Egill Sæbjörnsson
The Box

Iceland/Germany, 2005, video installation, 26 min

Egill Sæbjörnsson (born 1973) graduated from the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts (now the Icelandic Academy of the Arts) in 1997 and studied at the University of Paris, St. Denis, from 1995 to 1996. Since 1999 he has divided his time between Reykjavík and Berlin. Recent exhibitions in Iceland include a large installation at the National Gallery in 2004, a solo exhibition in Gallery 101 and an exhibition with Magnús Sigurðsson at the Living Art Museum. In 2004, Egill was invited to take part in the international workshop programme at Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin. He has also exhibited widely abroad, most recently in Berlin, Vienna, Skopie, Lubliana and London. www.eaglestuff.net

An ordinary cardboard box sits against the back wall of the space, easily ignored amongst other objects and debris. One could be forgiven for thinking there is no work present until, unexpectedly, the box erupts: animated objects appear to fly from it, across and up the wall – exploding fireworks, dancing musical notes, a leaping, roaring jaguar. Animated trompe l’œil that brings the work to life.

There are slower-moving elements too: footsteps that climb the wall, a mouse which scuttles from the box and appears to hide momentarily in a glass before disappearing off set, and long periods where nothing happens at all. At one point a curtain descends, at another a giant fly circles the room; these animations break the illusion of three-dimensional space by acknowledging the edges of the projection.

The Box is typical of Egill Sæbjörnsson’s work. It combines installation and animation, individual elements of sound and seemingly unrelated objects (both recognisable and abstract), to set up a time-based composition that can leave the viewer dumbfounded, intrigued and bemused.

Sæbjörnsson’s art is a fusion of music, sound, video and installations, in addition to which he often appears himself as part of his exhibition projects. He plays with the boundaries of the taboos associated with language and symbols. His work, always entertaining and humorous, investigates the construction of perception and meaning, seducing the audience into entering and exploring his strange, fantastic world.