Remember me - Bergen cathedral 01.08.2024 - 26.01.2025

REMEMBER ME consists of two site-specific installations, in the narthex (church vestibule) and in the church room. The materials used for the installation inside the church are wood (juniper), wool, and old, rusty fences. Ten large junipers have been collected from the family's forest area in Sædalen. They have been peeled and dried. These are covered in colored wool and connected with the old fence netting. Each of the trees are then linked through thick "branches" made of surplus wool and hoist string. Nature, its power and vulnerability, is clearly present in the work's form and use of materials. The interaction with, and contrast to, the architecture of the church space is essential.

With the title "Remember me", I speak on behalf of nature. At the same time, the title can appeal to natural longings in us to be appreciated and remembered. It is also a reminder that all life is vulnerable and perishable. "Remember me" is also a quote. The thief on the cross next to Jesus approached Jesus and asked for exactly this.

In the fall of 2024, the work is displayed in Bergen Cathedral. When creating an installation for a church space, it's natural to reflect on the sacred. What does it mean for something to be sacred? And what do I, in the world I live in, hold sacred? Western Christianity has largely advocated an anthropocentric worldview where humans are at the center and hold the greatest value. This contrasts with ecocentrism where nature is at the center. In ecocentrism, nature is attributed intrinsic value and cannot be reduced to its utility for humans. Our perceptions of what is sacred can influence our nature management. In many religions, such as the Sami nature religion, nature is seen as sacred, and living in coexistence with nature instead of exploiting it is fundamental. But also within the church there are ecological movements that focus on this. We know we're living beyond our means and pushing our planet to its limits. But our rationality falls short in the face of the climate and nature crisis. Greed, comfort, and indifference have a hold on us. We need to feel, believe, and love. Nature and art can give us the deep encounters and sensory experiences needed for us to take care of the earth. This work seeks to point out the beauty, vulnerability, and power of nature, perhaps igniting a spark of commitment to the greatest challenge of our time.

Installation in the narthex/church vestibule:
Before you enter the church room and meet the installation unfolding there, you pass the narthex, the place where the visitors according to tradition are to be disarmed. The dramaturgy of “Remember me” starts there. The light falls differently than before. The carpet who crossed the room and showed the way into the church is gone. Instead, you have to pass through a confusing surface where the pattern no longer adds up. Thoughts about the world situation and the anxiety we feel as individuals and as a society form the basis of this work. The narthex, as I see it, provides a response to the eagerness to strengthen our military defence and distance ourselves from what threatens. Here we can lower our guard and meet as fallible human beings.

ART REVIEW by Renate Rivedal (Bergens Tidende 29.09 / 01.10. 2024)

Excerpt, about the main installation in the church room:

Original text in norwegian:
«Men i Øgaard sitt verk er det naturen sjølv ho ser på som heilag. Ved hjelp av gjenbruksmateriale og sin organiske form ber ho fram ei enkel bøn på vegne av naturen og jorda vår. Og det er samanblandinga av rom og verk, av natur og handverk, av det høgreiste og det stillvorne, og det guddommelege i dei små detaljane som rører meg.

Greinene er som grøne hender, som lagar skuggespel på dei massive søylene, før dei varsamt brer seg over delar av trebenkane i hovudskipet.

Øgaard tar naturen inn og skapar ei mektig, religiøs og sober oppleving av det heilage. Det er ei unik oppleving.

Og sjølv om verket kan sjåast frå alle kantar i rommet er det ikkje påtrengande.

Det kviskrar berre «Husk meg».»

English translation:
“But in Øgaard's work, it is nature itself that she sees as sacred. With the help of recycled material and its organic form, she prays a simple prayer on behalf of nature and our earth. And it is the mixture of space and work, of nature and craftsmanship, of the towering and the quiet, and the divinity in the small details that touches me.

The branches are like green hands, making shadows on the massive pillars, before they gently spread over parts of the wooden benches in the nave.

Øgaard takes nature in and creates a powerful, religious and restrained experience of the sacred. It is a unique experience.

And even though the work can be seen from all corners of the room, it is not intrusive.

There are whispers of "Remember me"

Read the full review here:

https://www.bt.no/.../utstillinga-i-bergen-domkirke...

About the work in the narthex (from the Art Review by Renate Rivedal):

Original text in norwegian:
"Det endra golvet og dempa lyset er også med på å trekke merksemda vekk frå veggane rundt. Ved å la radene med malte menn stå meir i skuggen, lyssett installasjonen på det viset også kyrkja sin mannsdominerte og kvinneundertrykkande tradisjon. Slik viser også verket til ei samtid der forandring er i fokus, og eit frampeik til ei ny framtid»

English translation:
“Changing the floor and dimming the light also helps draw attention away from the surrounding walls. By leaving the rows of painted men standing more in the shadows, the installation also highlights the church's male-dominated and women-oppressive tradition. In this way, the work also points to a time where change is in focus, and a sign of a new era”

Read the full review here:
https://www.bt.no/.../utstillinga-i-bergen-domkirke...

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