Scan Magazine | Gallery of the Month | Norway
Left: Works of art are displayed on the top two floors at Kunstgalleriet. Right: Japansk Dukke by Erling Valtyrson, who will be exhibiting his artwork at Kunstgalleriet this autumn. Photo: Kunstgalleriet.
Gallery of the Month, Norway
Accessible art for the people When Elin Halvorsen opened art gallery Kunstgalleriet in Stavanger, Norway, in 2000, she did it to make art more accessible for the people – to show that art does not need to be understood to be enjoyed. By Line Elise Svanevik | Photos: Jan Inge Haga
the ground and first floors. In addition to the exhibitions, the gallery often hosts smaller events, including ‘meet the artist’ sessions and workshops by artists explaining how they create their graphics.
“We don’t want people to feel like art is something they don’t understand. We want them to just come in and feel like there are no restrictions and we want there to be a certain openness that welcomes them in,” says Halvorsen.
The gallery is also focused on creating important discussions and debates, and making people more observant. “We want to contribute to the world moving forward, as history and art go hand in hand,” says Halvorsen.
The gallery represents both Norwegian and international contemporary artists and features individual and group exhibitions. This autumn, Kunstgalleriet will be exhibiting the works of Anita Tjemsland, Magne Furuholmen and Erling Valtyrson, the latter having previously exhibited his work at the gallery in 2008, when Queen Sonja of Norway bought several of his mezzotint pieces. Many galleries come and go in Stavanger, but Kunstgalleriet is one of the few that have remained. Now in its 17th year, it employs four staff, including Halvorsen’s husband and co-owner of the gallery, 112 | Issue 100 | May 2017
Arnfinn Hanssen, framer Lena Mjelde and Ann-Kathrin Andersen. “We don’t want people to be sceptical about art; we want them to just come in. That’s why I put weekly artworks on our Facebook page and Instagram to show what we are doing, which has been a huge success,” says Halvorsen.
Everything in one place What makes the gallery so popular is the notion that you can get everything in one place – there is high-quality art by formally trained artists and, in the basement, there is a framing workshop led by a framer with an art school qualification, making her exceptionally well-suited for the job. The layout of Kunstgalleriet stretches over three floors, with the framing workshop in the basement and the gallery on
Each piece of art is carefully considered by framer Lena Mjelde.
For more information, please visit: www.kunstgalleriet.no