The Art Bystander

In this episode of The Art Bystander, our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar meets with Ashik and Koshik Zaman.

They are brothers and founders of C-Print. C-print started as a non-commercial initiative with the objective of popularizing contemporary art and highlighting diversity in artistic practices. Initially an online publication with a very active and daily presence on social media, it later over the years has come to inform a nomadic exhibition platform where a number of curated exhibitions are carried out each year. 

We talk about their background and deep engagement in the art industry but also about the latest exhibition they curate, called YOU WERE BIGGER THAN THE SKY, YOU WERE MORE THAN JUST A SHORT TIME, featuring artists Sally J Han, Nam Kim, Sahana Ramakrishnan, Ming Wang, Caroline Wong, Justin Yoon and Rachel Youn.

Belenius, Stockholm, Sweden Exhibition dates: March 16 - April 15, 2023

"As curators, we’ve had a long-standing love and interest for figurative painting that we have been monitoring since coming into art. A resurgence of contemporary figurative painting has been concerning the international art world since the last decade with a previously unprecedented spotlight on the work and everyday narratives of BIPOC and queer painters. This current focus in art, however, isn’t properly reflected and represented in the art scene of Sweden just yet, and this exhibition is an act of impacting that change and having that conversation.

”The title You Were Bigger Than the Sky, You Were More Than Just A Short Time is a title that both is a nod to the moment the figurative painting is having and enjoying and one that personally also references our trajectory and very first exhibition almost a decade ago about fleeting moments and joie de vivre; Yesterday We Wanted to Be the Sky (words that were then inspired by a Cat Power song. The new title is extracted from Taylor Swift's new album).

”Thematically and in the selection of the paintings, the exhibition will emphasize longing, lust, love and reverie and possibly have an air of coming of age in some parts. Some of those angles are sought to be a common denominator between the artworks and at the core we hope to present an exhibition that feels fresh and novel, in particular for the Stockholm audience.”

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar talks with artist Brittney Leanne Williams and gallerist Katharine Kostyál.

Brittney Leeanne Williams (b. 1990, Pasadena, CA) transforms Southern California vistas into what she calls “emotional landscapes: representations of psychological states, memories, and emotional ties,” often staging a red, bent figure in tableaux where the natural world and architecture blend and reflect each other. Williams’ female forms become conduits for her exploration of feminine and Black identities.

Today she lives and works in Chicago, IL and her work has recently been exhibited at Alexander Berggruen, New York, NY; The Hole, New York, NY; Zevitas Marcus, Los Angeles, CA; Monique Meloche, Chicago, IL; Mamoth, London, UK; Carl Kostyál, Milan, IT and Stockholm, SE

Katharine Kostyál is a curator, director, and dealer running the renowned art gallery Carl Kostyál founded by her husband. 

Carl Kostyál opened his eponymous gallery at no. 12A Savile Row, London W1 in 2010 after a decade of private dealing and advising. He launched his first Stockholm space, Isbrytaren, at Igeldammsgatan 20, Stockholm in 2013 and in 2016 moved to the former German Embassy at Artellerigatan.

In May 2021 the gallery opened a new exhibition space, Hospitalet, in the 18th century mental asylum formerly known as Danvikens Hospital in Nacka, Stockholm, in collaboration with Gullringsbo Konstsamling.

In addition to the London and Stockholm programme, Kostyál commissions artist projects at his home in Milan. The gallery regularly stages offsite exhibitions in the UK and Sweden. It runs invitational artist residency programmes at Masseria Fontana di Vite, Matera and, in collaboration with artist Canyon Castator, at Mohilef Studios, Los Angeles. Each summer Kostyál hosts an invitational Draw Jam in the south of Italy.

Stora Sundby is one of Sweden’s most beautiful castles and was completed in 1848, now boasting four large towers symbolising the seasons, 12 smaller turrets for the months, 52 rooms for the weeks of the year, and 365 windows - one for each day in the calendar. Today, Stora Sundby is the home of Mauritz and Ida-Sofia Klingspor, and the estate has been in the Klinsgspor family since 1888. The preservation of cultural and historical assets is of great importance in the management of the estate.

