Author name: odalisque

Variables as Absence of Uniformity – Romanian Artists Exhibit at Wetterling Gallery text Natalia Muntean Featuring artworks by six Romanian artists, Variables as Absence of Uniformity, has freedom as the centrepiece idea that the exhibition revolves around. Through varied artistic means and interpretations, the six Romanian artists invite the audience to an intergenerational conversation about manners in which socio-political and ecological changes might impact and shape one’s perception of freedom. Lia Perjovschi (b. 1961) has been creating thought-provoking art for nearly four decades, focusing on social dynamics and resistance. Her work spans various mediums, from performance to installations, often highlighting the female form as a powerful symbol of empowerment. Mădălina Zaharia (b. 1985) is an artist and filmmaker whose practice blurs the lines between art, design, and storytelling. She uses language and visual elements to transform exhibition spaces into arenas for conceptual discourse and abstract entertainment. Giulia Crețulescu (b. 1994) takes an interdisciplinary approach, creating objects that explore the relationship between human beings and objects. Her work invites viewers to consider the potential for new identities and ontologies. Iulia Toma (b. 1974) uses textiles as a medium to weave narratives that address social issues such as feminism and social justice. Her work speculates on ecological futures and the role of adaptation in hostile environments. s.a.b.a. (Silvia Amancei & Bogdan Armanu) have been collaborating since 2012, combining their backgrounds in mural art and painting with new media to challenge the physical and conceptual limits of objects within a capitalist framework. The show is a collaboration between Stockholm-based Wetterling Gallery and the Bucharest-based Ivan Gallery and is on display at Wetterling Gallery in Stockholm until July 5th.

“When You Lose the Heart Behind Your Work, Nothing Works” – How Devon Dejardin Is Weaving His Story” text Natalia Muntean Photography Sandra Myhrberg “I am intense. But I walk with lightness,” says Devon DeJardin as we stand before Passing Through, his favourite painting from his new show, Pareidolia, and the one he relates to the most. The painting depicts two figures—one receding into the background, in darker hues, and the other leading the way, subtly lighter but still exuding intensity. It’s a sort of allegory for the struggles he’s been through and left behind, and the self that emerged afterwards. Lighter, but carrying a certain depth. I met DeJardin right before the vernissage of his first solo show outside of the US, at Hospitalet in Stockholm, and he generously walked me through his paintings. Pareidolia, produced by Carl Kostyäl Gallery and on display between June 12th and July 21st, is the result of five years of exploring the concept of what he calls ‘secular guardians.’ There is a precision to his art and the human-like figures he paints are made out of geometric shapes, almost floating out of the canvas.  The 30-year-old artist grew up in Portland, influenced by a watercolourist grandmother who often took him to museums as a child. “I didn’t enjoy sitting in museums, but I was exposed to art from an early age, so I became drawn to storytelling and the narratives behind artworks,” he recalls. At 15, he began dabbling in fashion, establishing a T-shirt brand with his business-savvy brother. They won business competitions and expanded into all 50 US states and 16 countries. This venture led to a luxury menswear brand that offered new lessons. “It taught me how to take an object, apply a story and a narrative to it, and then share that with the world. And hopefully, someone will buy it.” However, the fashion industry proved fickle and the brand never really took off, leaving DeJardin to question what it was he truly wanted to do. At the time, I had about 1,000 Instagram followers and posted some of my clothing stuff. I got a message from an artist in Indiana asking to talk. I was wary, but agreed for $100 for 10 minutes. I took the call while driving to San Diego for a friend’s wedding and it ended up being a two-hour conversation. The first thing he asked was if I was spiritual. I replied that it depends. I grew up in a conservative Christian family and studied world religion and theology at university because I wanted to understand everything and not just believe what my parents did. He told me he had been thinking about and praying for me for a couple of years. I was confused because we didn’t know each other. He felt like he was supposed to call me that morning and ask if I had ever painted. I replied that I hadn’t, only drawn a bit for the clothing line. So he encouraged me to try painting because he thought it could be good for me. After hanging up, he sent me $100. Driving back from San Diego, I stopped at a craft store, bought a cheap canvas, paints, and Sharpies, and started drawing on the canvas at my apartment. I didn’t know what to do, so I drew shapes and patterns. I sent a picture to the artist and asked if this was it. He said I should keep going. During that process, spending time alone and focused on one thing, I felt a weight lift off me. It became part of my routine. I couldn’t afford many canvases, so I used overstock jackets from a clothing brand to create art. I posted my designs on Instagram, and some musicians in LA wanted to buy them. This allowed me to make some money, and I eventually rented an art studio in Hollywood. Six months after that call, I bought good canvases and paints and started figuring it out. During that time drawing on the jackets, I started making these faces out of shapes because I didn’t know how to technically draw a