Fundación MARSO & Akershus Kunstsenter present Forgetfulness is Full of Memories
Javier Barrios, Hanne Friis, Camilla Skibrek, Anders Sletvold Moe

Opening Thursday June 7th, 2018.

“All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man’s life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom.”

(Albert Einstein, Moral Decay 1937)

In a time and age seemingly more defined by harsh categorisations and differentiating rather than the opposite, it seems logical to focus on shared traits – whether in people, nations or contemporary art for that matter. Humans and art are concepts often subject to such acts; yet they may just as easily elude categorisation by means of their multifaceted nature and shared traits.

The exhibition El Olvido está lleno de Memorias presents works by Norwegian artists Javier Barrios, Hanne Friis, Anders Sletvold Moe and Camilla Skibrek. Recurrent in the pieces on display is an attentiveness towards materiality, and thoroughness in the meticulous processes that lie behind their works. Hours and hours of planning and working have been spent facilitating and making these unique artworks: Pieces of wood have been licked for four hours a day; cochenille lice have been collected and used to dye textiles; a number of shades of black have meticulously mixed and blended; and layer upon layer make up large-scale paintings.

There is also a somewhat sober and quiet presence about the pieces. Thus, it is tempting to say that they might represent something Scandinavian, a certain kind of austerity and coolness.

Another aspect recurrent in the exhibition is an exploration and questioning of history, cultural heritage, identity, time as a phenomenon and traces of human actions. The works on display deal with reciprocal impact among people, cultures and nature, albeit on different levels. Thus they open for questions about what influences nature have on people, and opposite; what traces do humans leave behind? How are people’s identities shaped by culture, and in what ways has history influenced individuals, societies and cultures? To what extent do we share the same traits and history – across borders and nation-states?

The exhibition is curated by Rikke Komissar and Monica Holmen, Akershus Kunstsenter Norway.

Thanks to Office for Contemporary Art Norway (OCA) for generous support. “The Forgetfullness is Full of Memories” comes together as part of an ongoing collaboration between Akershus Kunstsenter and MARSO that began in 2016. This marks the second show in Fundación MARSO’s non-profit program.

About the artists

Javier Barrios (b. 1979, lives and works in Oslo, Norway) received his diploma from The Academy of Fine Art, Oslo and from School of Visual Arts in New York. His work has been exhibited in several exhibitions throughout Europe and the US, including Kunstnernes Hus, Trafo Kunsthall, LYNX Gallery, Outlet Gallery, Muskegon Museum of Art, Triumph and Disaster Gallery, Schaufenster Gallery, Rod Bianco Gallery and Galleri K. Barrios attended residencies at ISCP in New York and Galeria MARSO in Mexico City. He is also editor of VECTOR Productions. In 2012 Akershus Kunstsenter presented Javier Barrios and his solo exhibition Black Matter.

javierbarrios.com

Anders Sletvold Moe (b. 1978 in Norway, lives and works in Oslo, Norway) is MFA graduate from Malmö Art Academy, Malmö, Sweden. Sletvold Moe has made a name for himself with abstract and minimalist site-specific projects, often hailing from the modernist tradition with a strict attention to detail. Sletvold Moe has several acclaimed exhibitions in his portfolio. He has showed at Høstutstillingen [the Annual Autumn Exhibition Norway], had a solo exhibition at the Vigeland Museum, and was part of NN-A NN-A NN-A New Norwegian Abstraction shown at the Astrup Fearnely Museum in 2015. Sletvold Moe has done several public art projects, and is represented by Elastic Gallery, Stockholm. In 2016 Akershus Kunstsenter presented Anders Sletvold Moe and his solo exhibition Openings.

anderssletvoldmoe.com

Camilla Skibrek (b. 1984 in Norway, lives and works in Oslo) trained The Mountain School of Arts – Los Angeles, Academy of Fine Arts, Bergen, and the Academy of Fine Arts, Oslo. Skibrek has shown several exhibitions, among others are solo show at Akershus Kunstsenter, Galleri NoPlace, Oslo, Charlottenburg Kunsthall, Sverige, DOX Center for Contemporary Art, Praha, and Tag Team Studio, Bergen. She has received several public stipends, and contributed a commissioned piece at Oslo International Acting Festival.

Camilla Skibrek

Hanne Friis (b. 1972 in Norway, lives and works in Oslo, Norway) graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, Trondheim, Norway. Over the past years she has exhibited extensively across Europe, among exhibtions are duo show Disclosing The Uncanny with Iraqi artist Athar at Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, and solo shows at Kunstnerforbundet, Oslo (2016) and Gustavsberg Konsthall, Gustavsberg, Sweden (2010). Among group shows are Soft Monuments, KODE Art Museum, Bergen (2015); Vi lever på en stjerne, Henie Onstad Kunstsenter (2014); Attention: Craft!,Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm (2014); Tusen tråder, Lillehammer Kunstmuseum (2013); Sculpture Biennial, Vigeland Museum, Oslo (2013). Friis has done several public art projects, among others are Sentralen, Oslo (Sparebankstiftelsen DNB) and NMBU, Ås. Her work is also aquired by National Museum of Art, Design and Architecture, Norway; Oslo municipality collection; KODE Bergen; Nordenfjeldske Museum of Arts and Crafts, Trondheim; Northern Norway Art Museum. Hanne Friis had a solo exhibition at Akershus Kunstsenter in May 2017.

hannefriis.com