Reykjavík Grapevine - mar. 2023, Blaðsíða 2

Is It
Magic?
6: Does anyone know
how geysers work?
7: The Viking empire
that could have been
10: Revisiting Iceland’s
Cold War relics
11: “Driving Mum” proves
Iceland looks great in
black and white
What the fuck is the internet? How does it work? Is it
magic? Honestly, I found myself staring into the void,
contemplating these very questions like an absolute
luddite after too much time spent researching fibre cables,
throughput speeds and the cloud — and I’m not talking
about those iridescent formation every Instagram influ-
encer in the country has been posting about of late.
But I’ve come out of this slightly mind-bending ordeal a
little wiser, a little better informed and a lot more apprecia-
tive of just how much of our daily lives hinges on a strong
internet connection. Being an elder millennial, I remember
the early 90s. It was a simpler time. The internet was sparse
and slow. I’m not convinced we as a species in this part of
the world still have the patience or attention spans to revert
to that iteration of the web.
It’s a little frightening to think of what a massive
technological step backward Iceland would take should we
suddenly lose connectivity with the wider world. But with
the state of geopolitical affairs as tense as they are, I think
it’s a reality worth considering — not to add to our stresses,
but perhaps as a thought exercise and a jumping off point
for reflection about our modern lives.
As one person I spoke with while researching this
issue’s cover feature (page 8-9) so aptly said, “people seem
to forget we live on an island.” What would happen in the
unlikely event of the submarine cables connecting us to
Europe and the world beyond suddenly going bust? Does
anybody have a plan to keep Icelandic society running in a
quasi normal state? I’m not going to give any spoilers here
— go give the feature a read.
On your way there, check out the first installation of a
new limited series the Grapevine is publishing. Longtime
Grapevine bestie Valur Gunnarsson reimagines key points
in Icelandic (or Iceland-adjacent) history. Up first: what
if Vikings had formed an empire? Go read that, too, for a
history lesson with a twist.
Catharine Fulton, Editor in Chief
20: The OG MMA fighter
who built a hella
classy hotel
28: What does a year’s
worth of design
look like?
EDITORIAL
EDITORIAL
EDITORIAL
COVER PHOTO:
It's obvious to anyone
watching world affairs that
things have taken a turn for
the cold-war-ish.
While the boomers that
are running the world's
super-powers are living
out the last days of their
best-lives, and they keep
serving themselves
heaping spoonfuls of
nostalgia, our cover
illustrator Kosmonatka
went back to her roots,
drawing inspiration from
Polish poster art to create
an image that describes
our current predicament.
Illustration: Kosmonatka
EDITORIAL
Catherine Magnúsdóttir
Catherine studies culture and literature
in Iceland and came to the Grapevine
for the internship but ended up free-
lancing for the magazine. When she’s
not trying to reconnect with her Icelan-
dic roots, she’s usually watching video
essays or attempting to finally come up
with that one good story idea that she
can actually finish writing.
Iryna Zubenko
Iryna is a Ukrainian who has been
working on the cross-section of media
and technology for the past five years.
While still figuring out what to do in
life, Iryna’s love for travelling, unspoiled
nature and Scandi design has brought
her to Reykjavík. One day she’ll write a
non-fiction book.
Josie Anne Gaitens
Josie is an arts worker, musician and
writer from the Scottish Highlands. She
was once erroneously referred to as
the Queen of Scotland by a Malaysian
newspaper and has been falsely using
that title ever since.
CONTRIBUTORS
Jóhannes Bjarki Bjarkason
Jóhannes Bjarki is a Reykjavík local,
straight out of Grafarvogur. Having
been active as the frontman of the
post-punk band Skoffín and within the
post-dreifing art collective, Jóhannes
is fascinated by the Icelandic music
scene. Among his interests are politics,
history, and pop culture. Jóhannes has
previously written for Stúdentablaðið
and Framhaldsskólablaðið. He prefers
cats over dogs.
Lea Dörschel
Lea is a 23-year-old German transplant
living in Reykjavík. Five years ago,
she left everything behind to move to
Iceland, where she fell in love with the
nature and the possibility for adventure.
Besides travelling, one of Lea’s biggest
passions is photography and you'll
never find her out and about without
her camera.
Rex Beckett
Rex has been a fixture in the Reykjavík
culture scene for over a decade as a
longtime music/art journalist and as
former synthpunk diva Rex Pistols.
They are currently working on a series
delving into the influence of Garfield on
queer millennials. Their car is named
Renegade.
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