TRIOPOLIS - Outsider art from the Dikemark collection
REKREASJON 1.June- 10.October 2024
Curated by Anne Siv Falkenberg Pedersen
Produced by Trafo Kunsthall at Dikemark psychiatric hospitalmuseum 2024
Excerpt from the catalogue text
Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital Museum OUS, established in 1984, is the first psychiatric history museum in Norway. Since 2005, it has been housed in the Bjørkeli hospital pavilion, which opened to patients in 1919.
The museum has an extensive collection of cultural historical objects and a large art collection consisting of around 1500 works created by former patients at the hospital, primarily from the period 1920-1950, before antipsychotic drugs (Chlorpromazine) were introduced into treatment in the early 1950s. The content of the collection is broad and includes drawings, paintings, sculptures and embroidery.
Outsider Art or Art Brut are terms used to describe art created by practitioners outside the usual art sphere, such as people with mental illnesses and/or intellectual disability. Not all patient art can be described as Outsider Art, but the three artists presented in this exhibition can be said to be examples of this by virtue of their autonomy and uniqueness.
Catalogue available.
Photo: ASFP 2024
Design: Pati Passero 2024
WHAT IS MY STORY? Wenche Nilsen & Mon Schjelderup
Curated by Simone Ritter & Anne Siv Falkenberg Pedersen
Produced by Trafo Kunsthall at Dikemark Kunstarena / Galleri Dikemark
4.November 2023- 28.January 2024
The exhibition What is my Story? is a celebration of the bodily skill inherent in the act of creation. This acquired skill arises from the encounter with the sensory and tangible qualities of the material and from the creative action itself. Creative processes redefine the world and can also serve as a foundation for one’s sense of self - they embody both internal and external life. Nilsen and Schjelderup’s embroideries exude a unique and powerful presence that stands in stark contrast to the artists’ life circumstances.
The exhibition is a continuation of the ongoing effort to elevate marginalised artistic practices in Norway. The ambition is to display and bring attention to the art from Dikemark and Trastad Collections/National Center for Outsider Art (Trastad Samlinger / Nasjonalt Senter for Outsider Art) and to situate it in a contemporary context. What is My Story? is a collaboration between Trafo Kunsthall, Trastad Collections / Sør-Troms Museum and Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital Museum (Dikemark Psykiatriske Sykehusmuseum).
Translation by Ella Jahr Nygaard
Both photos Kunstdok/ Tor Simen Ulstein
Catalogue available.
HEINRICH NIKES
11.February - 26.March 2023
The exhibition is a collaboration between two institutions:
Trafo Kunsthall and Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital Museum
Curated by Anne Siv Falkenberg Pedersen
Produced by Trafo Kunsthall.
Trafo Kunsthall is pleased to announce the opening of the exhibition “Heinrich Nikes”. Since 2016, Trafo Kunsthall and Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital Museum (PHS) have been working in close collaboration and produced several exhibitions with the aim of promoting art made by people with mental illnesses.
The exhibition “Heinrich Nikes” represents an important milestone to this ambition. For the first time, the name and identity of a former patient is disclosed, and his artistic work is placed within a larger cultural and art historical context.
The Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital Museum opened in 1984. Since the beginning, it has been devoted to offering new insights into the history of mental illness in Norway. The museum houses an extensive collection of historical artefacts and art. In total, the collection contains some 800 artworks (550 framed works and 250 works of diverse character). These were created by former patients at Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital. The majority of the works date back to the period between 1920-1955, a time prior to the introduction and use of antidepressants and antipsychotics in treatment of psychiatric conditions. The works have been collected and preserved mainly owing to considerable voluntary efforts of representatives at Dikemark PHM. (Museumsforumet på Dikemark).
The exhibition raises important questions about intellectual property rights, privacy protection and the dilemma between an institution’s duty of confidentiality and an artist’s right to professional recognition. As a result of much laborious work, applications of access have now been approved and the work and biography of an intriguing and fascinating artist can finally be exhibited to the public.
The exhibition is supported by the Municipality of Asker, Viken County Municipality, Fargerike Asker, and The Fritt Ord Foundation.
Translation by Ella Jahr Nygaard
Catalogue available
KRØSUS
12.September - 31.October 2021
Curated by Anne Siv Falkenberg Pedersen
Produced by Trafo Kunsthall
An exhibition curated by Trafo Kunsthall in cooperation with Dikemark Psychiatric Hospital Museum. ( Dikemark PHM )
The exhibition was conceived by Trafo Kunsthall, and it is the third time that the two institutions have collaborated to show the excellent and varied collection of art by former patients at Dikemark PHM.
This is the first time an extensive exhibition has been held on the life and work of Krøsus. The exhibition shows some 40 works of his as well as numerous examples of his texts and poetry. An artist such as Krøsus would be easy to define as an Outsider artist. In Norway the art of the mentally ill has been an under-communicated part of our common art history until quite recently – partly because of the stigma attached to the field of psychiatry. In many other countries, Outsider Art is acknowledged, and the artist/ patients are presented with their full biographies. However, this is still impossible in Norway due to the dichotomy between the Copyright Act and data protection laws, which is especially strong concerning medicinal records. Since 2016 Trafo Kunsthall has produced a series of exhibitions which seeks to remedy this. In showing art from the Dikemark collection, we aim to render visible the hitherto largely invisible art history that has been created by the mentally ill and other marginalized groups.
The exhibition is supported by The Fritt Ord Foundation, The Bergesen Foundation, The Norwegian Arts council, the Municipality of Asker and Viken County.
Curated by Anne Siv Falkenberg Pedersen / Trafo Kunsthall. Translation by ASFP & Derek Zinger. Both photos Jens Hamran
Catalogue available.