human’s face. The shape formation turned into these portrait-style things you see now—very primitive, two-dimensional, no shading, no real colour, just kind of outlines. I made a series of five-foot by six-foot canvases and hung them up on the wall, putting a little story on my Instagram. A friend wanted to buy one for $2,000. His parents, who had a significant art collection, contacted me and bought two pieces for $16,000. Their network saw my work, and demand grew. That moment, six months after that conversation, spiraled everything. Because of them owning the piece, another family wanted to own a piece. And it just started going. I had to take a moment to realise, “Okay, this is something that could really work!” NM: Was that overwhelming?DD: It was overwhelming, for sure, because I was painting just to paint and trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I didn’t feel I had a story attached to it yet. When it started becoming real, I needed to take a step back. I also needed to make sure that I created a narrative and a story that is true to who I am and what I’ve learned. NM: Did you keep any of those first pictures?DD: I kept a couple. I like to maintain a few works from each year to remind myself of certain things. In my studio in Los Angeles, I often show visitors what I’m working on, and the originals so they can see and understand the progression. Natalia Muntean: Can you tell me more about closing the chapter with menswear and finding your interest in art?Devon DeJardin: It was a gradual process, slowly losing connection with what I was doing. When you lose the heart behind your work, nothing works. Telling my brother I wanted to step out was tough. We had this brand, and people saw us as “the clothing

Hank Grüner: Bridging Cultures and Transformative Mythology in Public Art text Art Editor We met up with the artist Hank Grüner (b.1991 Bogota, Colombia) who currently lives and works in Stockholm. Grüner approaches his artistic practice from a place of adoption, resulting in a personal history and deeply personal experiences, paired with an exploration of cultural heritage, belonging, and transformative mythology. He portrays these themes in his latest exhibition ’Signs from above’, which features six sculptural works displayed over 96 square meters on the facade of Sthlm02 Studion, a creative initiative by Skanska Fastigheter in Hammarby Sjöstad.Grüner is represented by Coulisse Gallery in Stockholm. His previous exhibitions include solo shows at Bam Berlin, Galleri Thomassen, and the Swedish Embassy in Paris, among others. He has also gained attention for his collaboration with Our Legacy. Why are you doing an exhibition in Hammarby Sjöstad?I have dreamt about creating something this big for a long time, that dream also involved creating something public that would reach people on a bigger scale. This peace will be a part of peoples daily routine, their way to work and schools. My goal is always to reach people that normally don’t get in touch with art and that also makes the form of public art even more appealing to me. The opportunity to make this artwork came through the building company Skanska, which I am really grateful for. Tell us more about your background.I was born in Colombia and came to Sweden and my new family when I was three months. My whole life has been coloured by the fact that I was adopted. The question of What if? That sliding doors moment. When I create something, I always include those questions and sometimes I find answers in my creations. I find time after time that my heritage is set deep into my bones, how I paint flowers and patterns with colors that are so significant for my Colombian heritage and typical for where I came from.I am not traditional in how I work, I never finished any art school and learned most of what I know through my mentor and former boss Christopher Nying, founder and CD of Our Legacy. My work includes paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and more. Describe your creative process for this project.My assignment was to fill 96 square meters divided into 6 different spaces along a house facade. The spacing made me think of a theatre scene and display windows and how they tell a story. I also took a lot of inspiration from the stage, and how a performance took place on the stage that I created through my artwork. The thought from the beginning was to make a huge painting but I wanted to take it one step further and create something more 3D. The result is cutouts of wood, creating layers of shapes that I painted in stain colours. This is by far the biggest project I made and I needed a big space to work in, Skanska provided me with a 1000 square meter temporary studio next to the house that I was supposed to decorate. The studio is on the ninth floor overlooking the city, and the name signs from above became pretty obvious. Since this period of creating this piece has taken place at the same time as I just became a parent, this time in my life truly special. I have worked through nights watching the sun both set and come up over the city, this process will be a memory that I will carry through my life. Do you have any other exciting projects coming up? We heard something about Milan?Yes, it’s true that I have a project coming up in Milan. For the first time, I will exhibit a series of photos which I think is super exiting. The photos are portraying boat engines and how people cover them in blankets to protect them from wind, sand, and salt. The exhibition is a collaboration with Our Legacy and will be shown at their showroom in Milan during fashion week. Hank Grüner is currently featured in an exhibition in the new area Sthlm New in Hammarby Sjöstad, opening on June 12 from 5 to 7 PM.

