Costuming, Creating, Questioning – Artistic approaches on the subject of folk dress and tradition
Detail from Láigečála by Márjá Karlsen. Foto: Eva Keller
BYGDA (village) – DANS (dance) – LOVE (love) – PARTY (party) – HANDVERK (handicraft) is written on colorful posters on the outside wall of a dark wooden hut at the Valdres Folkemuseum in Fagernes. The words indicate an exhibition that seems not to be part of the museum's usual collection but presents something unexpected, something exciting, something queer. The Valdres Folkemuseum was the first of eight locations where the works of the six artists Márjá Karlsen, Harald Beharie, Rafiki, Lin Wang, Håvard Kranstad and Christian Blandhoel will be exhibited during the next two years. It will be next on display at Sunnfjord Museum from November 20th, 2023 to March 17th, 2024.
The exhibition Skakke Folkedrakter arises from a conversation about the significance of traditional dress today. What does traditional folk costume mean to you? Different approaches to this question are shown by the artists in Skakke Folkedrakter, and in doing so they draw on a wide variety of media.
Installation view of Bunad Tattoo Shop
by Lin Wang. Foto: Eva Keller
In her three-part installation Bunad Tattoo Shop, the artist Lin Wang combines detailed textile art and refined porcelain craftsmanship. The work consists of an embroidered oriental screen, a painted and glazed porcelain vase with a broken surface and a figure reminiscent of a polar bear whose head and body are covered by a curtain of silk cords. Bunad Tattoo Shop encourages one to think about the different natures of the materials and their process of creation: Soft and hard, round and smooth, stable and fragile surfaces appear artificial yet reminiscent of the human skin and its texture.
The viewers can move around the artwork and observe it from different angles while the size of the installation corresponds to the size of the human body. The artwork evokes associations on topics such as the process of change, the journey and the encounter with old and new habits, traditions and histories. Wang investigates traditional patterns and cultural symbols, as well as the subject of identity against the backdrop of living in different places at the same time.
In Harald Beharie's work Leik, the viewer enters a separate room inside the exhibition space. Therein the artist can be seen on several screens, dancing while directing his gaze at the camera and the viewers. The only sounds to be heard are the ones Beharie makes when his feet hit the floor. The installation feels very intimate: It seems like one is in the same room as Beharie, yet thrown back to one's own body and position as a spectator. The artwork further calls to mind questions and feelings associated with the covering and uncovering of the human body, as the artist’s body is naked except for a headdress. This leads to several questions: What function can head coverings, such as the one that Beharie is wearing, have? How have they been used historically and in the present day to publicly conceal or reveal something about the (socio-cultural) identity of their wearers? Last but not least, Beharie's work deals with the theme of dancing, more precisely with the role that dance plays in the culture of a country and its representation.
The works of the four other artists Márjá Karlsen, Rafiki, Christian Blandhoel and Håvard Kranstad further intervene on the subject of folk tradition. Karlsen's work Láigečála gives an insight into traditional Sámi handicrafts called duodji. With this it draws attention to the preservation of Sámi culture, which was severely repressed during the colonization and accompanying cultural assimilation of the Sámi by Norway. Karlsen uses the technique of weaving as a medium of activism and resistance, thereby demonstrating solidarity with and affection for her Sámi origins. In Alone Together, Like Beads on a String, the artist Rafiki debates the term folk art as a defined category. Questioning how and by whom the category of folk art is determined and implemented is central to this discussion. The artworks problematize the canonization of art and art history from a Western point of view, in which non-Western art has long been disparaged and marginalized as inferior.
Installation view of Koll-Krone by Håvard Kranstad.
Foto: Eva Keller
Further on, the majestic and colorful carpets in Koll Crown, by Håvard Kranstad, become the setting for a narrative motif from Norwegian sculptural history that the artist has adapted in a new interpretative context. Like Harald Beharie, Kranstad takes up the element of headgear, which in the context of Norwegian folk tradition was not only used as a popular indicator of status or origin, but also to label people and to publicly condemn their as to-date inappropriate perceived behavior. Finally, in Subnational Costume & New Folk Music, Christian Blandhoel approaches the topic of outsiderness, gender identity, accessibility to music and experimentation with one's creativity. The artwork is political and expressive; it represents solidarity with minority groups and problematizes social inequalities.
The works are assembled throughout the interior space of the hut without direct order. One can focus on them separately, however as the room is rather small, one can observe them as surrounding settings for each other as well. It is a multicolor exhibition in a homely environment, including a little workshop for visitors to engage in. Light wooden frames that remind of traditional workshop furnishings serve as material to present some of the artworks, such as the textile art of Håvard Kranstad and Rafiki.
Sign for the exhibition at Valdres Folkemuseum.
Foto: Eva Keller
How does Skakke Folkedrakter, with emphasis on the word skakke (skewed, not straight, queer), demonstrate a new approach to the subject of folk costume? How does the artistic implementation go beyond the boundaries of the textile medium and pose a challenge to what one may already think to know about clothes, their history and their wearers?Together, the artworks in Skakke Folkedrakter bring to mind challenging concerns about inclusion, artistic freedom and social and cultural diversity. Uncertainty, openness and accessibility appear as values that play an important role in the design of the exhibition and in the experience of visiting it. Thus, a relationship at eye level as a counter-model to the commonly constructed hierarchical divide between (uninformed) visitors and (informed) artists/curators is created. One may leave the exhibition with the urge of wanting to see more, of engaging in a conversation with the artist or talking with people about how they relate to the bunad, the gákti/gáppte/gaeptie or a folk dress of their own choice.
As it takes place away from the large institutions and visitor crowds, the exhibition provides an opportunity to take a focused look and engage with the artworks individually. The layout is small and manageable in size, but born out of a great commitment and passion that can be felt when experiencing the artworks and the accompanying program.. For example, in the booklet, each artist has given an individual song recommendation to go with their artistic statement. In my view, this is a very personal and touching way to get to know the artists and, while listening, to let one's thoughts wander about the exhibition. Skakke Folkedrakter takes the form of a conversational space that people can be part of over a longer period of time in different places, and that opens up a variety of perspectives.