In addition to maintaining the castle and its accompanying buildings, they work actively with nature conservation and gamekeeping to promote a richly diversified flora and fauna.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar talks with LA-based Swedish art dealer Carl Larsson about how to do art business. Larsson is not only an acclaimed art advisor running one of the most inspiring art accounts on Instagram The Art Reporter — but he's also a very nice and humble guy. Talking points are:

• Running an art dealership for three generations.
• Helping Tim ”Avicii” Bergling build his art collection.
• The difference between Scandinavian and international collectors.
• How to build a presence on social media.
• A roundup of our favourite art events in 2022, and what we're looking forward to in 2023.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar talks about the hyped Coulisse Gallery with owners Filip Zieciak and Jeanette Gunnarsson. We’re also guested by Hank Grüner, who debuts his shamanistic art at the gallery on November 4. 

If the last episode was about running a gallery for 30-plus years, this conversation is about setting up a new space and how to build relevance. In this episode of KONST, the host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar meets with Filip Zieciak, founder of the much-hyped Coulisse Gallery. They are joined by Jeanette Gunnarsson, a freelance curator running the gallery with Filip, and Hank Grüner, an artist who will soon have his first solo show in Stockholm.

Coulisse Gallery focuses on presenting young, cutting-edge artists and designers, from Scandinavia and beyond. With a collaborative approach at its core, the gallery aims to bring a vibrant new energy to the Stockholm art scene, connecting artists and creatives from different disciplines who have common visual and conceptual threads in their practices. Coulisse Gallery is run by founder Filip Zieciak together with freelance curator Jeanette Gunnarsson. Filip is a Konstfack graduate, having previously worked as a furniture and set designer and architect in the Netherlands and Sweden. Jeanette previously worked as a freelance curator with various galleries in London and New York before moving to Stockholm at the end of 2021. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today's episode, our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar is joined by Marina Schiptjenko, art gallery legend, pop star and actor. 

Marina Schiptjenko was born in 1965 in Malmö, Sweden. In 1986 she moved to Stockholm to study comparative literature and theatre at Stockholm University. Parallel to her studies she worked for Swedish Radio, hosting her own program series on electronic music and related topics.

In 1988 she started working as a director at a gallery focusing on constructivist art. After completing her studies, she was recruited by Ciléne Andréhn to Arton A, a contemporary art gallery in Stockholm. After a brief period of working together, they decided to open their own gallery; Andréhn-Schiptjenko Gallery was founded in 1991. Since its inception, Andréhn-Schiptjenko has consistently been committed to working in an international arena and to the long-term representation of emerging and established contemporary artists from all over the world working with painting, sculpture, photography, film and digital media as well as installation-based and site-specific work. The gallery is located in Stockholm and Paris.

With a profound interest in the exhibition as form, the gallery has presented shows that have become seminal, successfully launching the careers of Scandinavian artists such as Cajsa von Zeipel, Gunnel Wåhlstrand, Annika von Hausswolff and Matts Leiderstam, and giving artists such as Uta Barth, Cecilia Bengolea, José León Cerrillo, Martín Soto Climent, Ridley Howard, Tony Matelli, and Xavier Veilhan their first European or Scandinavian one-person exhibition. In recent years the gallery has also exhibited work by deceased artists such as Francesca Woodman and Siri Derkert, successfully renewing critical and public interest in their work.

Over the years, Marina Schiptjenko has lectured on contemporary art and music in the digital age, invited by a slew of Swedish companies and universities. For six years, she was chairperson for the Swedish Gallery Association and has been on the board of the Friends of the Moderna Museet in Stockholm. She has been a lecturer at the Umeå Academy of Fine Arts and served as an examiner at the School of Photography at Gothenburg University and the University College of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm. She has often served as a jury member in contexts such as music, literature, design and art. She also worked as a master of ceremonies at several award ceremonies in the field of music, architecture and design.

Fun facts:

Marina has played the keyboard in different pop groups since 1980, the most famous one was Bodies Without Organs with Alexander Bard.

She acted in the Palm d’Or winner The Square alongside Claes Bang in 2017. They have continued the collaboration and are now making music together

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Saskia Neuman Gallery represents Nordic as well as internationally based artists. The exhibition program reflects a strong focus on early and mid-career artists, often previously not exhibited in Sweden’s commercial gallery sphere. In addition, the gallery aims to host a variety of happenings, including talks, performances and other events.

