Two curators for the Stockholm Recent Graduates exhibition, Sofia Jonsson and Lauren Johnson, talk us through their process.
Every year, Affordable Art Fair Stockholm boasts an externally curated exhibition of Recent Graduates from art schools around the country. A space where a select group of young standout artists are given the chance to showcase their art to the 1000s of art-loving fair visitors! Together, our curators Lauren and Sofia have carefully selected graduates brimming with talent and potential.
Both Lauren and Sofia curated the fair in 2019, and this year has no doubt been different in process. Read on for their take on what has been different, what are they looking forward to and some of the process of curating an exhibition.
We’re excited! There’s a buzz of electricity from all of us working together, artist, curator, and assistants.
This year’s Recent Graduates will present everything from sculptures, oil paintings to graphic prints. We have purposefully selected artists that works in a range of mediums and use various techniques. We have chosen to work with artists whose work we are personally attracted to, hoping that their works also appeal to Affordable Art Fair’s visitors.
We’ve been preparing for the 2021 fair since 2019, when the last one ended (thanks to covid), so there have been many bends and shifts along the way. Curating the show without in person studio visits was the most challenging. Additionally, it was difficult even making the initial selection of recently graduated art students as many art schools were met with the dilemma of entirely online graduation shows for the first time. Not always easy to manoeuvre but constantly inventive.
We’ve felt many surprises on seeing the artworks in person, rather than images on a screen. It’s like watching Bergman films as an American (I’m from the U.S.) and coming to Sweden for the first time. Your perspective shifts. In-person experience is everything – we can’t wait for you to see it!
Almost all our artists will be on site to represent their work at some point throughout the fair. From the vibrant, hand-tufted textile art of Thilda Olsson and the fabulous bursts of florals from Johan Engqvist, to the industrial and scientific pieces of Nisse Bergman. Please come and speak with them about their pieces and practice, it’s one of the most interesting aspects of the fair!
Sofia Jonsson is an independent curator and producer working within visual and performing arts. Her curatorial practices evolves around the performative and temporal boundaries of the exhibition format itself. In her academic work she has researched acts of framing in curatorial practice, the performative acts of exhibitions and formats in experiencing art.
Lauren Johnson is an independent curator and manager of Elk Glade Ranch in the Rocky Mountains. Lauren approaches curating and ranching as a way to practice cross-cultural understanding while living in harmony with nature and our existence. She begins CuratorLab at Konstfack this Fall.
Discover the exhibition for yourself and meet both the graduates and curators – don’t miss the upcoming Stockholm fair. Find the Recent Graduates exhibition to the right after the entrance, after the partnership bar. It’s the perfect place to view and purchase exciting, breakthrough work and support emerging artistic talent as it debuts to market – expect them to be big names in the future!
Main image: Nisse Bergman, ‘Science Fiction’