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Down North / Contemporary Art in the Arctic

2023-05-26 to 2024-01-14

The world's most northern regions are emerging as more important than ever before. Areas previously seen as peripheral are leading a societal transformation that will shape our common future. The exhibition Down North presents works by thirty contemporary artists from Canada, Denmark, Finland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the United States, as well as from Sápmi and other indigenous nations in the Arctic regions. They explore the critical issues of our time and use art as a catalyst for change.  
   
Today's climate and environmental changes and a problematic colonial history have inspired works of art that address social, economic, political, and ecological challenges throughout the region. Other works confront the illusion of the North as remote wilderness and challenge the romanticised notion of untouched land and its perceived homogeneity.

The exhibition traces shared experiences within the region through a wide range of works of art in different media, reflecting novel affinities and chasms within societies and among nations in the North Atlantic.  

Participating artists: Ragnar Axelsson (Iceland), Jordan Bennett (Canada), Jason Brown/Firefly (USA), Reggie Burrows Hodges (USA), Christopher Carroll (USA), Jóhan Martin Christiansen (Faroe Islands), Lauren Fensterstock (USA), Gideonsson/Londré (Sweden), Julie Edel Hardenberg (Greenland), Joan Jonas (USA), Jessie Kleemann (Greenland), Justin Levesque (USA), Anna Líndal (Iceland), Meagan Musseau (Canada), Ann Cathrin November Høibo (Norway), Mattias Olofsson (Sweden), Frida Orupabo (Norway), Katarina Pirak Sikku (Sweden), Bita Razavi (Finland/Estonia), Joshua Reiman (USA), Hans Rosenström (Finland), Máret Ánne Sara (Norway), Magnús Sigurðarsson (Iceland), Andreas Siqueland (Norway), Peter Soriano (USA), Anders Sunna (Sweden), Superflex (Denmark), Snæbjörnsdottír/Wilson (Iceland/UK), D’Arcy Wilson (Canada), Arngunnur Ýr (Iceland).

Down North / Contemporary Art in the Arctic is organized by Bildmuseet, Sweden; Portland Museum of Art, USA; and Reykjavik Art Museum, Iceland. Curators: Anders Jansson, Jaime DeSimone, and Markús Þór Andrésson.

Film: Mattias Olofsson "This village should not be forgotten"

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Mattias Olofsson "This village should not be forgotten"
Film:  Anders Sunna "I have hidden things in the paintings"

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Anders Sunna "I have hidden things in the paintings"
Film:  Katarina Pirak Sikku "I am driven by becoming mentally independent"

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Katarina Pirak Sikku "I am driven by becoming mentally independent"
Film: Interview with Mattias Olofsson

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Interview with Mattias Olofsson
Film: Interview with Justin Levesque

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Interview with Justin Levesque
Film: Interview with D’Arcy Wilson

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Interview with D’Arcy Wilson
Film: Interview with Peter Soriano

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Interview with Peter Soriano
Film: Interview with Angunur Yr

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Interview with Angunur Yr
Film: Down North presentation

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Down North presentation

The exhibition is produced with support from Eimskip, Region Västerbotten, Icelandic Climate Fund, Nordic Culture Fund, Nordic Culture Point, Embassy of Canada to Sweden.