Saturday, 7th March at 3 p.m. We warmly welcome you to the opening of the exhibitions. Honest individuals by them Weronika Balcerak and Lukas Bury and Echoing after Ragnar the Wise.

Weronika Balcerak & Lukas Bury
Honest individuals

The exhibition revolves around the long-standing and little-discussed interactions between Poland and Iceland throughout history – which began with trade long before Poles became the largest group of immigrants in Iceland. The artists Weronika Balcerak and Lukas Bury work with media such as embroidery, video and painting, but by combining historical sources with reflections on life in the present moment, they place these complex cultural connections in a new context. The exhibition thus sheds light on how everyday objects, labour and economic ties have influenced Iceland and Poland for almost a century – and paints a picture of a relationship that began long before modern migration and continues to shape both countries to this day.
The curators are Aldís Arnardóttir and Hólmar Hólm.

Lukas Bury (b. 1991) and Weronika Balcerak (b. 1996) form the East Icelandic artist duo. The name has a historical reference to the West Icelanders, who in their time emigrated across the sea and began a new life, and thus raises questions about arriving in a new land, settling down and belonging. In their artistic practice, they undertake visual fieldwork which they communicate through installations, textile works, video and paintings. They build on long-term processes where the processing and the context itself are interwoven, and personal experience meets historical references. Their work is characterised by a considered choice of materials and a connection to place. They focus on how meaning is created through presence, repetition, and shared space.

Ragna the Wise
Echo

In the exhibition, Ragna Fróða invites us into a magical world of patterns, colours, shapes and textures. Ragna's world is at once familiar and foreign, nostalgic and innovative. The starting point for the works in the exhibition is ink drawings, created in a flow state and in direct dialogue between the subconscious and the hand. Through a multi-layered working process, the uninhibited line from the handmade drawing is transformed into digitally embroidered works that appear on the border between the abstract and the figurative. Ragna's work is about the creative process itself – the interplay of colours, textures and narratives inherent in the patterns and symbols of the textile. By combining traditional craftsmanship with contemporary technology, Ragna seeks to expand the boundaries of craft, textile design and fine art.
The curator is Ingunn Fjóla Ingþórsdóttir.

Ragna Fróða (b. 1970) is an artist, curator and teacher. Ragna studied fashion and textile design in Paris from 1992-1995 and then studied at the Textile Department of the School of Visual Arts and Crafts from 1996-1998. She has worked extensively abroad, but for the past fifteen years she has lived alternately in New York, Berlin and Reykjavík, and has been involved in numerous projects related to art, design and culture. For many years, Ragna was Head of the Textile Department at the Reykjavík School of Art and Crafts and Chair of the Textile Society. In recent years, she has been based in New York, where she runs her own studio alongside her work as Executive Director of Edelkoort Inc. and New York Textile Month. She has received various grants for her artistic work and her contribution to the arts and culture. Her works have been exhibited in Iceland, Europe and the United States.

Free admission – see you at Hafnarborg.