Peter Ern, Electric Light

Peter Ern
Peter Ern, Electric Light, 2011, image: Peter Bergman

Peter Ern’s solo exhibition “A Place Called Home” displays new, large scale paintings predominantly focused on dry or wintry landscapes which many could argue are devoid of a detectable action or livelihood, as well as others drawing attention to the commonplace, external architectures of Sweden―Soviet-style apartment complexes, tucked away stugas/country houses, kojans/huts in the woods or inner, industrial spaces such as in Ern’s Electric Light, 2011. If Ern’s “A Place Called Home” is approached as a series, Electric Light, 2011 doesn’t follow suit as comfortably as the others, bringing the viewer inside an abandoned space in contrast. In a way, this specific painting―thin rows of synthetic lights struggling to illuminate the emptiness of thick pillars leading to nowhere, mauve and hunter green hints in brushstrokes―adopts Lucretius’ role of the clinamen: the swerving outlier or independent anomaly. Taking Electric Light, 2011 into consideration alone, it is not exceptional, but when placed alongside the others, it provokes.

When considering the previous works of Ern’s From Encounter to M/Från Möte Till M, it appears evident that the artist is intrigued by moments falling before or after an anticipated or unexpected event, or even those set aside for personal reflection or a pause: before entering a hotel where an event may take place (The Hotel, 2004), after anonymous individuals drive through a highway stretch leaving litter scattered midday (Roadside, 2006), a lone vehicle’s headlights illuminating tall pines at night in the foreground (Winternight, 2006) or a childless playground with toys in the sandbox, half-empty cups on a wooden table (The Garden, 2006). Living and working now in Norrtälje, Ern’s talent for magnifying the uninvited, the not quite, too late or too early repeats itself. His paintings employ phantom tones, accentuating some inadequately lit reality of Scandinavia. Coming to terms with distance―between objects, people―when the timing is off; this is Ern’s essence. The painter converts a secretly experienced, drab view to either a possibility awaiting or unfortunately missed. Yet the detached life steers ahead with questionable regard for any unfolding composition.To see the review in context, click here.

Edgar Cleijne & Ellen Gallagher, “Better Dimension”

Edgar Cleijne & Ellen Gallagher
Installation view. Image: Jacquelyn Davis.

Presenting collaborations between Dutch artist Edgar Cleijne and US artist and filmmaker Ellen Gallagher, ‘Better Dimension’ at Stockholm’s Bonniers Konsthall includes experimental works that provide socio-political commentary on US history and race relations from a cosmic, obscure distance. More »

Riga International Biennial of Contemporary Art (RIBOCA1)

Aslan Gaisumov
Aslan Gaisumov, People of No Consequence, 2016.

For the first Riga International Biennial of Contemporary Art, curator Katarina Gregos has chosen to view Latvia as ‘the center of the world,’ where other regions and nationalities become satellites. This is refreshing, for the Baltics have previously been considered to have a peripheral status. More »

Johannes Heldén, “The Exploding Book”

Johannes Heldén
Johannes Heldén, Clouds, 2017.

As one enters the space temporarily designated for Swedish artist and poet Johannes Heldén’s The Exploding Book at Konstakademin’s in Stockholm, one detects that Heldén is receptive to nuance; each creative gesture confirms his dedication to both text and image, expressed with equitable consideration. More »

Malin Gabriella Nordin, “Floating from Within”

Malin Gabriella Nordin, Veil of Dreams, 2017. Image: Gallery Steinsland Berliner.

Stockholm-based artist Malin Gabriella Nordin is one of many Swedish women artists who resort to the basics – or perhaps the old ways, meaning they’re not particularly interested in the digital. More »

“Survival Kit 9”

Andris Eglītis, Laboratory of Poetic Research, 2017. Image: Jacquelyn Davis.

The 9th edition of Survival Kit is orchestrated by a small team of Baltic and Scandinavian curators: Jonatan Habib Engqvist, Solvita Krese and Inga Lāce. All possess a background in organizing independently and within the confines of institutions, which may be their strong point—their fluidity. More »

The 9th Momentum Biennial

Jenna Sutela, Sporulating Paragraph, 2017. Image: Momentum 9.

Momentum 9, taking place in the industrial town of Moss, Norway, is being curated by Ulrika Flink, Ilari Laamanen, Jacob Lillemose, Gunhild Moe, and Jón B.K. Ransu, who together represent the Scandinavian region. With this biennial’s focus on ‘alienation’, the curators joined forces to determine how alien processes and entities are infused in our lives through technological, ecological and social transformations. More »

Klas Eriksson, “Vet din mamma var du e?”

Klas Eriksson
Klas Eriksson, Evidence of Patchwork, 2017. Image: Göteborgs Konsthall.

Swedish artist Klas Eriksson has developed a practice rooted in examining subcultures via works in public spaces and spontaneous performances. With an interest in how power flows and how crowds function, the artist attempts to unpack sociopolitical dynamics using playful tactics. More »

Lovisa Ringborg, “Night Remains”

Lovisa Ringborg
Lovisa Ringborg, Fountain, 2017. Image: Cecilia Hillström Gallery.

In Lovisa Ringborg’s second exhibition at this gallery, the artist upholds the argument that displaying a set of harmonious works can be more potent than a plethora of free-floating entities. More »

Przemek Pyszczek, “1989”

Przemek Pyszczek
Przemek Pyszczek, Public Relief No 6, 2016. Image: Gallery Belenius.

Polish-born, Canadian-raised, Berlin-based artist Przemek Pyszczek displays new works which are primarily sculptural and mixed media, with stints into collage. More »