Reykjavík Grapevine - jun. 2021, Side 20

To Know Is To Desi!n
Kristín !orkelsdóttir on a lifetime of desi"nin"
Iceland
Words: Hannah Jane Cohen Photos: Ólöf Brei!fjör!
Exhibit
Kristín !orkelsdóttir’s exhibition
runs until January 30th, 2022 at the
Museum of Design and Applied Art.
“You could say this is my lifetime
work,” says product designer
Kristín !orkelsdóttir, gesturing
to the large, airy exhibition hall
of the Museum of Design and Ap-
plied Art. She’s standing in front
of what appears to be a corner of
logos, with the Icelandic Nature
Conservation Council, the town
of Mosfellsbær and even BYKO’s
symbol on display. Yes, all around
Kristín are the icons of Iceland—
her life’s work.
Even if you’ve never heard the
name Kristín !orkelsdóttir, if
you’ve spent more than a minute
in Iceland, you’re no doubt famil-
iar with her work. From Icelandic
butter to the Icelandic banknotes,
the history of this country is writ-
ten with Kristín’s product designs.
And now, it’s all gathered in one
room as part of the Museum of
Design and Applied Art’s special
retrospective on her work.
Found treasure
“If you’re working on something,
you have to know it,” Kristín ex-
plains, when asked about her ap-
proach to product design. “When
I was designing a book jacket, I
never did it without reading the
book first, and then my subcon-
scious would work on it without me
knowing. You have to find the core
of what you’re working on.”
And it’s clear that Kristín has
found many cores, as the room
is filled to the brim with works
of all forms. There’s floral pack-
ages of N"mjólk, which, as Kristín
explains, were inspired by the
works of Eggert Pétursson. And
across from that is a special glass
case featuring the progression of
Kristín’s book jackets for Rachel
Carson’s game-changing environ-
mentalist work ‘Silent Spring’.
But it’s Mosfellsbær’s logo that
Kristín is quick to point out as a
favourite. “Egill Skallagrímsson
was a painter for the King of Den-
mark and the story goes that he
got a silver treasure for his great
defeats. He supposedly buried it
in Mosfellsbær,” Kristín explains.
So when given the challenge of de-
signing the town’s coat of arms,
Kristín contacted then-president
Kristján Eldjárn, who was the
guardian of the relics, to see the
treasure. He showed her the coins
Egill got from the king and voilá—
the core was found.
Hidden gems
The króna get their own corner
of the exhibition. Of course, the
banknotes are present but along
side them are sketches from the
design process that Krístin has
kept over her lifetime and other
gems—such as the reference pho-
tos Krístin used to draw those of
which she had few visual refer-
ences.
“There were no pictures of
Brynjólfur Sveinsson,” Kristín
explains, gesturing to the 1,000
ISK bill featuring the bishop. “So
I asked a friend of mine. He is a
photographer, but I took his place
and he posed for me.” Kristín then
took the photo of her friend and
altered it slightly for the finalised
sketch. “I changed his face a little.
I used the mouth of my oldest son,”
she laughs.
The most curious note in the
collection though is one that many
newcomers to Iceland might not
even know exists—the 2,000 ISK
bill, which features famed painter
Jóhannes Kjarval. “The 2,000 ISK
bill was never programmed into
the ATMs, so not a lot of people
use it. You have to specifically
ask in the bank to get it,” Kristín
explains. “I’m actually quite sad
it didn’t get a lot of attention — I
think it’s the most beautiful one.”
That's a secret
While the current banknotes are
here to stay, there has been talk
once again about removing two
zeros off the króna to reorganise
and stabilise the currency. If so,
does Kristín have any ideas of who
she’d choose to feature from the
modern era?
“My husband and I were talk-
ing about it yesterday evening, and
we have some ideas, but we will
never say,” she says cheekily. “But
I think there might not be more
banknotes. I think the world is us-
ing cards.” She pulls out her card,
laughing. “That’s a secret!”
Arti8 Gallery
Tryggvagata 16
101 Reykjavík
info@i8.is
t: +354 551 3666
www.i8.is
RAGNA RÓBERTSDÓTTIR
10 June - 31 July 2021
Open daily
10h00–17h00
artmuseum.is
#reykjavikartmuseum
Ásmundarsafn
Sigtúni
105 Reykjavík
+354 411 6430
13.05.–03.10.2021
Sirra Sigrún Sigurðardóttir
Ásmundur Sveinsson
As If to
Demonstrate
an Eclipse
Kristín "orkelsdóttir showcasing the progression of the Icelandic banknote
Butter!