Kristin Sevaldsen is a Norwegian saxophonist, composer and producer
currently working on an album trilogy. She joined us for the month of February.

You can find more from Kristin on her instagram.

The music is based on field recordings from various places, situations, scenarios and countries in
the Arctic region. The first album, The Sonic Experience -Snøhetta,
was launched in May 2022 and is about mount Snøhetta on the Dovre
barriere in Norway.

The second album is based on field recordings from Iceland which is
the reason why she came to The Fish Factory; to be able to immerse
herself in the creative work and be influenced by the Icelandic
nature, culture and society in general.

During her stay here at the Fish Factory Kristin Sevaldsen managed to
do exactly what she wanted to do, and is very satisfied with all the
work she got done. With the entire Studio Silo as a work space all to
herself, she was able to maintain an undisturbed focus on her work.

Thank you Kristin. Your focus, calm and brilliance inspired us all! Takk og bless!

LINKS:

https://www.nasjonalparkriket.no/en/snohetta-dovrefjell
Facebook.com/kristinsevaldsenartistpage

Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/29tCfUDy8zTAUrnJPQUj8r?si=RKYusCtBTc6-DCHqK4EsPg

Roxane Fiore is a Canadian visual artist currently based in Iceland who draws, in chalk pastels, artworks that are inspired by her paper assemblages. Her interest lies in creating illusory spaces that move away from their original context and question the very ideas of reality and existence.

During this February residency, Roxane continued working on developing a new and coherent body of work to present during a first solo exhibition. The support of the Canada Council for the Arts is here acknowledged; their generous research and creation grant made this one-month residency possible.

Roxane’s work can be viewed on her website roxanefiore.com or via instagram (@roxanefiore).

“During my time at the residency, I started with the production of drawings that might be included in my future exhibition project. Working in this large studio space in an inspiring environment and alongside like-minded individuals was wonderful, and certainly had a positive impact on my productivity!

Apart from being a great workspace, the Fish Factory was ultimately for me the ideal environment to pause, reflect and gather new ideas, all while working on a specific project. I always find that changing context benefits me by fostering growth on both artistic and personal levels.

I was surprised at how much I was influenced by the spectacle of the northern lights during my stay. Their strong presence, power and beauty made their way into a small-scale drawing which will forever be a reminder of my intense and enriching experience at the Fish Factory. I owe a lot the other artists and musicians for making this residency a memorable one.”

Thank you Roxane- it was wonderful to have you at the Factory and we loved seeing the progress of your project. Come back soon! Takk og bless!

Amy Engelhardt is a composer/lyricist/playwright from the United States who spent the month of February 2023 at the Fish Factory. Her residency concentrated on two theatre projects as well as being instrumental in our February open house concert and contributing to a strong community spirit within the programme.

You can see more from Amy on her website.

IMPACT, a multimedia solo show with music, will premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in summer 2023. The script was revised and cello parts were written here. A COLLECTIBLE SENSATION, a collaboration with American playwright Arianna Rose is a theatrical musical about the barrier-breaking Cone sisters – the first female art collectors in the early 20^th century – and their relationship with Gertrude Stein. It explores the roles of women in art, as art and as independent members of society. Amy wrote a large chunk of the score here.

“I’m a huge Icelandophile, so spending a month in the Eastfjords was like living a dream. Being part of a multi-disciplinary cohort of artists is beyond inspirational. Our collective commitment to our individual arts creates an energy – a synergy – and almost immediate camaraderie. From the intense time “in the zone” to the gusty downpours outside, morning coffee looking at the ever-changing sky, the connections forged over tea and terrible snacks to seeing and hearing the work created here, this time was a gift in many, many ways. Tak fyrir.”

Thank you Amy for your boundless spirit and energy during your months stay. We are excited to follow your adventures to Edinburgh and beyond! Takk og bless!

Chengwei Geng (b.1998) is a visual artist based in the UK. She graduated as a Master of Arts in Painting of the RCA, London in 2021. Chengwei is the only child of a Lacanian psychoanalyst mother and a homicide detective father. During her month long stay at the Fish Factory she focussed her attention on documenting moments in time through a number of small paintings from the landscape whilst also exploring the possibilities of ceramics in our workshop.

You can see more from Chengwei from her website and on her Instagram.

Her work focuses on “Fictional Memories”, believing we all subconsciously alternate our memories to our likings or to a certain level which are bearable. “In the end, people are just disappointing.” She always says “We eventually realise we can choose what we remember and that we’ve been doing it all along. It’s not a sin if you want your life a little more romanticised.”

She’s been documenting different moments that touched her whilst here at the residency- either the ocean and mountains that humbled her or the wind that made her cry; she wishes to bring that piece of sentiment back to her love ones far away.

Not only has she been writing poems on how the moon brings our thoughts to the person under the same sky watching the same moon, but also through the abstract expressionism paintings and the ceramics with her fingers’ imprint, her longingness shows. “Imagine standing where I was or the how I sculpt the clay, I look up at the moon every night; wondering if they’ve missed me too.”

You certainly brought some sunshine into our residency Chengwei- we hope to see you again in the future!

Josie is a visual artist based in Dundee, Scotland, her practice explores perceptions of memory and place. Through intentional improvisation she creates atmospheric dreamscapes that shift between photography and painting, evoking feelings of familiarity within the abstract.

You can see more of Josie’s work on her Instagram.

I’ve loved my 2 month stay here at the fish factory. I came looking for a new environment to explore and it did not disappoint! The Factory’s atmosphere gave me an ideal place to have some perspective on my practice and think about my future as an emerging artist.

I’ve spent my time playing with materials walking in the hills and learning new things from my fellow artists. I’ve worked a lot more in the landscape here then I was expecting, using cyanotypes as a way of mapping my walks around the fjord, creating a sort of light diary through many small cyanotypes.

I found the Factory to be a great place to reconnect with old passions and to experiment without judgement, I’ve really loved using ceramics again as well as learning how to make watercolour paint… something I will definitely use within my practice moving forward. My stay here will no doubt be infused within my practice for years to come. Until next time!

Thanks Josie- it’s been a pleasure having you on the residency. We’re excited to see where life takes you and your practice next and look forward to welcoming you back in the future!

Patricia Huguesm is a graphic designer and illustrator based in Mexico City. Her practice is mainly focused on fashion and textile projects but during her time at the Fish Factory took an exciting detour into ceramics.

You can find more of Patricia’s work on her Instagram.

“I had a lot of little ideas for my time in Fish Factory but my main goal was to distance myself from the everyday tasks I encounter as a graphic designer. I wanted to create without judgement or a deadline.

I was looking for a welcoming space where I could work with like-minded people. I ended up letting myself be guided by the opportunities the studios (and Una) provided. I had always wanted to have a go with ceramics and enjoyed every minute I spent trying to make my illustrations come alive in a different way than animation or textiles enable.

I spent my mornings up in the mountains picking berries and my afternoons at the Factory. Time flew by and I will definitely try to come back to this little gem of a place.”

Thank you Patricia, it was wonderful having you and we’d love to see you back in our ceramic studio any time! See you again!