Mossutställningar’s first exhibition included over 100 artists (including designers, writers, performers etc) who each made a new work to pay tribute to the artist Yayoi Kusama.
The only prerequisite was that the works incorporated Kusama’s hallmark dot patterns. The tribute lasted for one day only, and included a dot parade by teenagers through the streets of Stockholm’s inner city. In the street where the exhibition was held – Birger Jarlsgatan – all the shop owners, from Gucci to Sandy’s, participated by covering their windows in dots. There were 1500 visitors during the exhibition which lasted for no more than a day.
Touring exhibition starting from Vädurens service flats
In response to an invitation to exhibit in sheltered housing in Stockholm, Sophie Calle chose to show an early work entitled Los Angeles. It is a portrait of sorts of a city and its citizens’ individual belief systems.
Four residents at the sheltered housing apartment complex ‘Väduren’ volunteered and themselves curated how this rather large work should be displayed in their rather small flats, and presented their thoughts around it to guests at a public talk in their private homes.
In addition the residents each took on an agent to execute an investigation of their choice. The agents were students at a nearby art school. Ulla’s agent’s mission was to spy on one of the nurses for a day and a night, both at work at ‘Väduren’ and outside of work. Knut sent his agent to ask passers-by about a monument to Raul Wallenberg, which he himself detested. Bill had a particular loathing for a modernist square and wanted his agent to document the behavioural patterns of its users. Lars-Åke sent his agent to investigate a day-care centre for dogs, with a focus on the dogs’ behaviour upon being left and later picked up by their owners.
All of this material was presented using images and text, and then toured to three sheltered housing projects in Stockholm.
In the site-specific work of the counterfeit monarch Leif Erich Christensen, he takes ironic pleasure in the absurdities of magical power and exotic desires. The adoption of the eclectic quality of a secret society, with make-believe realms of magical ritual, alchemical actions and symbolic absurdities, where form and idea become easily detached and reassembled according to the artist’s own logic, never quite fitting into the context, whatever the context is.
Leif Erich Christensen arrived to Stockholm by boat accompanied by his companions. Before disembarking L E C saluted at Nybroviken to declare his return to the people, and at Skeppsholmen in front of the canons to state his return to military forces of this country that once forced him to exile. The delivery of the cabinet and its installation in the distinguished Building Birger Jarl 18 was carried on shortly after, accompanied by massive security. After the exhibition of the secret cabinet, L E C and his companions was once again forced into exile. Yet another return of the counterfeit monarch can not be excluded.
THE SECRET CABINET (a private room of display and influence) was a colonial product of two unfulfilled intentions. The first, to present the DOUBLE HEADED ALLIES magical politics, the second to coalesce the fetish BLACK DAISY and PHANTOM DADDY SPICE who, when identified with the Counterfeit MONARCH, leads to the magical applications of transformation.
The whole secret cabinet was intended as an influencing machine.
The construction of the cabinet inverts the architectural proportions of the chosen room, showcasing fictional sequels to real historical contexts in which cannons will function as fetish cupboards and symbolic accelerators next to numerous images and objects representing magical trophies, texts and traces of post-alchemical actions.
Leif Erich Christensens work has over the last years centred on historical, sexual, social psychological and military subjects and questions. They have been presented in complex and detailed installations that often mislead interpreters into evasive tales who’s narratives often derives from reality. Leif Erich Christen lives and works in Berlin.
When Mossutställningar was founded a number of thoughts circled in the discussions. We wanted to make Stockholm a more open city, a city that today is characterized by premises left empty and locked awaiting price inflation. Mossutställningar also found a lack of art in public spaces, art that not necessarily is categorized as street art or public decoration. Inspired by art producers such as Creative Time, SKOR and Art Angel, we wanted to work with artist to produce unexpected meetings and situations, for us and the cities citizens.
Collaboration with designers Christian Halleröd and Johannes Svartholm was initiated early on to find a flexible form, within which we could exist and to be used in any given context: in the middle of a square, in a lake, on TV or at a dump. The comission was to find a form that symbolized and our mobility and at the same time admitted our need of a working space. We also wanted their help to mirror this phase of our trials both structurally, conceptually and financially.
