Land and a Sense of Place
Mt Kaldbakur - oil on artboard on wood panel (8”x10” x5)
The Energy Zone - The Eastern area of Hrísey is said to be full of energy and is considered to be the second most powerful area in Iceland after Mt. Snæfellsjökull Glacier…
Mt Kaldbakur - oil on artboard on wood panel (8”x10” x5)
“The Energy Zone - The Eastern area of Hrísey is said to be full of energy and is considered to be the second most powerful area in Iceland after Mt. Snæfellsjökull Glacier. The energy is transferred to Hrísey from the stunningly beautiful Mt. Kaldbakur across the fjord. Here you can sit down and enjoy the scenery while inhaling positive and relaxing energy.”
I am drawn to northern landscapes. The vast, rugged, and often stark beauty of the north stirs deep-rooted memories of a land where my ancestors came from.
Growing up on the West Coast of British Columbia, I’ve been fortunate to live on the edge of nature, between the forest and ocean here in North Vancouver. This place, where I’ve lived most of my life, has helped shape who I am and what is important to me. As an artist, I’m inspired by the beauty of nature and my art reflects this, with my colourful flower and nature paintings, and more recently my Forest Tales project. While creating this series, it’s brought me back to my childhood love of fairy-tales and the mythical beauty of the forest and nature.
It’s also re-connected me to my past and I’ve recently travelled back to my mother’s homeland of Norway. Here, where I spent many summers and magical winter holidays as a child, I felt deeply connected to the land, the people and the culture. When I was eighteen I attended art school on a small island along the wild, west coast of Norway. Even at this young age, I valued the beauty and connection I felt with this country and knew I would return one day.
Now, as an adult returning to my ancestral home, I feel this deep connection at a soul level and I realise how strong these ties are… I feel it in my blood and bones, this feeling of “home” and a sense of place through the people and the landscape.
Lande, The Homestead - Then and Now
During my recent travels to Norway, I had a stop-over in Iceland along the way…
Again the awe-inspiring northern landscape spoke to me, urging me to explore this connection and sense of being ‘home’ that, for me, comes through the very land itself.
So, on returning to Vancouver I decided I wanted to explore this theme further by spending time in the north to immerse myself in the land and with the people that live there. I applied and was accepted to a few residencies, but chose the Old School Artist Residence in Hrisey, Iceland. This residence is located on a small island near the arctic circle and is surrounded by beautiful nature… (you can read about my residency here).
The Midnight Sun over Hrisey, Iceland
And so begins my next project - Land and a Sense of Place - and exploring how this feeling of ‘home’ is experienced through the landscape. How does the land shape the people that live there? How are the people and culture an expression of the landscape? What is the importance of the land and environment to a ‘sense of place’ and the feelings of connection to oneself and one’s place in the world?
Hestar meðfram firðinum (Horses Along The Fjord)
In April this year, I’ll be travelling once again to Iceland. This time I’ll spend a month at the Gullkistan Artist Residency in Laugarvatn, Iceland. This residency is located in another quiet remote village by the Laugarvatn Lake (with a view of a volcano!).
More art adventures to come!! Until then, I’ll be quietly working away on paintings and projects in my studio…
66 Degrees North
There’s something special about the northern light at this time of year. Especially during these long summer evenings… everything just glows, bringing out the vivid colours of the majestic landscape….
Hrisey Town at Midnight
It’s 24-hour daylight now in Hrisey, Iceland, and I have the opposite of “S.A.D.” (I’m suffering from G.L.A.D. - Good Light All Day!).
The light in the north is truly beautiful and the sunset just goes on and on and on…
There’s something special about the northern light at this time of year. Especially during these long summer evenings… everything just glows, bringing out the vivid colours of the majestic landscape.
Mountain and Moors at Midnight
When the sun is out, the sea looks cerulean blue. In the evening, the mountains reflect pinks, purples and greens… and the moors become golden.
There’s a celebration as everything comes alive… and the birds seem to go crazy in the never-ending twilight!
