Eight artists chosen to participate in a competition for public art in Vogabyggð Reykjavík

Eight artists or artist groups have been chosen to participate in a competition for outdoor art works in Vogabyggð in Reykjavík. They are: The art collective A Kassen, Alicja Kwade, Carl Boutard, Elín Hansdóttir, Finnbogi Pétursson, Karin Sander, Rósa Gísladóttir and Tomás Saraceno.

The preselection committee had a difficult task, choosing from the great number of applications it received from outstanding artists worldwide. A total of 165 artists expressed an interest in participating in the project.

The goal of this competition is to elicit proposals for art works which will become an important part of public spaces in Vogabyggð. According to the area local plan, art shall be a part of the overall design of its public spaces.

Further information about the competition and Vogabyggð can be found here.
 

About the artists

A Kassen is a joint venture of Danish artists Christian Bretton-Meyer, Morten Steen Hebsgaard, Søren Petersen and Tommy Petersen. The group has worked together since 2004 and their work exhibited widely around the world. Their art is playful, catchy and opens up surprising experiences of the culture and the environment. The artists live and work alternately in Copenhagen and Berlin, have participated in numerous international projects and their work been exhibited in Iceland a few times. Their work has been installed in public places in Europe, mostly in the Nordic countries.

Alicja Kwade lives and works in Berlin but was born in Katowice in Poland in 1979. In her career, Kwade has received many awards and gained international recognition for her work, which has been exhibited worldwide, for example in Iceland. Her practice is based around concepts of time, space, science and philosophy. The works investigate our experience of time, and of belonging to a society and particular environment. They have been installed outdoors on both sides of the Atlantic, for example at the Venice Biennale, in Århus and in Miami.

Carl Boutard was born in Sweden in 1975. He has gained attention for original and interesting art in public spaces and has created many outdoor art works, especially in Sweden. His work is shaped by his constant longing for the outdoors, an interest in the environment and man’s outdoor activities in the urban landscape. His art has a strong connection to its surroundings and influences the way people experience it. Carl Boutard lives and works in Reykjavík, he is an assistant professor at the Iceland University of the Arts.

Elín Hansdóttir was born in 1980 and lives and works in Reykjavík as well as Berlin. Early on, she became known for powerful and calculated work which focuses on the viewer´s experience of built landscapes through the manipulation of architectural forms, auditory elements, and optical play. Elín Hansdóttir has received various recognition in her career and her work been exhibited around the world, for example in Kunst-Werke in Berlin and at the international Marrakech Biennale where she created a site specific installation in public space.

Finnbogi Pétursson was born in 1959, he lives and works in Reykjavík. Pétursson has had a long and successful career, among other achievements he represented Iceland at the Venice Biennale in 2001. He is known for innovative works which are based on complicated technical executions, connecting sound, space and material. He has received various awards and honours and his work has been exhibited in distinguished places around the world. His work is widely found in public places in Iceland and abroad, for example at the Reykjavík University, the Reykjavík Energy building and in Pittsburgh, USA.

Karin Sander was born in Germany in 1957. She is an internationally known artist, who has made a distinct mark on the international contemporary art scene. Her conceptual work has been exhibited in recognised places and installed in public spaces. Her work is characterised by interacting with specific sites, histories and social configuration. In her career, Sander has received a great many honours and awards and her work can be found in the collections of many international museums. She has created numerous large pieces, both temporary and permanent, in public spaces. Sander works have been exhibited several times in Iceland. She lives in Berlin and Zurich.

Rósa Gísladóttir was born in Reykjavík in 1957. She has worked and lived abroad for a large part of her life, for example in USA and in Britain where she studied environmental art. Rósa Gísladóttir has created interesting works with a focus on environmental issues, her work features a strong sense of space and form. She has created large pieces where the interplay of form and environment make for an interesting viewing experience. Rósa Gísladóttir has received various recognition in her career and her work has been exhibited worldwide, for example in Mercati di Traiano in Rome and the Saatchi Gallery in London.

Tomás Saraceno is a leading international artist, born in Argentina in 1973. He has worked on numerous large scale art projects all over the world, within the museum world and in public spaces. Saraceno has received various recognition in his career, including the respected Calder Prize in 2009. Saraceno´s ouvre can be seen as an ongoing research, informed by the worlds of art, architecture, natural sciences, astrophysics and engineering. His works create a complex whole which encourages participation and interaction, exploring new, sustainable ways of inhabiting and sensing the environment.