Prior to opening the gallery Saskia Neuman held the position of CEO of Market Art Fair. Saskia was previously the Director of the Absolut Art Award (The Absolut Company) for seven years. During her career she has worked at neugerriemschneider gallery, KW Institute of Contemporary Art, Berlin, and the Venice Biennale, 2009. She is a monthly contributing writer to Vogue Scandinavia and contributed to publications including The New Era, Scandinavian Mind, Artlover and The Forumist, along with having written for Monocle, LOFT Magazine, 032c, Honoré Magazine and Berlin Art Journal in the past.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar sits down with Jerry Gogosian to speak on her art meme page @jerrygogosian, and the general state of the art industry. Jerry Gogosian is jet setting blonde who loves collecting expensive blue chip art, outbidding her enemies at auction, and working remotely from St. Tropez in the summer and Gstaad in the winter. 

Jerry Gogosian is jet setting blonde who loves collecting expensive blue-chip art, outbidding her enemies at auction, and working remotely from St. Tropez in the summer and Gstaad in the winter. Jerry is also a frequent visitor to all the world's most important art fairs where she rubs shoulders with and goes under the skin of industry insiders.

If you want to learn more about Jerry, read three of her most recent articles on The Persistence of Beauty, Venice Biennale 2022, and Millionaire’s Mall.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, our host Roland-Philippe Kretzschmar meets with Jonas Kleerup and Edin Kjellvertz. We discuss:

• The intersection of art and design.
• Have the (white cube) galleries outplayed their role?
• The new art and design fair and platform Cream.

Jonas Kleerup is an art consultant and advisor based in Stockholm. He works mainly with larger corporate clients like Hufvudstaden, The Absolut Company, Electrolux, NCC, Björn Axén and many others. Projects include everything from curating shows, and developing strategies concerning art to acquisitions and developing collections of contemporary art. He also works with a few selected private clients with building collections. Previously he ran a gallery under his own name before switching over to consulting and advising.

Ten years ago, Edin Kjellvertz started Dusty Deco together with his wife Lina; one of Sweden's most stylish and eclectic vintage stores with carefully selected design furniture, interior accessories and art that attracted buyers from all over the world. By the turn of 2020, they closed down their shop operations and moved to Mallorca to focus on the family but also build their own brand with their own design. The showroom in Palma is a mix of their own collection, vintage pieces and art the couple collected.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today’s episode, we give our listeners an ultimate guide to Stockholm Art Week 2022, taking place April 27 - May 1.

Joanna Sundström joins as co-host. She is a central figure in the world of Scandinavian art, as the founder of Stockholm Art Week and advisor to galleries, curators and collectors.

Stockholm Art Week is a platform showcasing leading Nordic art fairs alongside many of Stockholm’s prominent museums, institutions, and art spaces that will arrange special programs, events, and pop-up exhibitions throughout the duration of the week.

This episode is also guested by Sylvia Rynell, Marketing Director at Wetterling Gallery, one of the Swedish capital's most iconic art galleries.

Also joining us is Sara Berner Bengtsson, Director of Market Art Fair, the leading contemporary art fair in the Nordic region Initiated in 2006 by galleries representing the Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today’s episode, Lina Aastrup joins as co-host. She is a curator and writer with a particular interest in contemporary photography and New Media Art that deals with political and environmental issues of our time. She recently finalised her MA thesis where she investigated the intersection of medium-specific qualities of XR and its potential for disruptive art experiences.

We discuss:

• Disruption of the intersection between art and academia
• Digitalisation of art and the role of Extended Reality (XR)
• Political storytelling in the intersection between art and technology

This episode’s special guest is Solenne Tadros, a Jordanian Palestinian creative technologist & artist. She has a Design and Technology degree from Parsons School of Design. Solenne is a storyteller whose works reflect on social, political, and environmental matters. Her VR work has been exhibited in film festivals & exhibitions and featured in magazines like Vogue US, Vogue Espanìa, and many more.

Solenne Tradros will exhibit April 27–30 in Stockholm, Sweden: PRE-EXODUS VR experience and artist talk at Accelerator. 

Leila Khoury Nimry was thirteen years old when she fled her home in Haifa, Palestine during the Nakba in 1948. In PRE-EXODUS she shares the memories of her childhood bedroom, illustrated and developed into a virtual reality experience, created by Jordanian artist Solenne Tadros (b. 1996). The work activates questions of memory, intergenerational trauma, forced displacement and loss of land. PRE-EXODUS will be installed at Accelerator April 28-30, with an artist talk on the evening of April 27at 6 PM to introduce the work and open up a conversation on its related themes

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.