Dog and Clock, 2015, 19 min.
Burning House, 2015, 01:32 min.
The Pool (Elizabeth Peyton), 2015, 24:37 min.
Guitar Lesson (Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir, Logi Pedro Stefánsson), 2015, 38 min.
Lovers (Ásrún Magnúsdottir and Atli Bollason), 2015, 38 min.
Dinner (Jason Moran and Alicia Hall Moran), 2015, 40:46 min.
The Boat (Stephen Stephensen, Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir and Gyoa
Valtýsdóttir), 2015, 2 hours, 36 min.
Gentleman (Kjartan Sveinsson), 2015, 3 hours, 10 min.
Rich German Children (Ingibjörg Sigurjónsdottir), 2015, 52:46 min.

Hvor mange ganger kan man repetere et bilde, en setning eller en scene før det begynner å bli absurd? Ragnar Kjartanssons verk er ofte inspirert av det klassiske teaterets komedie og tragedie, og kjennetegnes av bruken av ekstrem gjentakelse. Scenes From Western Culture er en serie videoverk som viser fragmenter fra vestlig sivilisasjon. Hver video gjengir et slags tablå som i seg selv kan oppleves som behagelig og vakkert, men når scenen repeteres igjen og igjen, endres oppfatningen.

Scenes from Western Culture, 2015
Dog and Clock, 2015, 19 min.
Burning House, 2015, 01:32 min.
The Pool (Elizabeth Peyton), 2015, 24:37 min.
Guitar Lesson (Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir, Logi Pedro Stefánsson), 2015, 38 min.
Lovers (Ásrún Magnúsdottir and Atli Bollason), 2015, 38 min.
Dinner (Jason Moran and Alicia Hall Moran), 2015, 40:46 min.
The Boat (Stephen Stephensen, Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir and Gyoa
Valtýsdóttir), 2015, 2 hours, 36 min.
Gentleman (Kjartan Sveinsson), 2015, 3 hours, 10 min.
Rich German Children (Ingibjörg Sigurjónsdottir), 2015, 52:46 min.

How many times can one repeat an image, a sentence or a scene before it starts to get absurd? Ragnar Kjartansson’s work is often inspired by the comedy and tragedy of classical theatre, and is characterized by extended use of extreme repetition. Scenes From Western Culture is a series of video works that show fragments of western civilization. Each video reproduces a kind of tableau that in itself can be perceived as comfortable and beautiful, but when the scene is repeated over and over again, our perception changes.

Ragnar Kjartansson (b. 1976) lives and works in Reykjavík. Kjartansson engages multiple artistic mediums, creating video installations, performances, drawings, and paintings that draw upon a myriad historical and cultural references. An underlying pathos and irony connect his works, with each deeply influenced by the comedy and tragedy of classical theater. The artist blurs the distinctions between mediums, approaching his painting practice as performance, likening his films to paintings, and his performances to sculpture. Throughout, Kjartansson conveys an interest in beauty and its banality, and he uses durational, repetitive performance as a form of exploration. 

Major solo shows include exhibitions at the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Reykjavík Art Museum; the Barbican Centre, London; the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Park, Washington D.C.; the Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal; the Palais de Tokyo, Paris; the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York; the Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich; the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; and the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; among others. Kjartansson participated in The Encyclopedic Palace at the Venice Biennale in 2013, Manifesta 10 in St. Petersburg, Russia in 2014, and he represented Iceland at the 2009 Venice Biennale. The artist received the 2019 Ars Fennica Award, and was the recipient of the 2015 Artes Mundi’s Derek Williams Trust Purchase Award, and Performa’s 2011 Malcolm McLaren Award.