SPECIAL FEATURE: The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial

Artists: Petter Ballo, Ragna Bley, Ronny Faber Dahl, Tora Dalseng, Anna Daniell, Ingrid Eggen, Marthe Ramm Fortun, Ingrid Furre, Pedro Gomez-Egaña, Ane Graff, Sverre Gullesen, Morten Norbye Halvorsen, Anders Holen, Ann Cathrin November Høibo, Linn Pedersen, Marte Johnslien, Stian Eide Kluge, Jon Eirik Kopperud, Daisuke Kosugi, Anne Guro Larsmon, Hanne Lippard, Inger Wold Lund, Carl Mannov, Sandra Mujinga, Magnus Pettersen, Eirik Senje, Vikram Uchida-Khanna, Anders Smebye, Camilla Steinum, Eirik Sæther, Gernot Wieland, Marianne Zamecznik, Carla Ählander, Snorre Ytterstad, Andreas Öhman

Exhibition title: The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial (Life and Work)

Curated by: Steffen Håndlykken

Venue: The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Oslo, Norway

Date: June 1 – September 17, 2017

Photography: all images copyright and courtesy of the artists and The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial

Note: More information can be found here

The purpose of this text is to run in tandem with the “9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial” – sometimes to work the pedals helping to scale a steep curatorial climb, at other times to kick back in the rear seat leaving the huff and puff to the artworks on view. Some apology is needed for my presuming to write in English. I was led to do so by the conviction, mistaken perhaps, that the process of translation would rob the essay of its individual and personal character, which seems so much to be desired. The observant reader might cast the occasional glance at the Norwegian text, published to the left of this English version, to notice discrepancies and, with more advanced comprehension of Norwegian, even contradictions. This is not a trick to add confusion to my multi-lingual readers, but rather an acknowledgement of the fact that an exhibition that purports in its title to be “Norwegian” needs more than mere translation to escape provincial navel-gazing. We shall proceed to unpack the exhibition, but first a nod to the conventions of curatorial introductions: I heartily welcome you to “The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial” at the Vigeland Museum.

“The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial” is based on an open call for applications from artists based in Norway or Norwegian artists living abroad. This sets it apart from the regime of thematic investigation that underpins most other biennial exhibitions of contemporary art. Since the selection of artists comes without the usual thematic baggage, the work of this essay will be to situate the works in their surroundings and use them as a sounding board for the questionable category of “Norwegian Sculpture”. Thus the scope of the show is not national or representative, but local and particular – local and particular to the museum itself. The specifics of the museum and the generics of the exhibition format are the two defining characteristics of the “9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial”, and conveying them to an international audience will be the task of this essay. Insight into the interplay of the works in the exhibition and their surroundings is reached through the medium of language. Thus it is not to wonder that as the language changes so do some of the insights and conclusions.

It is my great pleasure to present the 35 artists in “The 9th Norwegian Biennial of Sculpture” to an international audience. As the exhibition takes place in the Vigeland Museum, many will no doubt also encounter the life and work of Gustav Vigeland for the first time. The permanent monographic presentation of the artist’s career will supply a narrative to the miscellaneous nature of the contemporary survey show, and I will go on to argue that the meeting of the two brings unexpected qualities into view on both sides. In the “9th Norwegian Biennial of Sculpture” the 35 invited artists become entangled with the life and work of Gustav Vigeland, which allows aspects of the Vigeland Museum to appear through the lens of contemporary sculpture.

Inger Wold Lund, Hender trenger hender/ Hands Need Hands, 2017 , Audio tour: 25 min 03 sec / 24 min 51 sec , Read by: Jana Fröberg

Andreas Öhman, AppeaR, 2015 – 2017 , Digital download, 200MB

Eirik Sæther, Reports On a Shy, Humble and Wonderful Human Being, 2016 , Cast bronze, meshed shawl, melted lead types, faux crocodile leather pants, sheep’s wool, rabbit’s fur, welded steel and polyurethane foam; Reports On a Shy, Humble and Wonderful Human Being, 2016 , Cast bronze, customized Issey Miyake pants with ink-jet on silk patches, sheep’s wool, rabbit’s fur, melted lead types, welded steel and polyurethane foam

Eirik Sæther, Reports On a Shy, Humble and Wonderful Human Being, 2016, Cast bronze, melted lead types, ripped shawl, found brass belt, customized Issey Miyake pants, rabbit’s fur, welded steel and polyurethane foam

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Ragna Bley, Empire Prefers Quiet Methods, 2013, Polyurethane, acrylic, Dimensions variable

