Ragnar Kjartansson

Many of the works by the Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson are about friendship, music and drama, with frequent use of repetition. For this project, he has asked two of his artist friends to co-­create a static operatic sculpture and to re­peat a single dramatic moment: A durational per­formance on the Saffainsel on four consecutive days for three hours daily. Kjartansson has drawn a forest cabin, which will stand on the island like the remnant of a set left behind by an itinerant op­eretta company. While the musician Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir plays the piano, Kjartansson and the star comedian Saga Garðarsdóttir will loop the essence of a dramatic scene.

Raised in an artistic family, Kjartansson has played in several bands and has, as a visual artist, masterfully teased with music and theatre. He graduated from art col­lege with, as he calls it, a «sculptural opera». Kjar­tansson’s work has been exhibited widely. Recent solo exhibitions include the Metropolitan Muse­um of Art in New York, the Barbican Art Gallery in London, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington or the Palais de Tokyo in Paris. At the festival, Kjartansson will perform live for the first time in several years. (mvh)