Everything I Do, Every Step I Take, Has to Be Connected to Reality. A Conversation With Ylva Snöfrid. text Astrid Birnbaum Photography Sandra Myhrberg Known for her innovative blend of painting and performance, Ylva Snöfrid has captivated audiences worldwide with her unique exploration of existential themes. Her works are deeply introspective, often drawing on historical motifs to delve into the human experience. Her current exhibition, part of the Cosmos Vanitas series, is titled Jungfraujoch – High Altitude Paintings and is showcased at CFHILL in Stockholm. It takes us to Jungfraujoch, the second-highest viewing point in Europe, where Snöfrid’s artistry melds with the breathtaking elevation. The resulting celestial maps chart the intimate terrains of human existence. Central to Ylva’s work is the theme of ‘Vanitas’, reflecting on life’s transience. Her paintings don’t just depict this; they embody it, with each brushstroke and colour choice resonating with the vibrancy of life amidst change. Ylva, I would like to begin at the beginning. Looking back, what first inspired you to pursue a career in art?I think I understood very early that I was an artist. My parents were also making art, even though they had ordinary jobs. They lived like artists. Even though my childhood was a struggle in many ways, they were very supportive of me making things. There are specific moments from my childhood when I realized I was an artist. One was when I was around six and I made some drawings of the queen from Elsa Beskow’s Midsummer tale. The queen was helping the wild weeds and the flowers to get together to have a party. The tale is about a girl who falls asleep and sees the world of these plants. I tried to make a portrait of her, but I couldn’t manage to draw her like Elsa Beskow. I was so disappointed with myself. It was such a struggle, and I could not stop. It was more important than many other things in my life at that moment. Part of my life as an artist began during my childhood. I had a mirror twin who lived behind the mirrors, named Snöfrid, while I was Ylva. I wrote a poem about her as a child, and she gradually became more real, embodying my artwork. Once, I created her as an alcoholic beverage that I distilled on paintings for an installation, inviting people to ‘drink’ her. During interviews, she accompanied me and even answered questions. Consequently, some interviews featured Ylva, Snöfrid, and the interviewer. Unable to rid myself of her presence, I eventually created a life-sized doll with my proportions. When my family and I moved to Athens, I felt the need to take the next step in my artistic practice, necessitating a transmutation. This eight-hour ritual, performed through a mirror, was part of a show in Montpellier curated by Nicolas Bourriaud. I sat on paintings, inviting the audience to participate. In a small tent, I conducted the actual ritual, meeting Snöfrid in the mirror. I painted my vagina on small paintings and invited people to sit down, serving her—us—on these paintings. Through this process, I abandoned my surname and became Ylva Snöfrid, uniting us as one. We are now physically connected all the time. I wear gold joints—gold jewellery around my waist, wrists, neck, and fingers—gradually covering my entire body. These joints symbolize our connection and frequently appear in my paintings. The use of gold has multiple reasons. In my childhood, within an anthroposophic environment, I received gold injections to strengthen my sense of self and create a boundary between the outer and inner worlds. I administered these injections myself into my belly. Your current exhibition, ‘Jungfraujoch – High Altitude Paintings,’ shown at CFHILL, takes us to the heights of the Swiss Alps. What drew you to this remote location?In my artistic practice, I have always worked with my own life and body as the foundation for my artwork. My approach is highly subjective and intuitive, building on my personal experiences. I have explored themes from my own childhood to motherhood, including significant events like giving birth. For instance, my father was a heroin addict during my childhood, and this profoundly influenced my paintings and overall artistic practice. For me, art must be as real and tangible as the ordinary reality I perceive. In the five years before starting the project that culminated in this exhibition, I lived in Athens with my family. In Athens, I created a secluded artwork that was essentially a home, complete with furniture and paintings. We slept on paintings, we ate on paintings. This immersive experience prompted me to look beyond the confines of this project and explore the external world in a more existential manner, recognizing that I live on Earth, a planet that offers a broader, planetary experience. This exploration extended to the cosmos and my connection to the world on a larger scale. As part of this study, I created three monumental paintings, “Cosmos and Vanitas,” each 7×6 meters high, which are installed in Lund. This project involved visiting various places to explore the connection between mass and atmosphere. My husband, Rodrigo, discovered the Jungfraujoch research station, situated at an altitude of 3,500 meters. It is one of the highest research stations globally, attracting researchers from around the world. Rodrigo applied on my behalf for the opportunity to stay there. Therefore, I went up this high mountain. How did the environment of Jungfraujoch affect your creative process?I went there thinking I was going to do a study on the atmosphere and mass. But I didn’t really think that it could affect me physically. When I arrived, a whole other process started within myself, inside my body. The first thing I felt was this very high pressure on my brain. Later, my eyesight improved dramatically because my eyeballs actually adjusted to the pressure. I felt very bad physically. I started to get high altitude sickness, and I was just in that feeling somehow. I got worse and worse, hour by