The concept that Christan Halleröd and Johannes Svartholm presented consisted of four unique, sculptural modules. Each module represents archetypes from the classic office space, and are shaped with a playful idea of being scattered within the frame of the module. The four pieces are used separate or in formations so as to create variations such as a room, function as room dividers, a stage, complex sculptural structures or labyrinths. The furniture has a strong graphic aesthetics which gives it a solid identity in any context it might be exposed to. The form is made flexible to best suite Mossutställningar’s goal to develop within three years.
Mossutställningar is in the making of becoming an organisation and was founded to practice new methods of working, which often is easier said than done. Meetings about practicalities often consume all the time needed to think freely and create visions. The committee decided to make a programme for itself including reading circles in various fields of interest. The reading circles become focused meetings where we look at theory and exercise our brains. The idea is to allow theory and practice to meet and reflect on Mossutställningar’s work. The reading circle as a form is excellent for further education, as well as for creating space where we can fantasise, be creative and reach wuthering heights.
A programme for the reading circle has taken form under a self-reflective flag and competent leadership:
I. Culture politics from the 1960s to present day, run by Helena Salomonsson, August 2007
II. Organisational theory, run by Simon Goldin, December 2007
III. Public art organisations, their effect on art, art history and working conditions for artists. Run by Claire Doherty, January 2008
Sprong communication commissioned Mossutställningar to present Kultivator’s practice to Stockholm. “När Stureplan blev bonnigt” translates as: “When Sture square became pastoral” and was about the concept of creating ‘ecological growth and economic sustainability’ in the city.
For the occasion Kultivator held a public panel discussion in their especially designed ‘Ranchito’, a seed archive, kitchen and data base all in one. On the panel were ecological farmers and ecological entrepreneurs. Over 80 audience participants took part with their own suggestions on how to make the inner city more ecologically sound. Re-introducing public water fountains and producing artificial biogenetic meat were just two of the proposals put forward.
Mossutställningar is working on implementing some of these proposals and more into the city centre over the next few years.
From Mossutställningars reading circle about culture politics, lead by Helena Salomonson during fall 2007, a text about the recent inquiry has been produced.
The text derives from a quote that was to be read at the governments webpage: ” The directives takes their starting point in that the freedom of culture is best nursed when it is supported by many forces. Culture politics should be about the citizens needs and engagement, culture producers should be able to work under decent circumstances and the culture heritage should be a concern and a civil right for all. The value of culture itself is a cornerstone form the culture politics”
In an attempt the clarify the conceptions, and how they can be applied to the actual climate for non-institutional producers of art and culture, we fragmentize the quote and work our way thru it.
It is Mossutställningars ambition to trigger the debate about the climate for non-institutional producers of art and use the knowledge and experience acquired from the reading circle.
The text has been sent to the Swedish Culture Politics Inquiry and published on their website. Only in Swedish.
In 2006 we brokered a deal with Jones Lang Lasalle to rent a disused office complex in the commercial centre of Stockholm. Nya kontoret (‘The New Office’) was established in 2006 and today comprises 1800 square meters of space,
which houses over 70 artists, producers, actors, writers, designers, photographers and film makers.
Some of Nya kontoret’s residents:
bipic.se / stocktown.com / geist.se / oivviosarkiv.polite.se / danb.se /
wisp.se / dianaorving.com / ensrettet.se / eskils.com / maggiefilmen.se
The ‘society club of elegance’ The Dinner Club led courses teaching proper manners, including how men can be men, and women can be women, in the exquisite villa that houses the Polish Institute. The Dinner Club is a play by swedish performancegroup Poste Restante, and uses the format of a full-scale course in which the guests take active part. The total capacity for the performances was for 400 visitors and we reached a 92% take-up: a huge success for this relatively unexplored format.
