Vasaloppet now institutes a new tradition where artists
are invited to compete in creating the yearly Vasaloppet motive. Of four
invited artists, the jury's choice fell on Fredrik Lindqvist's two
works which will now be the official theme motif for Vasaloppet's
arrangements during 2015. At a press showing on Thursday, the art works
were unveiled in the Zorn Museum.
The annual posters
with a Vasalopps motif are a tradition which stretches back to 1935. The
posters are an important symbol for this highly popular arrangement and
over the years have become collectors' items. Historically the motif
has been taken out in different ways from year to year but from now on
Swedish artists will compete for the commission. For 2015 a jury have
chosen the artist Fredrik Lindqvist's two works ”På glid mot framtida
segrar” and ”Full rulle”. This winter's motif was unveiled on Thursday
in the Zorn Museum and will now be leaving its special stamp on all
Vasaloppets winter and summer events in 2015.
“Vasaloppet
itself is a formidable bearer of Swedish tradition and culture and
therefore to start up this type of collaboration is especially
enjoyable. It has, in part, a value for our participants who will get a
unique memento from each year. But also it is very good for the
documentation of our own history in Vasaloppets Museum, where Fredrik's
fine motif will be the first you see this winter”, says Anders Selling,
Vasaloppet's CEO.
The jury's motivation for their choice:
“Fredrik Lindqvist discovers, exactly as Vasaloppet, new and unexpected
ways. In uniting traditional handicraft with a modern expression and
technique, his art is equally at home in an international arena as in
the local cultural heritage out of which Vasaloppet arose and
developed.”
“This is really terrfic! I think the combination of
sport and art is very exciting. The project has been interesting to
work with and it's a good way to reach out to people who, perhaps,
haven't earlier seen what I do. I myself have been an active long
distance runner and it feels a lot of fun to do something which has such
a strong link to Swedish sport”, says the artist, Fredrik Lindqvist.
The motif will be seen on each of the events official posters as well
as on the diploma which awaits all of the 90,000 registered participants
who will battling their way towards the classic finish in
Mora. Vasaloppet's winners are also each presented with an example from
the limited numbered edition series; this series will also be available
to purchase.
About Fredrik Lindqvist
Fredrik
Lindqvist was born in Kristianstad in 1968 and studied at Umeå Academy
of Fine Arts and the Arts Academy of Düsseldorf. He now lives and works
in Ingolstadt in Germany. For many years, Fredrik has been shown in art
galleries, exhibitions and museums in both Sweden and internationally.
Amongst much else, he has several times been selected to take part in
the famous Spring Salon in Stockholm's Liljevalchs art venue.
Fredrik is a graphic artist and works principally with wood-cut. In his
pictures he often uses clippings taken from newspapers, adverts and
books, as basic original materials. These clippings are used to make a
collage and afterwards drawn onto wood. The subsequent wood-cuts are
then printed onto single colour or strongly patterned textiles. After
all the prints are ready, they are sewn together with thick thread into a
single homogeneous work.
Historic Vasalopps motif
This
is not the first time that an artist has been behind the Vasalopps
theme motif. The very first was a poster created by Anders Rull from
Vinäs, which depicted a skier, but with Gustav Vasa as his shadow. Lars
Norrman's for the 50th race in 1973 is thought by many to be the motif
which left the biggest impression. Another much appreciated work was
Lasse Åberg's painting in 2012. In recent years the motif has received
great attention from the media, both on TV and in the national press.
Vasaloppets jury 2015
Jordi Arkö, art consultant, Dalarna County
Johan Cederlund, director, Zorn Museum
Caroline Smitmanis Smids, culture manager, Mora Municipality
Anna Romson, art director
Anders Selling, CEO, Vasaloppet
Contributed by: Vasaloppet