Issa Salliander and Den of Wolves text Rosel Jackson Stern The game development company 10 Chambers has partnered with Mexico-based Swedish artist Issa Salander to create new work for their upcoming title Den Of Wolves. Issa has produced a series of physical paintings to inspire the game in a collaboration between fine art and digital world-building. The paintings feature a series of character masks, some of which will be featured in the game Den Of Wolves. The idea is to honour the physical craft of storytelling with game development. This is the company’s first of many collaborations with creatives ranging from dancers to choreographers and fashion designers.Odalisque caught up with Issa this Wednesday at Ericssonhallen in Stockholm, where her work is installed 8-9th of May. Rosel: What has been the process of developing these images? Where do you get inspiration from?Issa: I’ve grown up in many different places. Right now I’m in Mexico and spent a total of 12 years there. It’s a beautiful and surreal place, full of contradiction. The contrast between light and dark, good and evil is an important part of what inspires me. I like to create work that lies in the spectrum between what society considers opposites to each other.I start by creating a digital collage for each painting so that the piece has a frame of reference. One piece features the hair of Andy Warhol, a Second World War gas mask with a gold-plated mask underneath. R: You come from a fine art background. What appealed to you about collaborating with a gaming company?I: I enjoy a challenge and the chance to develop my practice. This project was an opportunity to see things from a different perspective. In fine art, we talk about the artist, the work, and the viewer. With this project, there’s a fourth actor: the user. That’s a novel concept for me and I want to incorporate new experiences and points of view in my work.I was never interested in AI art. When I was approached with this idea, it felt like a push beyond the limitations of AI; I got to make the work I wanted and have it introduced into a digital world by extremely talented artists. It’s incredibly exciting. R: What’s it like to hand over your work to be interpreted by others, in this case, game designers?I: It’s nerve-racking but deeply inspiring. Game designers are artists and they possess skills that I admire. I’ve always loved gaming aesthetics so this project felt like a no-brainer. 10 Chambers has given me the space to come up with my vision and total creative freedom. R: What do you hope fellow artists can take away from this project?I: I hope it broadens their horizons to what commercial partnerships can look like. I hope companies invest in artists while giving them the freedom to create. Partnerships like this can open up your work to a new audience and the opportunity to play in their world. 10 Chambers have been generous enough to surrender artistic control to be inspired. That’s how we end up with something beautiful. Den Of Wolves does not yet have a release date.

“It’s Our Time to Be Nurtured”: How Mia Bonhomme Is Creating a Haven for Black Women in Stockholm text Rosel Jackson Stern Photography Sandra Myhrberg In 2020, Mia Bonhomme took a chance. She rented a yoga studio in Stockholm at the height of the pandemic and 12 Black women, who didn’t know each other, showed up. As they dropped in, each person was greeted with the bright smiles and warm familiarity of seeing a long-lost cousin. “Oh, do y’all know each other?” Mia asked one of the participants. “No, we don’t, we’re just happy to see each other” they replied. This is when Mia knew she had stumbled upon something special. “All I wanted was for a Black girl to walk into a room and five other Black girls to say: ‘Hey!’ It’s something we do without thinking back home”, she explains, “I didn’t know how much it fed my soul until it stopped happening to me.” This sense of connection, of kindred spirits, of community, is inherent to Mia’s origins in Mobile, Alabama. She grew up in all Black communities and the gifts therein. “It’s the feeling of being seen and immediately identified. There is safety in that” she reflects in a dingy but delicious sushi restaurant in Stockholm. Having moved here in 2018, Mia struggled to feel like she belonged in a culture so far from where she came from. “In the States, when you see another Black person, you always give them the nod,” Mia explains, “You throw positive energy their way.” Upon arriving in Sweden, she quickly realised she was a far cry from her home town. “People would always tell me that Black people [in Sweden] don’t really get together like that” Mia explains when recounting her experience. When she would walk down the street, see a fellow Black girl with cute braids and let her know, the person would always look at her in confusion. Repeatedly losing this sense of connection with other Black women in a new country confused her. “It makes you feel like you don’t know how to operate in the culture you’re in”, she reflects. Despite meeting a community of mostly expat American Black women, Mia felt lonely. Sweden’s been ranked one of the worst places on the planet for making new friends by InterNations.  