Artists Grönlund and Nisunen release two art projects at Bergen University
3.3.2008
Art project in dialogue with the architecture of the Student Centre
Public Art Norway has commissioned the two Finnish artists Tommi Grönlund and Petteri Nisunen to create two art projects that will adorn the new Student Centre at the University of Bergen (UiB).
Winner of the competition arranged by Public Art Norway, were Grönlund and Nisunen with the project Daily Sunspot Activity. The artists have collaborated for a number of years on conceptual and site-specific art projects. Their works explore and often relate directly to their surroundings, as seen here in the two new works Daily Sunspot Activity and Convex-concave. The architecture of the Student Centre building bears the signature of Lusparken Arkitekter a/s. The artists have co-operated with the architects and have created works that enter into a profound dialogue with the architecture.
With Daily Sunspot Activity the artists wish to emphasize the few days of sunshine Bergen gets by creating sun markers through the skylights of the Student Centre. Arranged in a grid, 365 round mirrors in the curved roof reflect temporary and ever-changing patterns of light spots inside the Centre. The work is not realised when it is cloudy outside, but celebrates the limited days of sunshine to maximum effect.
Convex-Concave, on the other hand, takes the form of a continuation of the architecture of the Auditorium where the circular convex and concave forms create a play on its bottom surface. As viewers, our perception is challenged by the shadows these forms cast as we wonder whether they curve outwards or inwards.
Grönlund and Nisunen have been represented at the Sao Paulo biennial (2006); the Venice Biennale (2001); and Manifesta (1996); as well as other festivals in Europe and Asia. Their exhibition projects have been shown at Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Kiasma in Helsinki, Henie Onstad Kunstsenter, and Kunstnernes Hus in Oslo, as well as a number of European museums and galleries.
Gallery Kalhama & Piippo Contemporary