RÚRÍ - Fragile Systems
29. oktober 2016 - 5. februar 2017
Opening on Friday October 28 from 4-6 pm.
The exhibition Fragile Systems is a collection of thought provoking installations by the internationally renowned Icelandic artist Rúrí. The exhibition is created especially for the large showrooms in the North Atlantic House and the two central installations Balance – Unbalanced and Future Cartographty can both be experienced for the first time.
The exhibition Fragile Systems is addressing themes such as balance, relativity, time and the environment. With a series of significant installations, pictures and soundscapes Rúrí is metaphorically and literally challenging our perception of the World.
Endangered Balance
Rúrí sees balance as being a central element in life and in our world in general; that being personally, politically, economically, environmentally or cosmically. A point of view which is addressed in the new and extensive installation Balance – Unbalanced which has been ten years in the making.
By symbolically placing selected everyday items on old fashioned scales Rúrí exhibits imbalances in the way humankind prioritizes our water resources, treats our nature or value human life compared to economy. Metaphorically she is reminding us how important the status of balance is, while at the same time illustrating how endangered our fragile systems are.
Endangered Environment
The other central installation Future Cartography VII touches upon another theme, which is essential to Rúrí’s artistic production; the environment. The work illustrates different coastlines around the world, including a Danish coastline, as they will appear in the future as a consequence of global warming and the rapidly melting Antarctic ice sheet.
With Fragile Systems Rúrí is thus asking inevitable and important questions regarding our being in and organization of the World. Rúrí’s artistic work has always had a political and activist edge, so when she is expressing her consternation for threatened nature and human discord it is also a clear call to action: We need to take another path towards the future than the one we are headed down today.
The exhibition is curated by Christian Schoen.
On the occasion of the exhibition a catalogue has been published, which can be acquired in the reception of the museum.
About Rúrí
Rúrí was born in Iceland I 1951, and has been producing countless performances, installations and art works since the 1970’s. She is praised for her diversity and ability to express herself through different media and thus always renewing and developing her artistic work. In 2003 Rúrí attracted worldwide attention at the Venice Biennale with her piece Archive – Endangered Waters she has exhibited all over the world. The last time she visited Denmark was in 2009, where she participated in the group exhibition RETHINK Contemporary Art & Climate Change at Nikolaj Kunsthal.
Rúrí’s work can be understood as been “glocally” since she is addressing local problems, which however also have global relevance and impact. She has always been an activist artist, and the social and environmental engagement has been an essential and driving force in her artistic productions: “all art is a form of social engagement, but some artists push that aspect of their art more than others”.
For almost four decennia Rúrí has consistently explored the themes time, relativity, cosmos and the environment through her art.
Read more about Rúrí at: www.ruri.is
