REYKJAVIK ART MUSEUM – KJARVALSSTAÐIR FLÓKAGATA 24, REYKJAVIK OPEN: DAILY 10-17
KJARVAL: TOP SOIL
Roundabouts, Eriksson’s first major international solo exhibition, is a collaboration amongst Bonniers Konsthall, Trondheim kunstmuseum, Centre pasquArt, Biel and Reykjavik Art Museum, with support from the Nordic Culture Fund. A catalogue published by Walther Koenig accompanies the exhibition.
THE PULSE OF TIME From January 17th. The paintings in Einar Hákonarson’s retrospective span the artist’s career for over 50 years, from juvenilia and student works until the present year, 2014. The works have been selected on the principle of enabling visitors to trace the evolution of his art without difficulty; and the organisation and hanging of the exhibition are also intended to facilitate that process. The theme of the show, Púls tímans/Pulse of Time, is also the title of one of the paintings, evoking the artist’s desire to keep his finger on the pulse of time. The exhibition is
curated by Ingiberg Magnússon.
POETIC COLOUR PALETTE, FROM THE KJARVAL COLLECTION From January 17th. Jóhannes Sveinsson Kjarval occupies a special place in the history of Icelandic culture and art, as one of the country’s most beloved artists, before or since. Born in 1885, he was a native of the south coast, from the farm Efri-Ey in the Meðalland district, but was raised by relatives on the east coast at Geitavík in Borgarfjörður-eystri. In his early twenties he assumed the royal Irish name Kjarval and used it to his dying day. He set off for Reykjavik in 1902; only two years prior, Iceland’s first exhibition of paintings had been mounted by painter Þórarinn B. Þorláksson. In Reykjavík Kjarval took drawing and painting courses with Þorláksson and also with the painter Ásgrímur Jónsson, but his mind was set on going abroad for further studies in art.
EVENT CALENDAR
Artists in the exhibition have created the works, either from existing or fabricated architecture, to construct impressions of memories. As a feature of the exhibition, Ásmundarsafn, befittingly a sculpture and a house built by Ásmundur Sveinsson, becomes the embodiment of the reconstructed references. Ásmundur built the house in tandem with many of the sculptures now standing in the garden, and as an enhancing component of the exhibition, on display are smaller or actual versions of these figurative works. In addition to making a direct connection to their enlargements, these figurative sculptures play into actual perceptions of scale in the exhibition, both inside and outside the house.
Until January 4th.
ANDREAS ERIKSSON: ROUNDABOUTS Until January 4th. Andreas Eriksson (b. 1975 in Björsäter, Sweden) is one of the most acclaimed Swedish artists of his generation. He represented Sweden at the Nordic Pavilion at the 2011 Venice Biennale and his works have been shown widely.
ROUNDABOUTS
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Kjarval has served as a historic source of inspiration for Andreas Eriksson. In his works, Eriksson points out, Kjarval “chose not only to bring himself closer to earth, lava and rock types, but also to concentrate equally on the oil paint…[as if] to honourably try to return the pigments to their origin.” For the exhibition Top Soil Eriksson has selected paintings and drawings by Kjarval, which will be shown along with new work by Eriksson himself in appreciation of Kjarval’s art.
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