With passion and expertise for over 30 years – Katarina Pierre retires

NEWS For more than 30 years, Katarina Pierre has shaped Bildmuseet at Umeå University, first as a museum curator and later as the museum director. With an unfailing eye for artistic quality, a deep belief in the importance of art and a particular commitment to the museum’s visitors, she has developed Bildmuseet into one of Sweden’s leading venues for contemporary art and put Umeå on the international art map. After 16 years as artistic director, she is now retiring.

Text: Jakob Mjöbring

"Bildmuseet has been my life, and I have loved my work. Together with my knowledgeable and dedicated colleagues, we have created something I am immensely proud of.", says Katarina Pierre, Museum director at Bildmuseet. Foto: Polly Yassin / Bildmuseet

Having worked as a museum curator at Bildmuseet since 1995, Katarina Pierre became museum director in 2010, as Umeå University was planning a new arts campus on the banks of the Umeälven river.

"Creating the new Bildmuseet together with my colleagues, more or less from scratch, is the most creative and rewarding thing I have ever done. Together with Henning Larsen Architects, I planned the new museum building while simultaneously recruiting staff and defining its artistic direction."

International collaborations and local engagement

Under Katarina Pierre’s leadership, Bildmuseet has presented the work of some of the most significant artists of our time. Many major international artists have been introduced to Swedish or Nordic audiences for the first time through ambitious solo exhibitions at Bildmuseet, several of them curated by Pierre herself. A strong local anchoring and international collaboration have been guiding principles, when initiating partnerships with art institutions worldwide, including the South African National Gallery in Cape Town, MACBA in Barcelona, Jeu de Paume in Paris, Tate Modern in London and Kiasma in Helsinki.

With its high artistic standards, international outlook and large audience, Bildmuseet has under Katarina Pierre’s leadership played a vital role in Umeå’s development as a city of culture and higher education. In recognition of her contribution to Umeå University, she was awarded the Baltic Collaboration Prize in 2019.

"What interests me is the meeting between art and other disciplines: how science can help us explain the world, and how art and culture can help us change it. For me, this has made Bildmuseet, as part of Umeå University, a unique place to work."

A northern hub for international contemporary art

Postcolonial perspectives, geopolitics and questions around centres and peripheries in the art world have been central to Katarina Pierre’s work. In the lead-up to Umeå’s year as the European Capital of Culture in 2014, she initiated a series of solo exhibitions featuring new work by Sámi artists who are now internationally established. Through collaborative projects and thematic exhibitions, Bildmuseet has highlighted artists based in the north. Pierre has initiated regional networks and professional development projects, and established Bildmuseet as a hub for international contemporary art in northern Sweden.

By placing a strong emphasis on welcoming visitors and complementing its exhibitions with activities ranging from talks by artists and researchers to painting for babies, Art Friday and creative workshops, Katarina Pierre has established an art institution that combines artistic excellence with broad public appeal, attracting more than 75000 visitors each year. Now, she is bringing this chapter to a close and saying goodbye.

"Bildmuseet has been my life, and I have loved my work. Together with my knowledgeable and dedicated colleagues, we have created something I am immensely proud of. I have achieved what I set out to do with Bildmuseet, and now it is time for a new artistic director to take the museum forward into an equally exciting future."