Exhibition Hall

Welcome to Østlandsutstillingen 2018 – in Vestfossen for the first time!

Østlandsutstillingen (The Eastern Norway Exhibition) is an annual regional exhibition promoting contemporary art from Norway’s south-eastern counties. Its central principles are that all artists are free to submit their work and these are adjudicated anonymously. The focus of the appointed jury is always on high quality in technical and conceptual realisation.

Østlandsutstillingen is being held this year for the 39th time. It is being shown simultaneously for the first time at two venues: Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium (05.05.–12.08.) and Trafo Kunsthall (09.06.–01.07.). In moving between a variety of locations and venues the exhibition nurtures cooperation, and we would like to express our gratitude to this year’s partners.

We received entries from 727 artists this year – a record number – with a total of 2496 works. This huge interest for the exhibition reflects its relevance in today’s art field. Those artworks that make it to the exhibition itself have to pass a high level of scrutiny. After two rounds of adjudication, with much heated and constructive debate, the jury has approved 78 works from 39 artists, and we greatly look forward to exhibiting them.

This year’s artists are:
Endre Aalrust, Anne Ingeborg Blom Andersskog, Damir Avdagic, Javier Barrios, Patrik Berg, Bjørn Bjarre, Peder Bugge, Petter Buhagen, Sandra Burek, Mattias Cantzler, Anne Marthe Dyvi & Mao Mallona, Per Ellef Eltvedt, Anne-Kari Engelstad, Pete Fleming, Anders Pfeffer Gjengedal, Danuta Haremska, Elin Glærum Haugland, Hilde Hovland Honerud, Kristin Lindberg, Ana Maria Lopez, Solveig Lønseth, Peter Mohall, Yngwill Myhre, Berit Myrvold, Astrid Mørland, Øystein Wyller Odden, Arne Revheim, Hedvig Lien Rytter, Sara Rönnbäck, Karl Ingar Røys, Alf Christian Samuelsen, Verena Scholz & Claudia Ammann, Marit Silsand, Wendy Elvedal Stolp, Øyvind Sørfjordmo, Ingrid Torvund, Ayatgali Tuleubek, Gelawesh Waledkhani, and Anne Cathrine Grieg Wiersholm.

Every year the jury for Østlandsutstillingen is made up of representatives for the artists and the galleries, as well as the Managing Director of Østlandsutstillingen. They contribute both to the quality and the particular character of the exhibition. The following sat on the jury for 2018: Edith Spira (Vestfold), Anna Sigmond Gudmundsdottir (Oppland), Sverre Gullesen (Oslo), Lars-Andreas T. Kristiansen (Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium), Anne Siv Falkenberg Pedersen (Trafo Kunsthall), and Martina Kaufmann (ØU).

The vitality of Østlandsutstillingen relies on the continuing interest of artists, localities, the visiting public and the wider art field. We would like to express our thanks to all the artists who apply, subjecting themselves to an adjudication process that results in only a fraction of entrants being exhibited. We are also very grateful to Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium and Trafo Kunsthall for their cooperation so far.

We also owe a debt of gratitude to the county councils of Akershus, Buskerud, Hedmark, Oppland, Oslo, Vestfold, and Østfold, which, through their support of the Eastern Norway County Network, afford us financial and institutional backing.

We are looking forward now to working with this year’s artists and we thank them for the confidence they have placed in us.

Enjoy the exhibition!

 _

Installation photos: Nina Ansten