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Visual artist and author Lars Elling (b.1966) lives and works in both Oslo and Cape Town. He holds an MA from the Bergen Academy of Fine Arts, has been purchased by several prestigious institutions such as the National Gallery, Trondheim Art Museum, the EU Commission and the Norwegian Arts Council, and has had solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally. Elling’s first novel Fyrstene av Finntjern (2022) (The Princes of Pauper’s Pond, English edition 2026), was brilliantly received and has been translated into several languages. Two years later, he published the critically acclaimed essay book Ved porten til stillhetens skog. En fortelling om vennskap, kunsten og den ulydige hjernen (2024), a portrait biography of his friend, the musician Stian Carstensen.Elling is releasing his second novel concurrent with this exhibition, ‘Nei, dette husker vi’, with the same title and theme. Elling describes this as having two simultaneous thoughts, where the literary and the visual complement and contrast each other. Growing up is a recurring theme, and we see, for instance, an exploration of the years occurring after the very first childhood, after the security of the nuclear family, but before the arrival of the challenges of puberty. A time of innocence and exploration, awaiting the next phase in one’s development. An example is the young boy who leaves his home and tries to make his way between freedoms of choice in companionship and masculinity.
In the triptych ‘Tusenbrødre’ (The School) (2025), we see togetherness, joy of life and sensuousness depicted through the encounter of warm bodies and the cold, dark forest lake. On the one hand, the water is inviting, summery and refreshing, on the other hand one can drown in it. Vitality, spontaneity and the urge to explore are followed by possible danger. We find this duality in several of Elling’s subjects. What is familiar can be followed by a form of displacement in time, place and consciousness, which in turn introduces something unknown and unsafe. It is as if all moods have a counterpart, or a paradox.
Many of the motifs are touched by dreams, memories and premonitions. While Elling's paintings often are described as storytelling with photographic or cinematic elements, he does not see himself as nostalgic. As an artist, Elling stands securely in his own time, but with a gaze towards the future and the past: the individual's orientation in the world. The depicted bodily experiences are universal and eternal, and not linked to a specific person, location, time or event. This also explains the absence of typical time markers, such as fashion or technology, in his work.
Since 2003, Elling has used egg oil tempera, and he paints with a unique blend of precision and weightlessness. The light and landscape of South Africa, where Elling lives and works for much of the year, have influenced his colour choices from heavy, dark greens towards blue and yellow. The motifs, which are partly figurative, partly abstract, lead the viewer in different directions without explaining too much. Seemingly random, fleeting moments are captured and preserved, while offering the experience of observing something crucial, with infinite choices, as if every small step forward can have irreversible outcomes.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Engelsminnegata 17, 4009 Stavanger, Norway, Engelsminnegata 17, 4008 Stavanger, Norge, Stavanger, Norway
