Conversation on art, climate, and energy – the way forward towards a green shift and necessary societal transformation. How can art contribute to interdisciplinary collaborations that chart a new course?

On Thursday, January 16, from 18 to 19, Oslo Kunstforening invites you to a conversation between artist Margrethe Kolstad Brekke and energy transition expert Kristin Guldbrandsen Frøysa.

Since 2016, Brekke has had a dialogue with Guldbrandsen Frøysa, who is the Director of Energy at the University of Bergen. They will discuss their collaboration, how art can act as a driver for necessary degrowth, and how researchers can benefit from artistic methods. Both Brekke and Frøysa agree that we now have enough knowledge to take action – come and hear their thoughts and reflections.

Kolstad Brekke is one of the artists featured in the Sparebankstiftelsen DNB Scholarship Exhibition 2024, where she presents the work Solar Maximum Diorama. It is a textile installation that can be understood as a futuristic vision addressing central climate issues, based on the UN's sixth climate report on five future scenarios. In the podcast accompanying the installation, energy director Guldbrandsen Frøysa comments on the motifs in the diorama, engaging in dialogue with Brekke's visual works as a bridge between art and research.

Margrethe Kolstad Brekke lives and works in Rjukan, Telemark. She holds a master's degree from the Bergen Academy of Art and Design and has exhibited at institutions such as Flag-no-flag, Reggio Emilia (2021), Muzeion, Bolzano (2019), Hordaland Kunstsenter, Bergen (2019), Kunstnerforbundet, Oslo (2017), as well as in collaboration with the Arctic Art Institute. Brekke has also developed several interdisciplinary projects, including the Luftballett project (2015-2018) and the Rjukan Solarpunk Academy (2019-).

Kristin Guldbrandsen Frøysa is the Director of Energy at the University of Bergen, where she is responsible for the university's focus on climate and energy transition. Frøysa holds a Dr.scient. degree in applied mathematics from the University of Bergen (1995), and has worked in research at both the University of Bergen and the Institute of Marine Research, as well as in the private sector. Prior to her role as energy director, she worked at Christian Michelsen Research (now NORCE) and led the offshore wind center, FME NORCOWE, for seven years.