Kristján Guðmundsson (born 1941,

Snæfellsnes The Snæfellsnes () is a peninsula situated to the west of Borgarfjörður, in western Iceland. The Snæfellsjökull volcano, regarded as one of the symbols of Iceland, can be found in the area. With its height of 1446 m, it is the highest ...

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

) is a contemporary

ic conceptual artist. He started his career as an artist in the 1960s as a member of ''SÚM'' - a group of young artists influenced by then-new currents in conceptual and installation art. He lived in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in the 1970s where he received a Dutch stipend. There he came into more direct contact with the international avant-garde. In 1977, he was one of four Icelanders invited to exhibit in the new-opened

Centre Georges Pompidou The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the Centre national d'art et de culture Georges-Pompidou ( en, National Georges Pompidou Centre of Art and Culture), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English, is a complex building in the Beaubourg area of ...

in Paris, France. He moved back to Iceland in 1979. Kristján's art reflects both prevailing traditions in late 20th century western art in general, and the dominance of abstract and

conceptual art Conceptual art, also referred to as conceptualism, is art in which the concept(s) or idea(s) involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic, technical, and material concerns. Some works of conceptual art, sometimes called insta ...

in the post-war art of Iceland in particular. He has said, "I am trying to work within the field of tension that exists between nothing and something". In 1982 he represented Iceland at the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

. 1993 he was one of three winners of the

Prince Eugen Medal The Prince Eugen Medal ( sv, Prins Eugen-medaljen) is a medal conferred by the King of Sweden for "outstanding artistic achievement". The medal was established in 1945 by the then King of Sweden, Gustaf V, in connection with the eightieth birthd ...

conferred by the King of Sweden. In 2010 he was the first Icelandic winner who got the Swedish

Carnegie Art Award The Carnegie Art Award was a Swedish art award event established in 1998 by Swedish financial group Carnegie Investment Bank to recognize and promote Nordic contemporary painting and artists. With a total prize sum of SEK 2.1m, the Carnegie Art ...

, worth SEK 1,000,000. He got it with his sound-absorbing pieces.

External links

representing gallery
Living people Kristjan Gudmundsson Kristjan Gudmundsson Kristjan Gudmundsson Conceptual artists Installation artists Icelandic contemporary artists Recipients of the Prince Eugen Medal 1941 births {{Europe-artist-stub

See also

References

External links