Actors: Trifa Abdulla, Frida Beckman, Erik Berg, Malin Buska, Carl D'Ailly and Songbird, Stella D'Ailly, Emanuelle Davin, Kristian Hallberg, Karin Hauptman, Sophie Hellsing, Sofia Johansson, Andreas Jönsson, Lena Kimming, Linn Hilda Lamberg, Alvaro Ovalle, Niklas Ren, Nina Sigurd, Andreas Sjöberg, Hedda Sondén, Stefan Åkesson, Eleonora Ånhammar
Music by Songbird
Produced in collaboration with The Polish Institute
With support from Stockholm stads kulturförvaltning and Stiftelsen Framtidens Kultur
a month will pass till a boat will pick up gelatin again
during the mont from june to july 2009 they will be discarded on a tiny bare rock island hidden beneath the many of Stockholms Skärgård islands
the island sticks out of the water like a butt,
showing no trees, little hair and bears nothing but its bare back and crack boldly
it is an island small enough to be inhaled in one breathe
but to far out to swimm in the cold waters to greet the neighbour
bare of mobilphones, internets, electricity, fotomachines and ice creams
toilets and brandy, boats, rescue plans and eye-candy
gelatin will be a figurine of boredom on this plinth
nothing will remain, nothing will happen
all will happen, and that will be all.
Gelatin is now off the island in safety, and Boring Island will remain in the memory of those who passed by boat, visited the island or read about the project.
Press: (in swedish): http://www.nvp.se/Kultur--Noje/O-blev-konstverk-i-en-manad/
Gelatin on boredom island is supported by Stiftelsen framtidens kultur, Stockholms läns landsting and Värmdö kommun.
The first in a series of conversations exploring the possibilities inherent in radical acts performed and encountered in everyday life. The area of particular interest is the impact parents have on the formation of the political and cultural values of their children. The idea is to stage conversations in public spaces about radicality. The first conversation, held in Stockholm’s classic ‘Café Ritorno’ established in 1949, was between visual artist Love Enqvist and his father Björn Enqvist, the psychotherapist who introduced hypnosis to therapy in Sweden in the sixties.
Our Radical parents is a project by Londonbased artist Marysia Lewandowska in collaboration with Stefan Andersson, produced by Mossutställningar.
Mossutställningar have initiated this network of organisations from Europe that share an affinity for expanding the notion of public art. We have come together to learn from eachother and improve our working methods. The six core partners will together make a comparative study, an exhibition and a symposium and a publication to be presented in Brussels in 2012.
ENPAP core partners:
Baltic Art Center/Visby www.balticartcenter.com
consonni/Bilbao www.consonni.org
Mossutställningar/Stockholm
Situations/Bristol www.situations.org.uk
SKOR - Art and Public Space/Amsterdam www.skor.nl
Vector/Iasi www.periferic.org
ENPAP associated partners:
Rakett/Oslo www.rakett.biz
Marabouparken/Sundbyberg www.marabouparken.se
Museum of Modern Art/Warsawa www.artmuseum.pl
ENPAP has been made possible with grants from the European Commissions Culture Programme, The Foundation for the Culture of the Future, Stockholm Art Council and The Swedish Arts Council
Mossutställningar is a non-profit organisation founded to widen the possibilities for artistic productions outside the traditional institutional framework. We facilitate conditions for art production and are not tied to a specific space. Often in dialogue with other operators within the public sphere, we create projects in Stockholm.
Each project is made for a site- or contextual framework or else directly from an artist’s vision. We provide room for new meetings between artist, audience, works and sites.
To recieve our free mailouts please register under the heading contact details.
Mossutställningars council consists of:
Annica Adsenius, Art educationalist,S:t Eriksgymnasiet
Miriam Bäckström, Artist
Christian Halleröd, Designer CHd
Emma Kjellander, Director and producer Riksteatern
Thomas Rudin, Architect, White Arkitekter
Helena Scragg, Curator Norrköpings Konsthall
Emma Shanley, PR and event
Anna Efrahimsson, stageart producer
The council continously supports the committees work. The council and committee meet annualy.
To recieve a annual membership in Mossutställningar you pay 50 SEK on a yearly basis. It grants you entrance to our annual meeting. Please attach your name and contact details upon payment to PG 38 22 95-4
