Artists have long been attracted to the Arctic and the portrayal of Northern landscapes and ways of life. During the Romantic period in the first half of the 1800s, the Northern landscapes were viewed as spectacular and sublime. Nature was dramatic and terrifying, linked with cosmic powers and the divine, and ruling over man.

If artists today do not share the romantics’ ideas about the Arctic landscape, the region still lures them north. Nature is equally spectacular now, but simultaneous vulnerable and increasingly subject to human activity.

Northern Sphere at Kunsthall Svalbard presents works from the collection of Nordnorsk Kunstmuseum, ranging from the early 1800s to today. The selection is not meant to be experienced chronologically, but aims rather to capture the spirit of the Arctic, both contextually and conceptually. From different points of departure, the works can be linked to Svalbard’s nature and its diverse history and culture - some through direct references, others through fleeting allusions. 

Exhibition opening Saturday January 21. at 14.00