07.30.06
The Vikings are here!
Went to visit the Viking Moot at Moesgård today. It’s an annual event taking place the last weekend in July to celebrate the day of St. Olaf. In Århus in the Middle Ages and in the Viking Age this day was a fair day and today the tradition has been revived by modern Viking-groups that gather from far and near to recreate the festive market held in these early days.
For us it has almost become a tradition to go there and watch the battle of the warriors, the horse-show and the many stalls. You could call it a major role playing set-up for grown-ups and families. It´s quite authentic looking with the tent camp, the many stalls and people dressed up as Vikings. At the market stalls there is a lot of fine and interesting items made out of iron, wood, leather, silver, wool, amber, glass, willow, and many other materials. When they´re not fighting and exercising their Icelandic horses, the Vikings appear to be skilled craftsmen. They make their costumes, shoes, tents (!) and other equipment themselves – for themselves and for trading!
As the battlefield as well as the marketplace is situated at the most wonderful green glade surrounded by huge trees and next to the sea you simply can’t think of a better place to go for an outing, and if you haven’t brought your own picnic you can always find some goodies to buy. Meals are cooked over an open fire; it smell and taste fantastic. My absolute favourite is the pancake stall; I simply must go and see (taste) one to call it a day!
Today I found this lovely old lady knitting – or rather needling (is that the right expression?) – a white woollen sock. It was so nice to see her, in her Viking outfit, her hands professionally doing what they have probably been doing hundreds of times during a long life. Calm and persistent she made stitch after stitch with her experienced hands.
07.27.06
Art-money
The task is completed, what a pleasant feeling! And here they are: every single art-money is a small but original collage signed with serial number, year of production, my name and signature, and BIAM web address: www.art-money.org on the backside. I´ll pack and send it all to Copenhagen tomorrow. (By the way: You can see all art-money, in details, at Flickr )
Next step
Today and yesterday I have been working all day on my art-money-project. Although I usually love working outdoor at my terrace, I’ve chosen to stay inside the house where the temperature has been reasonable! Not until late afternoon did I go to the seaside to swim! It takes only ten minutes on bike to the sea from here – and at least fifteen or twenty minutes to return, as it’s uphill all the way…
Anyway, high summer heatwave or not: I’m more than half-way with the project now and I´m working very efficiently. Both kids are at their Grandma´s; it leaves me here in my studio working, drinking coffee, listening to the sound of silence and enjoying my own company. I´m comfortably in flow and I’m quite satisfied with the result of my efford so far.
You saw the initial step last week: the basic-pieces I made out of recycled card. Next step has been to glue and sew different bits of faded cloth on each piece of cardboard, to create a background and transfer this feeling of “summer, holiday and plenty of time” into every single piece. I love the atmosphere (who doesn´t) of summer: everything is faded and dry by the sun, when you hang out the laundry it dries within an hour, your hair turn light, your skin tastes of salt of the sea, you find you´ve got sand between your toes, in your clothes and even in your hair after an afternoon at the beach.
That atmosphere I would like to illustrate …and when I returned from Samsø, I went through the content of all my containers and suitcases to find appropriate “stuff and scrap”. I recovered some old postcards in an album I bought long time ago, so long actually I’d forgotten everything about it. What a luck! I realised these postcards would be a perfect interpretation of the idea of both recycling and summer. When I bought them in the first place my intention was to use the front, the picture side, but now I prefer the written side as they all have such beautiful handwritings.
Next step: I add the postcards using a new tool bought in Stockholm: a punch plier and some eyelets. It’s really great equipment for joining materials together! My only regret is that I didn’t buy a larger amount of eyelets at once; I can feel this is going to be a favourite item.
07.20.06
Recycled stuff
I´ve decided the motto for my next projects willl bee: first thing´s first, and as I´m going to partipate in an exhibition of art-money in Copenhagen in August, and as the deadline for sending my 50 pieces is 1. August, I think it must be the right place to start.
