Solo exhibition at the ASI Museum, Reykjavik

Investigating a small unit can highlight a diversity within a larger context. The process enables one to examine the grounds for decisions taken in previous years, even centuries ago, and attempt to understand how the effects of those decisions will linger on tomorrow and even centuries later.

Mapping the impermanence revolves around questions regarding points of contact and identity construction. Work in the main gallery looks at dense matter and fine particles. Two points of contact in the work are the Grímsvötn and Eyjafjallajökull icecoverd volcanoes in Iceland. The attraction to these places is traced back to ash from two recent eruptions which broke way through the surface of the glaciers. A group of scientists tracks down the behaviour of the ash cloud, everything is observed and recorded. Layer upon layer of ash is dug through. Work in the Arinstofa, a small gallery on the museum's ground floor, looks at the clash of molten ash and water at a German laborotory, the creation of fake lava.

Other points of contact which formulate parts of the exhibition is Karlsdráttur, Azerbaijan and Hawaii. Azerbaijan, on the Caspian coast got it's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Azerbaijan has experienced massive social and political uprooting and conflict. During my two visits to the country, the omnipresence of the former president's (father of the current one) image and how it has been used in building contemporary Azer self-image caught my attention.

The self image and outward identity of Iceland has long been connected with nature. The traveller, the explorer who values independence above all, is ready to face the forces of nature and all the associated dangers, which might overbear the tourist. Karlsdráttur on Kjölur in the Icelandic interior is a small bay in a secluded area. So far, I have been there twice. The first visit was via a day's hike from Þverbrekknamúli, and the second by boat across the Hvítárvatn lake. When arriving at Karlsdráttur, one is confronted by birch trees, rising low, the last remains of such vegitation in the Kjölur area. These trips give rise to questions regarding Icelandic identity, and how Icelanders have been keen do mirror themselfs in the idea of fantastic nature, often transferring the glory on themselves.

Hawaii rests far out in the Pacific and reminds of Iceland in several ways, with active volcanoes and flowing lava. Reading into the history of the islands' relationship with the United States, one can claim it is in fact a colony. A multifaceted and complicated society. It's history has largely been written by the one to occupy, though later generations of historians are busy investigating and redefining that history. During my time in Hawaii I was aware of the tension, and made attempts to forge a relationship with the islands' history. In the end, that relationship arose through investigations into botany. The Bishop Museum in Honolulu has an extensive collection relating to the colonial history, along with a massive botanical collection. I contacted scientists affiliated with the museum and got acquainted with methodologies and processes designed for observing a fragile ecosystem. I went on feld trips where measurements and documentation of endangered plants is carried out, visiting a site where seeds from endangered species are reintroduced into the environment. Hawaii's acession to the United States has meant unrestrained imports of plant life from various states from mainland North America. Massive imports have meant a dramatic decline in local ecology, making plantlife symbolic for the political relationship between these two nations.

The driving force behind the research process which lead to this exhibition is a desire to locate the glue which binds a society together, to feel the units which constitute the whole. The present is the past and the past becomes the future. From these points of contact I have extracted with me small cultural artifacts and tiny botanical fragments in order to produce a new context and recreate the relationship with memories associated with these places. The investigation is grounded in questions about which factors are most prominent in creating identity, that of individuals and societies, its impermanence and instability.

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Stine Hebert - curator