The Pulse of Time by Einar Hákonarson will be opened at Kjarvalsstaðir Saturday 17 January at 4 p.m.

The exhibition The Pulse of Time by Einar Hákonarson (b. 1945) will be opened at Reykjavík Art Museum, Kjarvalsstaðir on Saturday 17 January at 4 p.m. The paintings in Einar Hákonarson’s retrospective span the artist’s career for over 50 years from juvenilia and student works until the present year, 2014.
The works have been selected on the principle of enabling visitors to trace the evolution of his art without difficulty; and the organisation and hanging of the exhibition are also intended to facilitate that process. The theme of the show, The Pulse of Time, is also the title of one of the paintings, evoking the artist’s desire to keep his finger on the pulse of time. The exhibition is curated by Ingiberg Magnússon.

Ever since Einar returned to Iceland after art studies at the Valand Academy in Göteborg, Sweden, he has been a prolific artist and shown his work regularly, while also teaching art and contributing to public debate on current affairs and the place of the arts in society.

At Einar Hákonarson’s first one-man show at the National Museum of Iceland in 1968, it was clear that a new tone was being struck in Icelandic art. The human figure had taken its place in the foreground of the works, after a lengthy absence from the canvas.

Hákonarson was a driving force in founding The Icelandic Printmaking Association in 1969 and its first president. Later Hákonarson founded the printmaking department in The National Art School (MHÍ) when he became its director in 1978. He also founded the department of sculpture, which did not exist in Iceland before. He has held various prominent positions in the Icelandic art world, where he has been active in promoting Icelandic art nationally and internationally. Einar Hákonarson was the artistic counselor of Kjarvalsstaðir and Ásmundarsafn , (Reykjavík Art Museum) 1987 – 1988 and a chairman of many exhibition committees. He designed and directed the exhibition of The History of Iceland, on Iceland’s 1100 birthday in 1974. In 1996 Einar Hákonarson built, the first private owned cultural center in Iceland, The Art Center (Listaskálinn in Hveragerði) now The Árnesinga Art Museum.

Einar has always been a prolific artist, he has held over 40 solo exhibitions and participated in numerous exhibitions around the world.

At the same time the exhibition Poetic Colour Palette, from the Kjarval collection will be opened at Kjarvalsstaðir. Jóhannes S. Kjarval occupies a special place in the history of Icelandic culture and art, as one of the country’s most beloved pioneer artists. Kjarval’s subject matter falls into: landscapes, portraits, and fantasies or works of imagination. The exhibition includes also drawings that Kjarval made on transparent plastic or acrylic sheets. These drawings are on view for the first time.