Structure and Order: Draft of Contemporary Art History in Iceland [IV]

Abstract art takes on many forms, one of which is minimalism. The origin may be traced to American artists working in the sixties and soon the influence reached Iceland. Ever since, and today still, artists create works in this spirit. With minimalism, artists make no attempt to represent an outside reality, the work is all there is. They sometimes create a rule, after which the work is structured, the material speaks for itself, simplicity and harmony play an important role.

The exhibition is the fourth in a series of drafts of an Icelandic contemporary art history, based on works from the Reykjavík Art Museum's collection. Works are selected and juxtaposed in a thematic context in an experiment to reflect art history in real time. Previous exhibitions in the series reflected works by artists dealing with material, colour and the human condition (III)

When acquiring artworks for the museum‘s collection, a selection takes place that reflects the diversity of art at any given time. Here, an attempt is made to analyze further the focus points of our time. What characterizes Icelandic art? What are the subjects of artists, methods, materials and challenges?