Past exhibition
No One Is An Island
05. June – 17. October 2021 kl. 10.00–17.00
Curated with works from the Christen Sveaas Foundation, together with several external loans, this years’ exhibition in Nybruket explores themes of community, collectivity, socio-cultural observations and the rhythm and layering of human existence that has been challenged in the year that’s been.
With a starting point in the newly acquired work from Australian artist, Helen Johnson - a monumental painting that serves as a reminder that community is vital for our sense of collective purpose and wellbeing ‑ this group exhibition journeys through human values, relationships and the domestic dynamic - alluding to John Donne’s No Man Is An Island: Humans do not thrive on their own, they need to connect, to be a part of something bigger.
The distractions of a busy life and the continuum of our daily rhythms are stripped away and we are forced to reassess our core values. Community, human touch, to see and to be seen, longing, loneliness –the human condition and existential questions are laid bare and more pertinent than ever in this time of disconnection and isolation.
With alchemy and resilience days are spent creating ‘new normals’, smaller than before, and mediating this created content through the screen. The walls, objects, real news, fake news, memories, animals and the few people we surround ourselves with, define and contain us more than ever. Domestic angles restrict and jar against the human spirit. Familiarity and repetition soothe us. We long and fear for a time when freedom is restored.
Artist list:
Helen Johnson, Ilya Kabakov, Elliot Hundley, Helen Marten, Alex Da Corte, Grayson Perry, Sverre Bjertnæs, Gina Beaver, Laura Owens og Peter Fischli & David Weiss.