We’re one of the world’s most individualistic countries, according to the global research project the World Values Survey (WVS) and over half of all households consist of a single person, according to Eurostat. On top of that, these stats don’t reflect the impact of systemic racism in workplaces, dating scenes and public spaces. Sweden can be a lonely place. Where many of us would conform and make do, Mia went against the grain. “There’s no way Black people don’t kiki here. I refuse to believe it” she states, eyes twinkling. And she’s right. Afroswedes have been living full and rich lives in Sweden since at least the 70s, organised politically and socially through initiatives like Afrosvenskarnas Riksförbund and Black Coffee and made their mark in arts and culture. As an immigrant, it can be difficult to find these spaces and traditions. When I ask her where this tenacity comes from, she giggles with a sense of mischief. “I will ask the same question five times in different ways to get the answer that I want. I’ve been like that my whole life.” When speaking to Afroswedes around her, Mia started to understand that the will to connect was there. It just needed an outlet.  Photography Sandra Myhrberg The yoga class she set up in 2020 was a huge success. It became the first Altar Space event, the start of a separatist collective for Black women in Stockholm. It’s a chance for the community to get together for wellness events like yoga, reiki and book clubs. “It’s not just a network,” Mia explains, “There needs to be more — someone tasked with making sure we meet up, hug on each other, read together and yell on each other’s kids. That’s a job.” Altar Space could just be a group chat but Mia has built a tangible way for Black women to show up for each other. I’ve felt this personally, from Mia and the wider Altar Space community. During my first art show, I was so nervous to put myself out there. I had mentioned it at one of the Altar Space events and Mia jumped into action. She sent out emails to all the Altar Space members and low and behold, my show was filled with beautiful and loving people cheering me on. “We are going to pull up,” Mia states as I recount how special that memory is to me. She shows me a photo from the show, now on the Altar Space official website. I scream in joy, much to the dismay of the white couple also sitting in the restaurant. The urgency of this work is not lost on Mia. When I ask about the labour of love I and many of my peers have enjoyed, she says: “It is 100% rooted in Blackness, in Black women and femmes and my life experience. I’ve always needed a Black feminine nurturer.” A study from 2014 that Afroswedes are the minority most likely to be subject to racially motivated physical violence in public places. As of 2022, anti-black hate crimes are the second most common type to occur. Anecdotally, workplace discrimination and burnout are not uncommon experiences in our community. “A lot of us grow up without safety”, Mia reflects. In light of this bleak reality, separatist spaces like Altar Space are needed more than ever.  “It’s our time to be nurtured,” Mia says. This community isn’t simply about staying in touch but playing an active role in each other’s lives. For Mia, community is about building an ecosystem with all the reciprocity that life needs to sustain itself. This means encouraging growth beyond each event. “I can bring us together for an

Marta Galindo García: “I Became an Artist by Pure Chance” text Natalia Muntean portrait courtesy of Marta Galindo Garcí “DIGITAL-AFTERLIFE-INSTALLATION-VIEWS ©Claudia Ihrek” – Claudia Ihrek Marta Galindo García is a Madrid-based artist. After studying at the University of Seville and De Montfort University (Leicester, UK), she completed her studies at the Complutense University of Madrid with a master’s degree in artistic research and creation. Her first solo exhibition took place at the Valencia Gallery Tuesday to Friday in 2021, followed by “Digital Afterlife” in 2022. What is the story behind your exhibition during Stockholm Art Week?I’m participating in the show with my piece Deepest Image of Itself, a sound installation piece that invokes Joan Didion’s legacy through her writing, specifically her article “The Santa Ana”, and through her personal objects. Ashik Zaman invited me to explore Didion’s work, and while researching online, I discovered an auction held after her death, selling some of her personal belongings. I thought it was an interesting way to get to know and remember someone, through her possessions, so I decided to include some of them in the installation. In parallel, among several readings, her text ‘The Santa Ana’ struck a personal chord with me. The article explains how the east winds from California, named The Santa Ana winds, create an eerie meteorological ambience with an orangish light, and sound and provoke weird behaviour in people. In Cádiz, my hometown, we have exactly the same phenomenon, and each of her words resonated in a very intimate way with my personal experience. Deepest image of itself aims to recreate this eerie atmosphere, akin to the effect of the Santa Ana winds—a space where Didion’s words continue to resonate through time. What inspired you to become an artist, and how has your artistic journey evolved?I’m an artist because I wanted to be a spy. During my childhood, I was obsessed with TV series like Totally Spies, Kim Possible, Spy Kids, CSI… As I grew up and started to consider professional careers, the most similar job I could think of was that of a criminal investigator. My parents quickly convinced me it might be a tough job so I looked for alternatives. Then archaeology entered the scene. It had a similar methodology, as it also involved investigation, gathering evidence, and conducting tests. The available academic degree for archaeology at that time was Conservation and Restoration. It shared subjects with Fine Arts in the first year, which made sense; you shouldn’t restore a painting without knowing how to create one yourself. That’s when I realised I am a more creative of a person than a clinical one, so I ended up enrolling in Fine Arts the following course. I Became an artist by pure chance. Somehow, I think I still keep that detective