Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.09.2019, Blaðsíða 36

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A Huge,
Awesome
Experiment
Listastofan closes its doors after
four successful years
Words: Phil Uwe Widiger Photo: Julie Rowland
Exhibition
Listastofan’s final exhibition WE
RUINED EVERYTHING opens September
6th. The goodbye party will be held
at Iðnó on September 19th.
“If there is one thing I could say
about Listastofan, it would be that
it was one huge, awesome experi-
ment,” says Martyna Daniel of the
four years in which the artist-run
gallery has gone from a simple art
studio to a vibrant art space with
regular exhibitions, workshops,
live drawings, readings and con-
certs.
Once upon a time
in Reykjavík
“I almost feel everything hap-
pened by accident,” Martyna
laughs. Initially, the space was
thought as a simple art studio. But
life had different plans. “We were
overwhelmed with requests for
sort of everything,” says Marty-
na. “I think a reason why it was so
easy to find people to rent desks
with us was because there was no
direct competition to a place like
this then. It sort of escalated from
there.”
Killing the baby
With Listastofan becoming a full
success, the decision to close was
not made overnight. “Things hap-
pened organically,”
explains Martyna.
“The co-directors
have also moved
on to other pro-
jects. In a few days
I'm turning 30 and
I am a bit sensitive
to symbolic dates.
What do I want to
do in my thirties?
The answer is: not Listastofan.”
Instead, Martyna wants to fo-
cus on filmmaking, which she has
studied and which is what brought
her to Iceland initially. And she
wants to go back to experiment-
ing. “That's one of the reasons
why I feel like it's time to close
Listastofan — the experimental
phase is over. It works and we've
proven that. Now we kill our baby.”
Be young and shut up
From the very beginning, Listast-
ofan had its own slogan—“Be
Young and Shut Up”—advertising
the arrogant attitude of adoles-
cence. And it’s farewell exhibition,
WE RUINED EVERYTHING, is the
epitome of this. “It’s like a loud
teenage scream for attention,”
Martyna laughs. “It’s pretty much
the essence of Listastofan.”
The exhibition features both
Icelandic and foreign artists,
another of Listastofan’s trade-
marks, and is a humorous take on
the theme of destruction. “When
I started telling people that we
were going to close there was a
lot of whining, a lot of sadness,”
remembers the co-founder. “The
last exhibition had to make fun of
all these interactions. Well, yeah,
I ruined everything, sorry!”
Going out with a bang
Listastofan will officially close
with a goodbye party at Iðnó, fea-
turing music and art, speeches,
and some other surprises. “There
will be a symbolic pack down
of our exhibition and then we'll
physic a l ly move
everybody to Iðnó
and have a mas-
sive party there,”
Martyna explains.
“W hether it 's in
Listastofan, Iðnó or
new spaces opening
all over town, it re-
ally doesn't matter
as long as you can
show what you are doing and work
together. I don’t really feel like we
are closing anything.”
In fact, a project group for
Listastofan’s successor has al-
ready been founded. The Grape-
vine reached out for an exclusive
statement: “The space will be
taken over following the work-
er cooperative model, a novelty
in Iceland, and will continue to
offer desks for artists to rent up-
stairs. What used to be the exhi-
bition area will go through some
renovations and will gradually be
open for events and workshops,
with the long-term goal of being
turned into a café.”
Art
“The experimen-
tal phase is over.
It works and
we've proven
that. Now we kill
our baby.”
Art so powerful the crowd spills into the street
i8 Gallery
Tryggvagata 16
101 Reykjavík
info@i8.is
t: +354 551 3666
www.i8.is
22 August - 12 October 2019
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