Issues

With an opening show in a private apartment in Östermalm a new homeless gallery made its entry into the Stockholm art scene over the last month. We spoke to Oscar Carlson, one of the people behind the idea to find out a bit more.

Back in 2007 Oscar Carlson and Johan af Geijerstam bumped into each other at the store Opening Ceremony in New York. They went for a long walk, and it became a thing. They continued their walks when they both lived in London for some years as Oscar studied art and Johan had followed his girlfriend to live and work. They always talked about setting up a gallery. Now, seven years after they first met, they have joined up with architect Julia Eriksson and recently started Issues, a gallery in Stockholm that lacks a fixed address. And with Issues they aim to reach a new audience.

“People seem to have issues with art, like thinking it is an elitist pastime or something they will never ‘understand’. We want to address that, by opening up for new ways of perception,” Oscar says.

Even though the trio all have different backgrounds and work in a range of fields – Johan and Julia are both architects, Oscar is an artist and writer – they are united in their enthusiasm for art. “We entered this project from different doors and naturally found areas of responsibility but hopefully, we will exit through the same door,” he says.

Issues, he explains, is a concept or brand under which they produce art exhibitions. The gallery space is as changeable as the shows. By not having a physical gallery they want to give works of art new means to communicate, through the chosen site, in close communication with the artist.

They still want to do business like other galleries, as well as represent artists and sell their works, in addition to producing non-profit projects.

With artists Celia Hempton, Alec Kronacker, Anna Uddenberg and Oscar Carlson already involved, the unique idea for the first show came when Julia was leaving her old apartment. She wanted to see what her home could be apart from a dwelling place. As she wanted to make a sort of gift to the place and its spirit, she asked Oscar to put on a show of his work there. Oscar, who had previously shown his work in his own apartment, liked the idea. They spoke with Johan and decided that the huge flat on Grevgatan would be a great place for the first Issues exhibition. And it went on from there.

“There are two bags, one full of artists and pieces of art that we want to work with and another full of different kinds of sites. It is a matter of picking and matching,” Oscar explains and adds that they don’t believe in the white cube as something necessary or neutral. In their approach, every exhibited art piece can be free to meet its perfect match and architectonic framework, ”even if it is just a short encounter”.

The choice of venue also has a major influence on what works get shown.

“Putting Jealous Jasmine, the sculpture by Anna Uddenberg in the reception room of a large apartment by Karlaplan will have quite an impact on the viewer, a lot more than if she was placed in a neutral space,” he says. “However, the impact will be different to each viewer who each has a different set of ideas of what that site can be. The choice of site is tricky, since we want to find that balance where the magic happens. The site mustn’t steal the thunder from the art. They should communicate, like in a marriage made in heaven.”

Inspiration for Issues comes from far and wide.

“We like the project sites that Hauser & Wirth are able to do, as well as Art Angel in London. Then I’m thinking of Gregor Schneider’s identical twin houses, Kristoph Büchel at H&W Coppermill,” Oscar says. “Hans-Ulrich Obrist started his career by having a gallery in his kitchen cabinets and Tracy Emin had her famous ‘shop’ with Sara Lucas. There was Mobile Art Productions in Stockholm, but sadly they ended.”

When it comes to the timing of the project, the trio are agreed that the Swedish capital is ripe for such an idea.

“The contemporary art scene in Stockholm feels a bit stagnant. Most institutions and galleries, perhaps also the audience, have found a comfortable zone, which is nice but not so exciting,” he says. “We will not underestimate the audience but challenge them and teach people to trust their eyes and stomach when looking at art.”

The trio are quietly confident that the project will be a commercial as well as an artistic success, but their ambition is to show works created specifically for the site and occasion. But, they also want to show existing works in interesting places – ”such as Meret Oppenheim’s teacup in a swimming pool, or something along those lines”.

A favourite of the Issues gang is young Stockholm artist Anna Uddenberg who was part of their opening show. “Her characters tell us exactly where we are at the moment. Her work is very direct. You’re left bemused, puzzled, happy and upset”.

So, what can they absolutely not imagine exhibiting? We get an answer in two words: ”Ernst Billgren”.

Their plan is to do one project each quarter during the first year, all in different places. After that, they are open to what the future holds. “But the exhibition space won’t be an apartment, that much I can say.”

On the question how they would describe the situation for artists in Sweden at the moment, Oscar concludes that some artists are having a hard time trying to please institutions like Konstnärsnämden, whilst other choose to go commercial and work only with galleries.

“More are choosing the latter but I can’t say either is particularly taken care of.”

For gallery owners, the situation is also a tricky one.

“New money is having a hard time finding its way into the art market. What is PewDiePie spending his money on? It’s not Alfred Bomans… We will try and reach out to these people.”