Reykjavík Grapevine - Sep 2020, Page 27

Our Picks
27The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 07— 2020
Art Listin!s
Events are listed by venue. For complete
listin!s and detailed information on venues,
visit !rapevine.is/happenin!.
Send your listin!s to: listin!s@!rapevine.is
OPENING
GER(ASAFN
GER%UR Exhibition
The exhibition GER(UR will focus on
Ger#ur Helgadóttir‘s iron sculptures
from the ‘50s. Ger#ur was the first
Icelandic artist to use iron in her
artwork and was a pioneer of three-
dimensional abstract art in Iceland.
The exhibition is an extension of the
exhibition GER(UR: a retrospective,
held in 2018. Ger#ur's creativity
and experimental nature is a motif
within the museum and reflects it‘s
the unique position of being the
only museum founded in honour of a
female artist.
Her early ironworks she
makes with thin iron plates, lac-
quered in black in geometric forms
that build into the space of her
sculptures. A couple of years later
she created works out of fine steel
wires, composing delicate composi-
tions in space o%en with cosmic
reference.
Opens September 23rd
Running until June 21st, 2021
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ICELAND
THREADS OF ART
The centenary of the birth of textile
artist Ásger#ur Búadóttir provides
a welcome opportunity to explore
weaving and textiles in contempo-
rary Icelandic art and how artists
have used the versatile medium
of fibres: spinning, dyeing, weav-
ing and shaping them in count-
less ways. Textile is an extensive
art form with a long history and a
multitude of specialised techniques
that generally demand great skill
and expertise. Today, textile art is a
flourishing field both in Iceland and
abroad, with younger generations
of artists taking a keen interest in
the medium of fibre and yarn, partly
reflecting the blurring of boundar-
ies between di$erent artistic media
in recent decades.
Opens September 12th
Running until January 24th, 2021

