Different techniques, voices, temperaments, and different ways of seeing the world.
Some works move toward the quiet and reserved, as experienced in Terje Resell, where the contemplative comes forward. In Helle Kaarem, Geir Harald Samuelsen, and Hanne-May Scheen, the brightness and materiality of the pigments are clear. Here one finds the painterly in motion, where layers of color build up spaces and moods that lie somewhere between the recognizable and the open. Others carry something more concrete and organic, as in the works of Danuta Haremska and Ingela Grov, where nature seems to grow before our eyes. In Roald Sivertsen, one encounters clearly figurative motifs that stimulate memories and carry knowledge from classical training in Florence. Monochromes made from color pigments from Hovedøya are found in Espen Brændsrød's works. In Thomas Knarvik, we meet the brutal Atlantic Ocean in paperwork, while Christine Istad explores the technical and visual effects of light in her photographs.
“This exhibition encompasses both the presence of nature and the abstract gaze. And the memories from objects, from what grows and lives in nature”
– Gallery owner Astrid Hilde Semmingsen.
The interest in abstract painting has grown significantly, as has the interest in timeconsuming, classical figurative painting. Perhaps that is part of the reason this exhibition feels so right now. In a time when much happens on screens, and the gaze is constantly drawn to the quick and fleeting. There is something comforting and almost exclusive about standing in front of a work of art that has taken time.
Something solid and intelligent. Something that is made by hand, and to last. Something that bears the imprint of choices, doubt, experience, and physical work. Several of the artists in the gallery share exactly this; a deep interest in materials, pigments, craftsmanship, and the slow language art can be. The artists each tell their own story. When these works find their way into a collection or a home, they can also
become part of your own. Because the expressions are many. Enough to reflect on different lives, different spaces, and different people. Here are works that open spaces, create calm, and give new perspectives on the places where we live our lives.
Galleri Semmingsen also participates during Oslo Art Weekend with its own events:
On Friday, May 29, the public is invited to an artist panel from 4:00–5:00 PM, and on Saturday, May 30, coffee and buns are served in the gallery from 11:00 AM–12:00 PM.