(Centrum) what is it? Read an interview with the project managers
Hello Peo Olsson and Linda Unnhem, project managers for the Center for Photography in Skåne!
It’s almost time to open the exhibitions in the (Centrum) project that you have been running in Skåne since last year. Tell us about it!
Yes, the first vernissage is on April 19 at Galleri Format in Malmö, followed by an exciting exhibition program at Tjörnedala and in Helsingborg and Kristianstad until June 9. Eight photographers are participating, two at each location, and in several places there will be talks, both with the artists themselves and invited guests, during the exhibition periods. We look forward to many visitors – it will be great opportunities to meet other photography enthusiasts in Skåne and to visit places for art that you may not have visited before!
What has the process been like?
The process has been ongoing during the autumn and spring. In the autumn, we started with inspirational lectures and continued with a couple of workshops regarding presentation and text. During the spring, the meetings have been more concrete and practical about the content of the exhibitions. We have also produced a publication that presents the places and the artists. We asked the artists to depict the place they were assigned, in a collaborative project. These images form a unique framework for the project and complement the artists’ individual works, which are represented by a series of posters in the publication.
Is there a common thread that runs through the artists’ work?
The project’s theme builds on the idea of center and periphery that formed the basis for CFF’s zine series. The projects hook into each other by addressing, in various ways, issues that move somewhere along this axis. They are about everything from the individual and identity to the changing significance of the place over time. Perhaps the connecting thread is shifts along the center-periphery axis?
What do you think the main benefit has been for the participating artists?
Context and collegiality, we believe, are important aspects. The opportunity to discuss and receive feedback during the process. And of course, to do an exhibition and everything that entails. The level of experience varies greatly within the group, so it is also nice to see how colleagues help and support each other.
How did you match the different artists with the places/with each other?
The artists were selected through a jury-judged open call and in connection with this, they were linked together, both with each other and a place. The outcome was based on what they applied with and how the projects could be combined, based on theme and the exhibition space’s conditions. Sometimes they were obvious combinations, and sometimes more unexpected, but which in retrospect have turned out to be very good.
(Centrum) has a connection to a previous project that you ran in Skåne, Periphery. Can you tell us more about why you wanted to continue working on the theme?
Exhibition opportunities are something that is highly requested among CFF’s Skåne members. When we worked with (Periphery), we thought that the form with inspiration, pedagogy and practice was very rewarding and something that was appreciated among the participants. Meeting in a group and having a continuous conversation about your project is very valuable, and therefore we wanted to continue working with that concept. There is also something very concrete about a marked course where everyone in the project moves forward and develops in parallel to meet at a common end point.
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Participating artists in (Centrum) are Linnéa Cramer, Erich Hörtnagl, Axel Lundgren, Alice Millet, Anna Nordquist Andersson, Jens Nordström, Johanna Schartau, Henrik Wejfeldt. The exhibitions take place at Galleri Format, Kristianstad Art Gallery, Projektrum Hjärne and Tjörnedala konsthall. Read more about (Centrum) here.
Photo: Linda Unnhem and Peo Olsson
