Patterns and Preludes

In the first event of the FOLK(ish) focus area of the PARSE lab, we will meet two practices that in different ways question the origins and possibilities of artistic expression within traditional practices when individual expression meets with international influences. 

Location: Mustadsfors Folkets Hus, Dals-Långed

Free Entry

Registration link for fika and travel from Gothenburg: Patterns and Preludes Please register by 20th November.

Gro Marie Svidal is a Norwegian Hardanger fiddle player rooted in the rich folk music traditions of Sunnfjord, Voss and Hardanger. She is trained at the Ole Bull Academy and the Norwegian Academy of Music, where she completed a Master’s degree and a PhD in artistic research. Svidal is an acclaimed artist who combines a deep knowledge of traditional music with a curiosity for new forms of expression. Her artistic practice spans music, dance, theatre and interdisciplinary collaboration, with a focus on traditioning within and between traditions. In her most recent works, she explores the relationship between tradition, improvisation and personal expression.

In this performance lecture, she will draw on the artistic outcomes and reflections from her artistic doctoral research project, Tryllespel, the aim of which was by using musical improvisation to create music with a folk-music- individuality and a personal identity.

Leen De Ridder is a Belgian-born weaver, artist and educator based in Sweden. With a background in journalism, she uses her perspective as a weaver to make sense of local craft stories. Her work grows from deep curiosity and becomes a dialogue between research and (sense)making. She observes, digs and asks probing questions to identify patterns and narratives. Through her work she tries to understand herself and how to approach tradition on her own terms. Leen studied traditional Swedish handweaving in Dalarna (Sätergläntan Institute of Crafts) and deepened her research practice during the HDK-Valand course “Local Craft Cultures: History and Practice”.

In this talk she will present the story “Dunka i källaren: En lokal vävtradition och en glimt kvinnohistoria” (Thumping in the cellar: A local weaving tradition and a glimpse of women’s history). The story traces the path of a weaver from the Siljan region during the twentieth century and illustrates how a local weaving tradition neared its end. By digging deep into the layers of the story, questions arise about the origin of this local tradition, touching upon social class, women’s history and ownership of patterns.

Crafting Futures is a BFA multidisciplinary craft programme based at HDK-Valand Campus Steneby.

About the focus area

FOLK(ish) explores artistic methods for researching and experimenting with inherited practices. Through the lab, we encounter artistic expressions that are self-determined, responsive to local surroundings and informed through histories of movement, migration, intercultural meetings and disrespect of borders. We investigate artistic, aesthetic and ethical approaches that emerge when participating within cultural forms that originate outside of academic and institutionalised cultures. Through placing diverse practices in dialogue, we hope to deepen our understanding of creative and critical possibilities for FOLK(ish) artistic research.

organiser: tom.cubbin@hdk.gu.se