Anders Sunna, Torne STYX (detail), 2021. Courtesy of Angelika Knäpper Gallery. © Anders Sunna / Bildupphovsrätt 2023.
Anders Sunna, Torne STYX (detail), 2021. Courtesy of Angelika Knäpper Gallery. © Anders Sunna / Bildupphovsrätt 2023.

Press release -

Bildmuseet: Down North / Contemporary Art in the Arctic

On 26 May, Bildmuseet in Sweden opens an exhibition with works by thirty contemporary artists from the Arctic regions of the world, a collaboration with art museums in Iceland and the USA. As a journalist, you are welcome to contact us for a press preview of the exhibition.

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 Arctics. 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 (US), Reggie Burrows Hodges (US), Christopher Carroll (US), Jóhan Martin Christiansen (Faroe Islands), Lauren Fensterstock (US), Gideonsson/Londré (Sweden), Julie Edel Hardenberg (Greenland), Joan Jonas (US), Jessie Kleemann (Greenland), Justin Levesque (US), 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 (US), Hans Rosenström (Finland), Máret Ánne Sara (Norway), Magnús Sigurðarson (Iceland), Andreas Siqueland (Norway), Peter Soriano (US), Anders Sunna (Sweden), Superflex (Denmark), Snæbjörnsdottír/Wilson (Iceland/UK), D’Arcy Wilson (Canada), Arngunnur Ýr (Iceland).

Down North / Contemporary Art in the Arctic runs from 26 May 2023 – 14 January 2024. It is organised by Bildmuseet, Sweden; Portland Museum of Art, US; and Reykjavik Art Museum, Iceland. Curators: Anders Jansson, Jaime DeSimone, and Markús Þór Andrésson.

The exhibition is supported by Eimskip, Region Västerbotten, the Icelandic Climate Fund, Nordic Culture Fund, Nordic Culture Point, and the Embassy of Canada to Sweden.

Press previews from Friday 19 May
Welcome to contact us for press previews and/or interviews. Press images can be downloaded via Bildmuseet’s website.

Exhibition opening on Friday 26 May 17:00–24:00
The exhibition is inaugurated by museum director Katarina Pierre at 19:00. Curator Anders Jansson, Bildmuseet, gives a short introduction together with Jaime DeSimone, and Markús Þór Andrésson. Several of the participating artists will talk about their works in the exhibition at 20:00.

Two more exhibitions will open at Bildmuseet this evening: the master’s degree show I Cut across the Stream / Umeå Academy of Fine Arts and Swedish Picture Book of the Year / The Wound by Emma AdBåge. Also, a live concert with Dreaming Wild, DJs, restaurant and bar until midnight.

Tour with artists and curators on Sunday 28 May 14:00–16:00
Walk-and-talk with artists and curators in the exhibition. Several of the participating artists will talk about their works in conversation with curators Anders Jansson and Jaime DeSimone.

Further information
Anders Jansson, curator of the Down North exhibition
+46 90 786 91 10, anders.jansson@umu.se

Helena Vejbrink, press contact
+46 90 786 90 73, helena.vejbrink@umu.se

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Bildmuseet is one of Sweden’s foremost venues for international contemporary art and visual culture. The exhibitions are produced in collaboration with artists, museums and universities worldwide, and often attract both national and international attention. As a visitor, you are invited to participate in guided tours and creative workshops, listen to artist talks, debates, lectures and live music, watch film screenings and attend other events.


Housed in an acclaimed building at the Umeå Arts Campus, right next to the Umeå Academy of Fine Arts, Umeå Institute of Design and Umeå School of Architecture, Bildmuseet is a part of Umeå University – one of Sweden's largest institutions of higher learning with over 36000 students and 4,000 employees. It is a multifaced university where studies and research within the creative realm make up an important part of the university's cornerstone.

Contacts

Helena Vejbrink

Helena Vejbrink

Communication officer Bildmuseet +46 90 786 9073

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Umeå University is one of Sweden's largest universities with over 37,000 students and 4,300 employees. The university is home to a wide range of education programmes and world-class research in a number of fields. Umeå University was also where the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 was discovered – a revolution in gene-technology that was awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Founded in 1965, Umeå University is characterised by tradition and stability as well as innovation and change. Education and research on a high international level contributes to new knowledge of global importance, inspired, among other things, by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The university houses creative and innovative people that take on societal challenges. Through long-term collaboration with organisations, trade and industry, and other universities, Umeå University continues to develop northern Sweden as a knowledge region.

The international atmosphere at the university and its unified campus encourages academic meetings, an exchange of ideas and interdisciplinary co-operation. The cohesive environment enables a strong sense of community and a dynamic and open culture in which students and staff rejoice in the success of others.

Campus Umeå and Umeå Arts Campus are only a stone's throw away from Umeå town centre and are situated next to one of Sweden's largest and most well-renowned university hospitals. The university also has campuses in the neighbouring towns Skellefteå and Örnsköldsvik.

At Umeå University, you will also find the highly-ranked Umeå Institute of Design, the environmentally certified Umeå School of Business, Economics and Statistics and the only architectural school with an artistic orientation – Umeå School of Architecture. The university also hosts a contemporary art museum Bildmuseet and Umeå's science centre – Curiosum. Umeå University is one of Sweden's five national sports universities and hosts an internationally recognised Arctic Research Centre.

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