Skúlptúr Skúlptúr
Kópavogur Art Museum
2018
Kópavogur Art Museum
2018
curated by Klara Þórhallsdóttir
Manmade — for the meek
[ . . . ]
In the piece ‘Man-made — for the meek’ we see an exotic world, a model of sorts, with various things from diverse materials. The model resembles a place where we can see a miniature landscape which can be visualised on a larger scale. It consists of many small sculptures which refer to nature both in material and form. The model can be viewed as a sort of staged future, where strife and history are behind us and only the remains of an inscrutable culture are left in the sand. The piece also reminds us of a playground convered in sand. Sandboxes were among the first organised playground equipment in public spaces in Germany in the 19th century, based on the ideas of pioneer Friedrich Fröbel. He, more than any othereducational specialists, emphasised the importance of children playing and believed that through creation and play they could gain an interest in their environment and learn to show responsibilty.
Steinunn wonders whether man views nature as their playground, whether we have got carried away in our playing and forgotten the responsibility which comes with being caretakers of the future. It is possible that the education system has succumbed to industrialisation where the breaking down of the components, the uniformity and the submissiveness stifle creative thinking and diversity. The world is made up of many components and our strength lies in seeing how things relate to one another so we can grow into the future.
[ . . . ]
In the piece ‘Man-made — for the meek’ we see an exotic world, a model of sorts, with various things from diverse materials. The model resembles a place where we can see a miniature landscape which can be visualised on a larger scale. It consists of many small sculptures which refer to nature both in material and form. The model can be viewed as a sort of staged future, where strife and history are behind us and only the remains of an inscrutable culture are left in the sand. The piece also reminds us of a playground convered in sand. Sandboxes were among the first organised playground equipment in public spaces in Germany in the 19th century, based on the ideas of pioneer Friedrich Fröbel. He, more than any othereducational specialists, emphasised the importance of children playing and believed that through creation and play they could gain an interest in their environment and learn to show responsibilty.
Steinunn wonders whether man views nature as their playground, whether we have got carried away in our playing and forgotten the responsibility which comes with being caretakers of the future. It is possible that the education system has succumbed to industrialisation where the breaking down of the components, the uniformity and the submissiveness stifle creative thinking and diversity. The world is made up of many components and our strength lies in seeing how things relate to one another so we can grow into the future.
Text by Klara Þórhallsdóttir