I usually use a good, heavy aquarelle paper as the basis, but inspired by the thoroughly sorting-of-waste-at the source-system I’ve just experienced in Swedish with public collecting bins for the organic stuff, the non-organic stuff, the paper, the glass, the plastic etc. I decided to dedicate this batch to recycled materials such as cardboard and cartons I’ve got from the local grocery shop. First I´ve soaked the cartoons in water so I could get the different layers apart from each other (otherwise cartons are too tick I think), then I cut it all in the proper dimensions (12X18cm.) and finally I added a layer of chalk/glue/oil to give the cards a patina to go on with.
I quite like the idea of using recycled material for making art-money, actually the very concept of bank notes is based on the idea of recycling. A note is handed from person to person till it’s worn out or replaced by a new design. Within the next days I will design my art-money, using whatever I have in stock – and whatever I find on my way. The worn and tattered material will be upgraded to a new value as I glue, sew, stamp, number and sign it all. Then I shall select the 50 I want to be exhibited in Øksnehallen, and send it, that’s all!
It´ll take at least a couple of days or probably longer, as I’m also planning to take a trip to Samsø this weekend. In my family we have a summer-tradition to meet and spend some days at my mother’s and Bertel´s place: my brothers with their wives and kids and me and my kids and sometimes more cousins and friends drop by. It’s a happy mixture between a holiday camp, an extended family and a festival – and always very, very cosy, funny and intensive days.
07.19.06
There and back again
Back home again after intensive days in Stockholm with lots of impressions we’ve spend the last two days unpacking, relaxing, catching up on things and simply digesting what we’ve experienced so far.
My mind is almost running amok with ideas for new projects – I hardly know where to begin… so I think I´ll have a cup of tea at the terrace concidering it all. Tonight is the most wonderful quiet and mild evening allthough it´s eleven o´clock! You simply have to stay out and enjoy!
07.14.06
Theather
Yesterday we saw MACBETH at Dramaten. And before attending the evenings play:Sheakspeare´s Mac Beth, we joined a guided tour backstage. It was very interesting to actually stand at the stage, and yes, I can confirm: the floor is really sloping! We were told about the history of acting and theather – most of it we knew before, but it was very interesting anyway. We also saw the storage rooms of dresses, costumes and properties, and heard about the different things to concider concerning lightning, wings and set design. What a complex organism a teather is…
At Mac Beth we lost a lot of the details of course – as it was in Swedish – but we know the story and the plot in major terms, so we could enjoy the play and the very atmosphere anyway.
07.13.06
Skansen
A wonderful open-air museum/miniature Sweden situated in a large park with old houses showing how different people from farmers to aristocrats lived and worked during different areas. Skansen also have a fine zoo featuring northern animals. A nice place to spend an afternoon in Stockholm…
07.08.06
Summertime…
It´s summer in Stockholm – but it could liokely be in Italy as well. Temperature is above 30°C. Our favorite whereabouts are in the shaddow, in some airconditioned museum, in the underground/T-bahn, on the water or in the water…
07.06.06
Happiness…
Yesterday we spend the evening in Gröna Lund after a short visit at the Vasa Museum. We were simply sucked in by t the sounds, the smells and the whole atmosphere. Our feet litterally directed us to the entrance and we decided to enter. It was an quick and easy decision, especially when I realized Sven-Bertil Taube was about to sing some of his fathers songs at an open-air concert the very same evening. What a coinsidence, like recieving an unexpected gift!
We stayed untill closing time. I especially enjoyed the music and my two playmates took a turn trying out all the merry-go-rounds they could possibly get at. Even a dreadful one where you almost fall from a high tower …screaming all way down. Pure fear and pleassure!
I tried one single ride at the mushroom-looking roundabout swing-thing, that was more than enough for me. I prefer to stay at solid ground, if not I get totally dizzy…
