The intersection between Art and Architecture is the starting point for the 2024 edition of the Luleå Biennial with the aim to address the drastic changes in the built and natural environments of Norrbotten, the northernmost region of Sweden. The artistic directors Aude Christel Mgba and Bruno Alves de Almeida present On the threshold of 1:1, which will gather artistic positions that shed light on resilient practices and alternatives emerging from contexts of profound transition and transformation. The Luleå Biennial will take place in Luleå, Boden, Kiruna and Messaure between 2 March – 26 May 2024.
Norrbotten, the ancestral land of the indigenous Sámi people, has long been in a state of change caused by processes such as the century-old resource extraction, urban development, environmental degradation, new industries, socio-spatial segregation, and others. These developments, entangled with national and geo-political dynamics, draw ideological legitimacy from the pursuit of the greater ‘good of society’, ‘progress’, and more recently, the imperative of ‘sustainable development’. Yet, they also profoundly shape and scar the landscape, as well as the livelihoods and worldviews of those who inhabit it.
Processes that are often imperceptible to many, assume concrete forms in Norrbotten, materializing in transient grounds, sinking and fleeting cities, disposable settlements, and displaced communities, among others. These occurrences are undeniably palpable and immediate, yet simultaneously not entirely resolved or comprehensible, as if suspended at the scale of 1:1, in-between representation and reality. Which emancipatory alternatives emerge from the threshold of 1:1?
– On the threshold of 1:1 wishes to critically reflect on the current changes in the built environment and social fabric in Norrbotten, both by looking inwards and also by connecting the region to other places and communities around the globe undergoing analogous processes, in order to explore the possibilities that emerge from such states of in-betweenness – say Aude Christel Mgba and Bruno Alves de Almeida.
Luleåbiennalen 2024 presents exhibitions and events in Luleå, Boden, Kiruna and Messaure – both inside and outside traditional exhibition spaces, such as on Luleå’s frozen sea, where the biennial started in 1991.
The biennial will present new works by Daniel de Paula (1987, Brazil), Em’kal Eyongakpa (1981, Cameroons), Fadlabi (1975, Sudan), Jenny Nordmark (1980, Sweden), wiklundwiklund (1963 & 1964, Sweden), Eveliina Sarapää (1976, Finland) in dialogue with other Sámi architects, alongside contributions by additional artists and architects to be announced soon. Learn more about the artists.
The Luleå Biennial is Scandinavia’s oldest art biennial, initiated in 1991 and since 2018 organized by Konstfrämjandet (The People’s Movement for Art Promotion). Luleåbiennalen 2024 is carried out in cooperation and with the support of many actors and contributors in and outside of Norrbotten. The opening of the Luleå Biennial also features a public programme in Kiruna, Luleå and Boden, from 1st to 3rd March 2024, more information will soon be announced.
Learn more about the curatorial statement and the artistic directors.