“Tänka med jorden” (Think with the Earth/Dirt) – an artistic collaborative project initiated by Art Lab Gnesta, which is carried out in collaboration with Sörmland Museum, and Nynäs castle/Sörmland’s natural farm, has been awarded Årets Strålkastare 2023 (the Spotlight of the Year 2023) award.
The award Årets Strålkastare is given out every year by Boverket (the Swedish National Board of Housing, Building and Planning), the Swedish National Heritage Board, ArkDes and Statens konstråd (the Public Art Agency Sweden). With the award, they want to draw attention to actors who, in their work, highlight the different perspectives of the designed living environment and who thereby elevate the national policy for designed living environment.
The project “Tänka med jorden” was initiated by Art Lab Gnesta in 2020 and is based on Nynäs castle, its more than 800-year history, the surrounding landscape and the 3822-hectare nature reserve. New works of art – some permanent – others more temporary, are developed by invited artists in dialogue with young people from different parts of the region.
Mariana Silva Varela is the artist of the year in “Tänka med jorden”
Each year, the project invites an artist to produce a new work of art.
This year’s artist is Mariana Silva Varela. She is educated in pedagogy, rhetoric and scientific theory at Södertörn University and has a higher textile education from Handarbetets Vänner School. With a background as a historian in the history of migration, she works artistically with textiles, staging and light in relation to anthropology and folklore. This year the project will collaborate with students from Gnesta Waldorf School.
Read more about Spotlight of the Year 2023 here:
Designed living environment 2023 – a conference on creativity, knowledge and competence – Boverket (in Swedish)
Read interviews with the Spotlight of the Year 2023 here:
Designed living environment – conference on creativity-knowledge-competence (hallbarstad.se) (in Swedish)