler-
ies in Brussels and London before
taking the reins of Hverfisgallerí.
“I had a mix of degrees, business
experience and a passion for art,”
she says, “so for me to open a gallery
was a logical step.”
Since then, she’s had one focus:
representing her twelve artists—
eleven Icelanders, and a Belgian—to
the fullest degree. “An
art gallery is a small
world in itself,” she
says. “We have twelve
great and diverse art-
ists. Some of them are
represented by galler-
ies in other countries
and have had interna-
tional exposure and
experience, but they
are rooted in Iceland. They all play
well together, and it’s easy to juxta-
pose them.”
Art’s dirty secret
Her Icelandic accent barely audible,
Sigríður’s European manners be-
tray her years spent in the heart of
the continent. That’s perhaps why
her approach to art feels so fresh in
the quiet Icelandic scene. She wor-
ries openly about the lack of a criti-
cism tradition in Iceland, whose
tight-knit and mutually supportive
art community leaves little space
for serious and outspoken critics;
she’s also candid about her job’s ex-
pectations.
“People often get shy about it, or
they don’t want to address it, like
it’s a dirty secret—but you have
to focus on selling,” says Sigríður,
matter-of-factly. “There have to be
sales for the wheels to turn and for
art to survive. It makes the artists
able to work.”
The story continues
As a businesswoman, then, Sigríður
sees herself as the link between the
conceptual and the
practical—the present
and the future. Her
focus on continuity is
something of a trade-
mark, especially when
it comes to fostering
relationships between
collectors and art—a
feeling Sigríður would
like to introduce to the
Icelandic élite.
“It can be such a positive and
energising thing when you have a
great piece of art and you find the
right person and place for it,” she
explains. “The piece comes alive be-
cause it has a different setting. The
artist makes something, someone
buys it, and then the story contin-
ues.”
Suðurgata 41
101 Reykjavík
www.thjodminjasafn.is
tel +354 530 22 00
Hverfisgata 15
101 Reykjavík
www.safnahusid.is
tel +354 530 22 10
National Museum of Iceland
The country’s largest
museum of cultural
history from settlement
to present day.
The Culture House
Manuscripts, fine art, natural
specimens, curiosities and
archeaological findings form
the exhibition Points of View.
National
Museum of
Iceland
The
Culture
House
The exhibitions, shops and cafés are open daily 10 - 17 Closed on Mondays 16/9 – 30/4
“There have
to be sales for
the wheels to
turn and for art
to survive.”
Sigríður L. Gunnarsdóttir: buy art from her
i8 Gallery
Tryggvagata 16
101 Reykjavík
info@i8.is
t: +354 551 3666
www.i8.is
3. May - 26. May 2018
GUÐMUNDA ANDRÉSDÓTTIR
ÞORVALDUR SKÚLASON
NÍNA TRYGGVADÓTTIR