spirit. Afterall, an artist is quite an investigator. Regarding my artistic journey, I have had a very sincere and eclectic practice, I started focusing a lot on painting but, as soon as I achieved my first studio, I quickly started to play with different processes and mediums. I love to play with materials or objects which aren’t meant to be used in art, not only for their materiality but also for their political dimension. When someone asks what kind of art I make, it’s always a tricky question. So far I’ve done installations, sound performances, video installations, sculptures, paintings… I always try to choose freely and fearlessly the medium that feels more loyal to the topic I’m researching, the one that activates it more. What is your creative process like, and how do you approach developing new ideas and concepts for your work?I usually start with a deep, long and obsessive process of research and reading.I would say that’s probably my favourite part: learning new things and drawing unexpected connections between topics and data. Once I have an idea, Itend to design the piece in a very calculated style. Lately, I’ve been trying to lose myself a bit more on improvisation and accidents, but I’m still working on that. Regardless, I’m usually drawn to exhibitions that feel enveloping, surrounding and gentle to the public, with an irreverent and playful component. Sometimes art can get boring and snobbish, and I love the sensation of entering a room with this kind of installation and feeling embraced by it. They provide an uncommon space where one enters to be part of, versus a more traditional format of facing something, inspected from a distance. How one engages and questions things depends deeply on the position one occupies. What role do you think art plays in society, and how do you see your work contributing to or challenging societal norms?It may sound a bit cheesy but for me, it’s about feeding the spirit. The sensation of walking out of an interesting exhibition, movie, or theatre performance, or even watching a music video— “DIGITAL-AFTERLIFE-INSTALLATION-VIEWS ©Claudia Ihrek” – Claudia Ihrek “Expo_SePropagaranSinRetorno_INJUVE_20” – Instituto de la Juventud ”INSTALLATION-VIEWS-ADD-TO-WISHLIST-01©dibusdibus” – dibusdubus whatever kind of art moves me—is almost like a magical, precious event in our routine and dutiful working lives. It’s just like a sweet awakening that interrupts the humdrum and leaves a hint to follow and dive into. If one can find those moments at least once a month, that’s being lucky. Of course, if those moments can raise questions or reflections on important subjects, which they often do, that’s some serious candy. Are there any particular themes or subjects that consistently appear in your work, and if so, what draws you to them?The question of technology and magic is a constant in my work. I often address the subjects in relation to others, like digital legacy and physical death; how to survive a possible apocalypse with digital technology waste, fabulous battle drones who can learn empathy instead of violence and desert the army… I’m quite a drifter when it comes to topics because I’m constantly looking for different issues that relate to personal concerns and keep my curiosity alive and moving. “DIGITAL-AFTERLIFE-INSTALLATION-VIEWS ©Claudia Ihrek” – Claudia Ihrek “Expo_SePropagaranSinRetorno_INJUVE_20” –

Liselotte Watkins: “Art Is a Way of Understanding and Translating How I See the World.” text Natalia Muntean image courtesy of Liselotte Watkins Originally from Sweden and now based in Rome, Liselotte Watkins is known for her expressive linework and bold use of colour. She is an interdisciplinary artist working across various media including paper, ceramics, and textiles. Watkins’ work has a narrative quality influenced by her training as an illustrator. She gained international attention for her illustrations commissioned by the New York Times and has collaborated with notable names such as Miuccia Prada, Vogue, Marimekko, La Repubblica, and the Bitossi ceramics workshop in Italy. Inspired by vintage aesthetics and antique objects, Watkins creates art that celebrates womanhood. What is the story behind your exhibition during Stockholm Art Week?I first exhibited at Teatergrillen about 15 years ago during Stockholm Art Week. There’s something in the walls there; you can feel that they have witnessed many good conversations and meetings. One thing I appreciate about my home country, Italy, is that it doesn’t rush to renovate away that feeling, which Sweden can sometimes be quick to do. At Teatergrillen, the stories remain, and I think this suits my paintings. What inspired you to become an artist, and how has your artistic journey developed?Art has always been with me. After working as an illustrator for many years, my artistic vision evolved in new and unexpected ways. The imagery I create continues to expand, leading to the development of new series inspired by small details. I believe this process is similar to what writers experience when a secondary character unexpectedly demands attention. What does your creative process look like and how do you view developing new ideas and concepts for your work? I work from 08:00 to 17:00. For me, work breeds ideas. They don’t just develop, they come from continuous work. What role do you think art plays in society and how do you see your work contributing to or challenging societal norms? It is not the role of art to be constructive. Art is a way of understanding and translating how I see the world. Are there any particular themes or subjects that consistently appear in your work, and if so, what draws you to them?The tables are a reflection of how things find their context. These are things lying around the house or that I have found on trips. These are items