ONGOING
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ICELAND
Solastalgia
In this immersive installation,
explore a mix of augmented reality
with contemporary art, multisenso-
rial e$ects and cutting edge sound
design. Enter a mysterious future
in a post-human Earth where only
a mysterious digital cloud has
survived. Do you still have faith in
technology? (No.)
Runs until January 10th, 2021
Treasures Of A Nation
A selection of over 80 works chosen
from the national gallery’s collec-
tion displays the evolution of art
since the 19th century.
Runs until October 4th, 2020
High Plane VI
Katrín Sigur#ardóttir has for some
years been exploring the e$ects
of perception in her installations
and works. Here, she dismantles a
classic theme of Icelandic paintings:
mountains, the blue of distant vistas
and the obsession with Icelandic
nature.
Runs until January 3rd, 2021
Electromagnetic Objects
The "Electromagnetic Objects" are
a collection of works by Woody Va-
sulka and audio artist Brian O'Reilly.
According to O'Reilly, “the works use
sources excavated directly from
the output of the Electromagnetic
Objects, as well as further manipu-
lations using Tom Demeyer's ImX
so%ware, developed with input from
Steina [Vasulka]." Sounds compli-
cated, but we still stan.
Runs until December 31st, 2020
EINAR JÓNSSON MUSEUM
Permanent Exhibition
The museum contains close to
300 artworks including a beautiful
garden with 26 bronze casts of the
artist’s sculptures.
REYKJAVÍK CITY MUSEUM
Settlement Exhibition
As Viking ruins meet digital technol-
ogy, this exhibition provides insight
into Reykjavík's farms at the time of
the first settlers.
REYKJAVÍK ART MUSEUM )
ÁSMUNDARSAFN
Ásmundur Sveinsson: Under the
Same Sky
Ásmundarsafn is named a%er sculp-
tor Ásmundur Sveinsson. This new
permanent exhibition presents the
artist in a new light. What dialogue
does his works provoke?
Runs until September 30th, 2020
Ásmundur For Families
Children get free entry to learn
about Ásmundur Sveinsson, a%er
whom the museum is named.
Runs until September 30th, 2020
REYKJAVÍK MUSEUM OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Distance and Propinquity: Contem-
porary Icelandic Photography
In the exhibition Distance and
Propinquity: Contemporary Icelandic
Photography, we hear the voices of
some of those who have made their
mark on contemporary Icelandic
photography over the past two
decades.
Currated by Æsa Sigurjónsdóttir,
the exhibition features the works
of Agnieszka Sosonowska, Bára Kris-
tinsdóttir, Bjargey Ólafsdóttir, Bragi
*ór Jósefsson, Claudia Hausfeld,
Daníel *orkell Magnússon, Einar Falur
Ingólfsson, Gu#mundur Ingólfsson,
Gunnhildur Hauksdóttir, Hallger#ur
Hallgrímsdóttir, Katrín Elvarsdót-
tir, Kristinn Ingvarsson, Kristleifur
Björnsson, Orri, Pétur Thomsen and
Spessi.
Opens September 20th
Running until December
REYKJAVÍK MARITIME MUSEUM
Fish & Folk
Name a better duo than fish and
Iceland. You can’t. So come learn
about the history of Icelandic fish-
eries from row boats to monstrous
trawlers.
Melckmeyt 1659
Melckmeyt was a Dutch merchant
ship that crashed near Flatey
Island in 1659. Explore the wreck
here with two images of di$erent
origins against each other.
REYKJAVÍK ART MUSEUM )
HAFNARHÚS
Erró: Cyborg
This series of the great Erró was
inspired by technology, science
and the combination of the human
and the mechanic. In particular, it
examines how technology invades
the body and how the human body
adapts to the machine. The images
o$er questions concerning the
borderlines between human beings
and technology.
Runs until December 31st, 2020
Gilbert & George: The Great Exhibi-
tion
For over five decades, British artist
duo Gilbert & George have shaped
contemporary art. At this special
exhibition, come challenge the pre-
vailing bourgeois ideas of taste and
decorum while empowering gays
and other minority groups. What
else could you want?
Runs until January 3rd, 2021
GALLERY PORT
Teikn á Lo&i
The exhibition includes works by
Arnar Ásgeirsson, Styrmir Örn Gu#-
mundsson and *orvaldur Jónsson,
who all work with drawing in various
forms and media. The drawings are
colourful and playful but also far-
fetched and deal with the nightmar-
ish reality of today. In an obsessive
way, all sorts of confusing forms
freeze out of me. Icons, gra+ti,
wildlife and figures.
Running until September 17th
WIND & WEATHER WINDOW GALLERY
Hljó#aklettar
Arngunnur ,r shows a painting, oil
on wood and painted rocks in the
unique gallery, of Wind and Weather
which is located at Hverfisgata 37.
The aim of the window gallery is to
connect art in the urban setting of
Reykjavik with the people on the
street.
Running until October 1st
REYKJAVÍK ART MUSEUM )
KJARVALSSTA(IR
Jóhannes S. Kjarval: At Home
Jóhannes Sveinsson Kjarval (1885-
1972) was one of the pioneers of
Icelandic art (the museum is literally
named a%er him) and is one of the
country‘s most beloved artists. His
connection to and interpretation
of Iceland’s natural environment is
thought to have taught Icelanders
to appreciate it anew, and to have
encouraged pride in the country’s
uniqueness and the world of adven-
ture to be discovered within it.
Runs until December 31st, 2020
What It Seems – Reality on Canvas
1970-2020
Many painters seek to achieve an
impression of realism in their works.
But is everything what it seems in
paintings made in a realistic style?
We don't know, that's why they
made an exhibit about it.
Runs until October 4th, 2020
N,LÓ
Heartbeat
The exhibition Hjartsláttur (heart-
beat) brings together works from
Ásta Ólafsdóttir's more than 40-year
career, from her years of study to
the present day. They all reflect in
their own way the tireless pursuit
of Ásta in various dimensions of
reality, especially what we can not
touch and have to ignore in today's
semester and bustle. The silence,
the emptiness, the sound and the
emotions, but also the power, bal-
ance and other cultures. Power sup-
plies that leave traces. Then the fact
becomes clear that man is part of a
larger whole and nature is never far
away. It is stable and ever-changing
at the same time, a reliable travel
companion. Like art.
Running until October 4th
September 11th—October 9th
Ger#ur Helgadóttir |
GER%UR
September 23rd-June 21st - Listasafn
Kopavo!ur
The exhibition will
focus on Ger#ur
Helgadóttir’s iron
sculptures from
the 50s. As the
first Icelandic
artist to use iron
in her artwork,
Ger#ur was a
pioneer of three-
dimensional
abstract art
in Iceland. The
exhibition is an
extension of the
exhibition GER(UR:
retrospective.
Ger#ur's creativity
and experimen-
tal nature is a
motif within the
museum and
reflects its unique
position of being
the only museum
founded in hon-
our of a female
artist. Using iron
plates or steel
wires, the artist
created delicate
compositions
in space, o%en
with a cosmic
reference. The
artist’s work
evolved continu-
ously throughout
her career and
was o%en shaped
by her various
interests. Ger#ur
is considered
among the most
important 20th
Century sculptors
in Icelandic art
history. CM

Gilbert & Geor!e: THE GREAT
EXHIBITION
Until January
3rd, 2021 -
Hafnarhús
Perhaps two of
the most influen-
tial contemporary
artists of the last
five decades, Gil-
bert & George are
known for their
pioneering per-
formance pieces,
bold photo-based
graphics and
anti-elitist “Art for
All” ethos. Their
style is constantly
evolving and
pushing creative
boundaries. PA

Hvammstan!i International
Puppet Festival
October 9th-11th
- Hvammstan!i
The brand new
puppet festival
celebrates live
action contem-
porary puppetry
in theatre and
film. 12 produc-
tions will be fea-
tured, represent-
in! artists from
nine nationali-
ties, alon!side a
selection of
workshops and
masterclasses
for all a!es, and
live action pup-
petry films. CM

Hljó#akletta by Arn!unnur 'r
September
4th-October
27th - Wind And
Weather Window
Gallery
The window gal-
lery connects art
in Reykjavík’s ur-
ban setting with
the people on the
street, exhibiting
local art, this time
by Arngunnur ,r,
who likens paint-
ing to geology.
Things get added,
taken away and
sometimes happy
accidents occur.
CM
Gar!atorg 1· Gar!abær
Open Tue - Sun 12 -17
Exhibitions:

100% Wool
Opening 19th of September

Bird Artist in Residence
Opening 17th of September