Ann Cathrin November Høibo & Linn Pedersen, Lots of love, 2017, Beech, sheepskin, brass, parts of gynecologist chair, Stokke Tripp Trapp chair, cotton thread, 158x150x46cm

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Anne Guro Larsmon, A laboratory assemblage of ethnographic components; Species, Tools and Fluid left to cool in the absence of an organized body, 2017, Fused glass, laboratory burette clamps, thermometer clamps, steel plates, steel rods, neon lights, transformers, magnifying glass, Dimensions variable

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Carl Mannov, Fauno_chiamando, 2017, Video loop on flat panel TV, aluminum, plywood, fabric, valchromat, TV mount, ethafoam and plaster replica on dehumidifiers (courtesy of The Vigeland Museum), Dimensions variable

Carl Mannov, Untitled (sleep), 2017, Chalk and egg tempera on stoneware, plywood, book, faux marble foil, acrylic and binders (courtesy of The Vigeland Museum), 120x40x40cm

Carl Mannov, Untitled (sitter), 2017, Chalk and egg tempera on glazed stoneware, gift shop books and visitors stool (courtesy of The Vigeland Museum), Dimensions variable

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Marte Johnslien, Forloren form, 2017, Plaster, iron, aluminum, ceramic, iron oxide, textile, Variable dimensjoner

Snorre Ytterstad, Target Sculpture no. 5, 2014, MDF, steel, Ø 182cm

Stian Eide Kluge, Untruth #01 2017, Ash wood, plexiglass, laminated glass, styrofoam, plastic film, red oak veneer, water colour, bitumen, plastic tape, spray foam, silicone, steel brackets, 170x182x96cm

Stian Eide Kluge, Untruth #02, 2017, Ash wood, Plexiglass, laminated glass, styrofoam, plastic film, red oak veneer, water colour, bitumen, plastic tape, spray foam, silicone, steel brackets, 168x157x123cm

Stian Eide Kluge, Sub-zeroed Large Cube (Effigy) #01, 2016, Laminated glass, silicone, water, milk, oil drum closure, flock, modified freezer, 118x59x68cm

Stian Eide Kluge, Sub-zeroed Large Cube (Effigy) #03, 2016, Laminated glass, silicone, water, milk, oil drum closure, flock, modified freezer, 116x60x67cm

Morten Norbye Halvorsen, Bob 2017, Sound file, loudspeaker installation, approx. 60 min loop

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Daisuke Kosugi, Gate control, pain (clumsy hand sample), 2017, Bamboo, hemp, leather, gauze, Four sculptures on customized stands, each 200x30x30cm

Magnus Pettersen, Untitled (MP1.NO) 2017, Concrete, pigment, iron, 92x210x90cm

Jon Eirik Kopperud, The Stutterer, 2017, 35 mm film transferred to HD digital, 10 min

Ingrid Furre, en neve salt / a handful salt, 2017, Tin, vinamold, epoxy resin, Dimensions variable

Pedro Gómez-Egaña, The Great Learning, 2015, Copper cylinder, microfilament line, galvanised steel, iron, 5x5x3m

Tora Dalseng, city picnic, 2017, Mixed media, Dimensions variable

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Camilla Steinum, Beater, 2017, Bronze, 74x25cm

Camilla Steinum, Dont’t Sleep On, 2017, Wool and metal, 129x173x153cm

Camilla Steinum, Determined Nap, 2017, Wool and metal, 127x183x200cm

Camilla Steinum, Discontent Slumber, 2017, Wool and metal, 128x101x100cm

Camilla Steinum, Beater, 2017, Bronze

Eirik Senje, Oppriktighet / Sincerity, 2017, Tempera, shellac, charcoal, vinyl paint, wax, gesso, plaster, jute, styropor, steel, aluminium, 153x313x5cm

The 9th Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Life and Work, 2017, exhibition view

Gernot Wieland, Marianne Zamecznik & Carla Åhlander, Patterns, 2017, Video, 8 min, stereo sound

Petter Ballo, Whale Tree, 2017, Performances, actions, events, To be announced during the exhibition

Anders Holen, Magnetoceptic Relief, 2017, Cast jesmonite, stainless steel, aluminium, neodymium magnets, epoxy, water, plexiglas, 165cm, Ø 40cm

Hanne Lippard, Mistakes Made, 2016, Digital audio, Lengde: 3’ 50’’

Ronny Faber Dahl, Complementary Margins, 2016, Textile, Series of 4, each 137 x 67cm

Anna Daniell, The Locals, 2017, During the exhibition the artist will collaborate with people from the fifteen districts of Oslo to make fifteen sculptures. The sculptures will be placed in the courtyard as they are completed