It’s hard to know the time of day… There are people here out doing yard work at 3 am! But somehow I’m getting lots of sleep… My days consist of going for hikes across the moors to the cliffs, swimming (in the geothermal pool just down the road), napping, making food or going to a local cafe, writing, reading, and of course painting!
I love the northern landscape. It’s rugged and wild… and I always feel a sense of “home”. Perhaps it’s in my blood…
So this is what I’m exploring - What is the importance of the land and environment to a ‘sense of place’ and the feelings of connection to oneself and one’s place in the world?
I’m getting to know this land. Through the sights and sounds of nature… and the colours, shapes… the feeling of this place.
I brought just a few supplies with me, including some small canvas boards with a limited palette of paints.
I made a time-lapse video of a little painting I made. I’m calling it ‘Wildflower Eruption’, inspired by the wildflowers and flora of Iceland.
Hrísey, Iceland
I’m spending a month here on Hrísey near the arctic circle. It’s a small island in Eyjafjörður (fjord), north Iceland, with approximately 200 people living here. Today I walked around town and checked out the amenities…
I’m spending a month here on Hrísey near the arctic circle. It’s a small island in Eyjafjörður (fjord), north Iceland, with approximately 200 people living here. Today I walked around town and checked out the amenities…
There is a grocery store with basic supplies (but they will also order other items for you by request), a museum, a restaurant and cafe, a guest house, a church, a geo-thermal pool, and of course, the Old School Arthouse, the international artist residency where I’m staying.
Right now the sun sets at 12:30 am and then rises again an hour or so later, so it doesn’t really get dark… despite that, I’m sleeping like a baby! Must be all the fresh air hikes and stress-free living. Soon we’ll have 24 hour sunshine…
It’s so quiet here (except for the birds and howling wind out on the moors!). A perfect place for me to rest and recharge…
An Evening Walk on the Moors
Tomorrow I start art-making!
Arrived! - Settling In And Exploring: Hrisey, Iceland
It’s my first full day here on Hrisey island (called the “Pearl of Eyjafjörður”) for my art residency at the Old School Art House in northern Iceland. I arrived in Akureyri, the closest city (pop. 18,000), and spent my first night there…
Arrived!
Art Adventures in Iceland
It’s my first full day here on Hrisey island (called the “Pearl of Eyjafjörður”) for my art residency at the Old School Art House in northern Iceland. I arrived in Akureyri, the closest city (pop. 18,000), and spent my first night there (sleeping a glorious 12 hours after my long trip!) and planned on making my way to the island yesterday by bus. I discovered, however, that no buses run on Saturdays! Fortunately I had a contact number to call and was able to catch a ride with a local last night. From Akureyri it’s a 30 minute drive and a 15 minute ferry ride to Hrisey .
I unpacked and settled into my room yesterday evening and then (despite the light skies) slept another 10 hours in my comfy bed.
My new home for the next month…
My Humble Abode
Gamli Skoli - Old School Arthouse
Arthouse Front View
I have a private bedroom with shared living-room, kitchen, bathroom, laundry and a studio space. There are three other artists here with me… a film-maker from Belgium and two “sound artists” (electronic) from the US. (They use headphones and it’s very quiet!).
So today I just settled in and went exploring a little…
Wind, Birds and The Fountain of Energy… Exploring the Land
It’s pretty cold here right now (about 5 degrees C) so I bundled up and headed out towards the cliffs. I came to the “Fountain of Energy”, a place to sit and meditate while listening to the sounds of nature… the wind, the sea and the multitude of birds… while receiving the peaceful energy from the mountain Kaldbakur across the fjord.
There are over 40 species of birds on this island, and right now it’s nesting season. A large part of the island is a bird conservation area where eider ducks come every year to nest. The soft eiderdown are humanely gathered every spring after the eggs have hatched (there are no predators on the island).
Although there are a few smaller trees around town (not much taller than me!) most of the land is rocky with small shrubs and wild flowers scattered about, creating pretty bursts of colour and a gentleness in this vast, rugged land.
And the wind!
I love watching the birds soaring around the cliffs in the wind…
Tomorrow I’ll check out the town’s amenities…