+46 8 660 43 53
Open: Tue-Fri 12-5pm, Sat 12-4pm

Fredsgatan 12, 111 52 Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
Open: Tue-Fri 12-5pm, Sat 12-4pm

Visit    

Artist: Helene Billgren

Galleri Magnus Karlsson presents Helene Billgren's second solo exhibition at the gallery. Polka shows new drawings, collages, sculptures and paintings.

In her new works, Helene Billgren has reused and processed previous material. Older images and discarded print proofs are given new life in collages, paintings and sculptures. Fragments from previous motifs become backgrounds and abstract elements in new contexts. The thin paper of the drawings is folded and crumpled into new shapes that take up space in the room. It is a permissive and joyful way of working where Billgren embraces the unexpected and elusive part of the process.

Your initials HB reappear in several of your works. The signature seems to have become part of the motif itself. Can you tell us something about it?

Using my initials is like inserting myself into the work. I can give the letters different expressions, such as in the work Self Portrait, where one part of the B has come off and turned into a smile. It's also a bit about fashion as I'm still interested in Gucci.

Tell us more about your interest in Gucci.

I have always been interested in clothes and have made a lot of clothing over the years. Privately, I have never cared about brands, but rather been inspired and then created my own garment. The Gucci world is so strange and the absurdity attracts me. Preferably, I want my works to have some of that craziness about them.

What do you want your art to convey to a viewer?

I'm probably looking to convey positive feelings, even if the basis of the work is based on something more dark.

Can you tell us a little about the materials you work with and why you chose them?

The materials for this exhibition are really only made of things I have made before. I have painted on old paintings and I have used my drawings from the past and given them new shapes and a second chance. I have also taken the liberty of using copies of details from some works. One of the faces became a favorite.

It feels very organic and playful. Do you have a clear vision, or is the result a surprise even to you?

I don't have a picture in my head of how it will be when I start. I follow what I see. What's important is if I get the feeling of "oh, what did I do now" and that the end result has an ambivalence of pretty/ugly and makes my heart skip a beat. Then I feel satisfied.

You said at one point that you didn't like the white paper or canvas. Wouldn't it be liberating to start over from scratch?

My way of working has always been with the help of the eyes. I like to have something to relate to and have a harder time just coming up with something without the physical surrounding. I've always worked with what is nearby. That's why I collect a lot. For example, I have benefited greatly from all the print proofs.

You have previously mentioned some other artists who inspired you; Goya, Sven X:et Ericson, Bror Hjorth and others. But I have also understood that it is often specific works that you look at. Can you describe this?

That's exactly how it is. Even though I admire an entire artistry, I can find one image that just sticks with me. It could be a way of describing a fir forest as in a drawing by H.C. Andersen or a painting of Sven X:et Erixson where the river and the mountains and the colour make me want to paint just that. My "depicting" extends to approximately.

You often mention artists from the history, but what in the present day inspires you?

If I have to name something in the present that can give me energy, it is fashion. There I can get ideas for works as objects and find details that I can use. For example, I have made chains for various works. I call them Gucci.

Why did you choose the title Polka?

Polka sounds to me like something that jumps, it's quite similar to the word "polkagris" (a Swedish candy), a bit old-fashioned, and something with colour. When I saw that my twisted papers were made just like that, I was absolutely certain that the exhibition would be called Polka. I also like the way the word looks and sounds.

Dalí apparently said: "Don't be afraid of perfection, you will never reach it". What is your relationship to perfection?

Perfection for me is when I can look at a work I've done and I'm not annoyed with anything, even if there are elements that are ugly, and there always are. That's how I want it.