On the occasion of the 300th anniversary of Arendal city, Bomuldsfabriken (The Cotton Factory) invited 11 visual artists to perform site-specific works that engage in dialogue with Arendal’s history. The exhibition runs through 7 January 2024. Learn more about the Norwegian cotton factory – one of the best art exhibition halls outside the capital.
Bomuldsfabriken Kunsthall, located next to the idyllic Langsæ lake, houses a two-storey exhibition space of a total of 1,200 square meters.
The anniversary exhibition shows a wide range of approaches, in which 11 visual artists process specific events in Arendal’s history. The curatorial starting point emphasizes events or places that have shaped the city’s identity, including the city status Arendal gained in 1723.
Revealing new aspects
The artists had no institutional affiliation or obligation and could therefore move across the fragile bridge between past and future with fiction and the subjective approach of dreams. The project has the potential to reveal new aspects or shed light on other, under-communicated political themes connected to Arendal’s history and neighboring areas’ ecology and social relations.
The exhibition is a collaboration between Bomuldsfabriken kunsthall and KUBEN Aust-Agder museum and archive, which has given the artists access to archive material and expertise from the professional staff at the institution. The exhibition shows a wide range of media such as textiles, sculpture, photography, painting, installation, film and site-specific processing of space and architecture.
Participating artists
Regien Cox, Jan Freuchen, Gunnhilde Høyer, Jonas Høgli Major, Sigurd Tenningen, Mirjam Raen Thomassen, Christina Leithe H, Anders Sletvold Moe, Per Kristian Nygaard, Birgitte Sigmundstad and Astrid Runde Saxegaard.
Bomuldsfabriken Kunstall is Southern Norway’s largest location for contemporary art with changing exhibitions and a permanent art collection with works by Norway’s leading artists. The former textile factory from 1898 is located in lovely surroundings next to the Langsæ lake and is within walking distance (1,5 km) from the town center.
The ground floor is used for temporary exhibitions. The 1st floor contains the gallery’s own, permanent, collection.
Norwegian Cotton Factory – One of the Best Art Exhibition Halls Outside the Capital, written by Tor Kjolberg.
Feature image (on top) © Wikipedia.
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