that may interest us or have become part of our lives for various reasons. Collectively, they form a fabric that represents who we are. Can you share a favourite place in Stockholm where you go to find inspiration or recharge creatively?It would be great if I could recharge creatively, or have a specific place for inspiration. In my case, general rest is required between work and everyday life. In Stockholm, I look for things that were there when I lived in the city, like the Teatergrill. Can you share a story about a specific neighbourhood in Stockholm that has personal significance for you as an artist?I used to live and work in Södermalm when I was in Stockholm. Every day, I would take walks in Vitabergsparken with my dogs. I love that place. In the winter, it’s full of kids sledging, and in the spring and summer, kids drinking and enjoying themselves. There are also little houses with gardens, making it a magical place. Is there a Swedish artist that you find inspiring?Marie-Louise Ekman.

The Ocean in the Forest – A Daring Exhibition at Wanås Sculpture Park text Natalia Muntean Located in the Österlen region of Sweden, Wanås Sculpture Park has long been celebrated as a space where art and nature merge. This year, the park welcomes the creations of four artists under the umbrella of a daring and thought-provoking exhibition. Titled The Ocean in the Forest, the exhibition gathers works by Lavanya Mani, Youmna Chlala, Evan Ifekoya, and Eduardo Navarro. Through their immersive works, the artists inspire visitors to explore collective power, fantasy, and whimsy through stories and healing sounds. By juxtaposing the vastness of the ocean with the intimacy of the forest, they transform Wanås Sculpture Park into a playground where the boundaries between land and sea, reality and imagination are blurred. The Ocean in the Forest is on display until November 4 th, 2024. This Feeling, Oceanic by Youmna Chlala (Lebanon)“The colour changes depending on the surroundings and depending on from where you observe it,” says Youmna Chlala about “This Feeling, Oceanic”, her part of the group exhibition. The Lebanese-American artist digs into her well of personal memories and weaves them with historical events in order to reflect on her relationship to the forest and the ocean, which she sees as a portal connecting us to an ancient past and a future where anything could be possible. Beirut, the ever-moving blue horizon line and forests that live under the sea are all intertwined in the narrative, site-specific art installation, where sun lounge chairs create a drawing in the landscape. Through her installation, the artist invites us to sit, listen and try to paint the future with our imagination. Apo Ifa for the High Heart and Warrior Spirit by Evan Ifekoya (Nigeria)Sound, stillness, scents, and intentional space are used by Evan Ifekoya to delve into embodiment through ancestral and intuitive wisdom. In a similar way to the earth’s surface, humans are predominantly water, and the artist believes that ocean waves symbolise the wisdom we possess within our emotions. At Wanås, the Nigerian-born and London-based artist has transformed a historical private “tea pavilion” and the rhododendron passage leading up to it into a ceremonial space. By making architectural adjustments and incorporating a diverse soundscape including rattles, ocean waves and guided narration, the artist has created an immersive environment that affects the body’s vibration frequencies, encouraging exertion, stillness, and presence. For Ifekoya, the Apo Ifa embodies the necessary tools for “holding space” by transforming environments to encourage people to arrive—to be present emotionally, mentally, and physically. I found a Forest at the Bottom of the Ocean by Eduardo Navarro (Argentina)An iridescent jellyfish enveloping a large old tree is Eduardo Navarro’s manner of exploring how non-human beings interact and feel in the world and the artist’s contribution to the forest at Wanås. With an evolutionary history dating back 500 million years, jellyfish are not only 95% water, but they are also one of the oldest creatures to roam the earth. This fact has intrigued the Argentinian artist, whoimagines jellyfish to exist outside of evolutionary time, in complete harmony with the forest, while also emphasizing that we humans have also evolved from fish-like beings.Visitors to the forest are invited to play the chimes attached to the creature’s tentacles in an improvisational manner, which transforms the jellyfish’s elastic movement into harmonic waves of sound. This creates a sense of unity with the forest, ocean, oneself, and all other living beings, both human and non-human. Fables by Lavanya Mani (India)Titled Fables, Lavanya Mani’s piece for the group exhibition puzzle offers a reinterpretation of a famous painting by Miskin, a court painter during the Mughal Empire in 17th-century India. The Ark: Animals of the World Complain to the Raven (after Miskin) represents a modern version of Noah’s Ark, where birds, animals and plants gather without humans. Created specifically for this exhibition, Mani’s work allows for the wind, clouds and animals to take centre stage, connecting historical apocalyptic visions with modern concerns about climate change and protecting all life forms. Born and based in India, Mani turns to the mythological and historical when it comes to inspiration for her art, drawing from ancient Indian fables, Medieval manuscripts or biblical accounts. Using traditional craft techniques, Mani uses natural pigments in her work, obtaining those from turmeric, madder root or pomegranate peel. Her works explore how stories, visual culture, and goods, such as spices, dyes, textiles, and diseases, travelled through colonial trade routes, influencing the economics of imperialism in India.

