Temporary Sculptures

Photogrammetry of icebergs, glacial meltwater

The installation is part of the Arctic Embassy, a series of works that stem from fieldwork conducted around Svalbard and on Icelandic glaciers, engaging playfully with the methods of art and science, touching upon the challenges of climate change communication, and questioning the role of the sublime in the present day.

The Arctic has long served as a symbol for uncharted territory and inspired countless travel journals and adventurous stories. It has been portrayed as endless white, a blank canvas of sorts, the last frontier of freedom awaiting a hero’s discovery. Mapping an unknown is always intertwined with power dynamics and challenges the cultures and well-being of its indigenous inhabitants. While often represented as grandiose, sublime resists on being captured whilst possibly overshadowing more nuanced perspectives. Today, a realm primarily accessible to scientists and polar bear cruises, with ongoing climate warming, new corridors for transportation and opportunities for resource extraction are emerging. The Arctic, so romanticized, sublime, and untouched on one hand, is also exceptionally fragile and vulnerable to climate change on the other.

The Ambassadors thank Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Culture, Estonian Polar Club for their support, and The Arctic Circle and SÍM residencies for the opportunity to work in the Arctic and on glaciers.