Under Dette Lyset / Under This Light (2016)
Six-channel video (two minute loops), dimensions variable
This installation shows an assortment of objects that seem to move endlessly through time in the natural surroundings of the islands of Træna, in the Arctic Circle in Norway. The objects are placed out of context in an environment part wild and part industrial, as a hybrid form of photograph/video, still-life/landscape. Formed from thousands of time-lapse photos, the “object-videos” show the light and shadow movement created by the northern sun over a twenty-four hour period, compressed down to minutes, looping endlessly. With no end and no beginning, they share the strange timelessness of the arctic sun.
The object in each video was picked in collaboration with the people of Træna. Through a series of conversations, each was asked to contribute an artifact to be photographed, something that connected them to the landscape and its history. Each memento was a departure point for memories and stories of individuals, families, houses, and towns in the Nordland region. By being chosen, each object can speak for those whose natural tendency might be to not say much. The videos allow the objects to speak for themselves, to suggest to viewers the stories that might be behind them, and the others that might be shared by many.
Together, these representations speak about Træna as a place more than about any individual. The ancientness of the landscape, the remoteness, the weather, the patterns of life and work in this environment, the food, survival, and community. Each object seems at first to be personal and specific, yet their shared vulnerability to time is communal and universal. The installation becomes, like the people of this region, a balance of intimacy and opacity.
Channels:
Overview, single channels intercut with grid showing all channels
Single channel II: Moa's Stone
All channels, simultaneous (no sound)
All projects