Johanna Karlsson “My Art Comes From a Personal Need to Express Myself” text Natalia Muntean To kick off Stockholm Art Week, we have asked a number of interesting people from the city’s art scene questions to explore their relationship to art and the city. Stockholm-based artist, Johanna Karlsson, creates dioramas depicting landscapes in a variety of different materials, including copper wire, silver wire, paper, textiles, pigment and plaster. She chooses to focus on the sculpture rather than the colours in her works, letting the materials speak for themselves. Karlsson creates precise depictions of nature, integrating cultural elements to form a landscape where personal interpretation fuses with natural science. Her works can be found in collections such as he Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Sundsvall Museum in Sweden, and the Olbricht Collection in Germany.  What is the story behind your exhibition during Stockholm Art Week? I have wanted to create reliefs for a long time. When I’ve made images, I’ve often wanted to add some other materials like paper pulp or sand. I enjoy it when the materials create shadows and texture. For these reliefs, I also used soldered details of copper wire and let them extend further from the surface. It’s a middle ground between the sculptures and images I’ve created before. What inspired you to become an artist, and how has your artistic journey evolved? I’ve always made things with my hands; drawn and built with various materials. I still use many of the same materials as when I was young, such as paper, glue, threads and steel wire. What is your creative process like, and how do you approach developing new ideas and concepts for your work?I think it’s a process that I just have to follow, even if it’s with resistance and effort. It feels very much like one thing leads to another, that what I’m doing now builds on what I did before. It doesn’t always get better, but each step might still have a purpose and be important in some way. What role do you think art plays in society, and how do you see your work contributing to or challenging societal norms?I’m certain that art is an essential part of society, but it is nothing that affects my working process. I don’t think my art has a specific agenda or purpose. It is rather something that comes from a personal need to express myself. This does not mean that I am not interested in how the audience perceives and interprets what I do. Are there any particular themes or subjects that consistently appear in your work, and if so, what draws you to them?It’s almost always nature that inspires me. Both the grand and the small, with all the details. It’s difficult to know why one gets drawn to certain motifs, but I think it’s some kind of atmosphere or a memory. Can you share a favourite spot in Stockholm where you go to find inspiration or recharge creatively? Sometimes, when it’s very difficult to get started working in the studio, I go to a library and sit and flip through books. It can be art books, biographies, poetry, or anything that gives new impressions. I also visit galleries and museums. Can you share a story about a specific neighbourhood in Stockholm that holds personal significance to you as an artist?I wander around where I live, formerly in Södermalm and now in Hökarängen and around Gullmarsplan by our allotment garden. I often look at slightly dull, unkempt places but where I still see something I find beautiful. In recent years, Högdalstoppen has been a favourite. Is there a Swedish artist who you find inspirational?There are many Swedish artists that inspire me now, but perhaps the most important was my grandfather, Algot. He had a furniture workshop, but in his later years, he began to draw. In the evenings, he sat in the workshop’s lunchroom and made meticulous pencil drawings. I enjoyed visiting him there and seeing how the drawing grew day by day. What is your favourite bar or restaurant in Stockholm?I don’t go out very often, but I enjoy having coffee at BAK in Hökarängen. Scene XXXVII, 2022 Plaster, paper, pigment, metal wire, oak and artglass 50 x 62 x 30 cm (JK2211) photography Nora Bencivenni, Galleri Magnus Karlsson