Atlantica - 01.07.2004, Page 69

A T L A N T I C A 67
The ethereal Reykjavík art scene has a new home in nearly 5000
square meters of floor space downtown. KlinK & BanK, a co-opera-
tion between Gallery Kling & Bang (“Klink”) and the National Bank of
Iceland (“Bank”), opened officially in March 2004 and houses 137
artists and musicians. The opening of KlinK & BanK has floated
Iceland’s experimental art scene one more fathom closer to the sur-
face and has brought new life to a community of young artists, many
of whom see this project as a revolutionary move for the city’s cre-
ative community.
The story of how this building came into the hands of the artists is
unprecedented in Iceland. The National Bank of Iceland, finding
itself with prime real estate in downtown Reykjavík, decided to
donate a building with nearly 5000 square meters of floor space to
artists living in Reykjavik. To plan the building and oversee its opera-
tion, they contacted the ten visual artists who run Gallery Kling &
Bang and asked them to convert the building into a workspace,
gallery, and veritable factory for young artists and musicians. It is the
first time that many different types of art share the same workspace
in Reykjavík, and a truly revolutionary move for the city’s artistic
community. IAM
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ART HOUSEP
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