Dear Representatives!

The Living Art Museum reminds you of its annual meeting tomorrow, Tuesday, 20th of May at 17:00. The meeting takes place at the museum's premises on the second floor of the Marshall House, Grandagarður 20, 101 Reykjavík. Light refreshments will be served. Please note that the meeting will mostly be in Icelandic.

Meeting agenda

1. Report of the Board 
2. Annual Accounts of 2024
3.  New members listed
4. Presentation of candidates
5. Election of the Board - Chairman, four members of the board and three deputy members are elected.
   
   

BREAK (counting of votes)

1. Budget for the year 2025 presented and annual fee 2026 decided
2. Election results announced
3. Other issues
   
   

Election:

• All seats on the board and the deputy board are vacant. The Chairman will be elected for one year, four members on the main board are elected for two years each, and three deputies will be elected for one year each.
• Members who have paid the annual fee of 4.300 ISK for the year 2025 can vote. The claim for the annual fee has been sent to your online bank. It will also be possible to pay the fee at the meeting.
• Two representatives of Nýló will count the votes at the meeting. 
• The four representatives, counting and recording the phone votes, will be presented for members at the beginning of the meeting.
• If the votes for two or more members are equal, the meeting will vote again and then only between those candidates who received the same number of votes.
• The candidates who received the most votes will be elected.

Phone votes

• Members who want to vote but can not attend the meeting can vote via phone. We ask those members to send their phone number and name to nylo(at)nylo.is before 23:59 the 19th of May.
• Calls start at 17:00, at the beginning of the meeting. Two representatives of Nýló will be shop stewards, calling for and recording the phone votes.
  

Members can announce their candidacy to Nýló's office by sending an e-mail to nylo(at)nylo.is or at the beginning of the meeting.

Below, you can read more in-depth about the announced candidates:

Chairman (1 seat):

H.K. Rannversson

"I started coming to Nýló in 2008 when the museum was at Laugarvegur 26 and was completely fascinated. Nýló is a space unlike any other cultural institution. Here there is open access to art; memorable exhibitions, a collection that you can rummage through and, not least, artists who want to have a conversation. This experience planted a seed in my head that is still germinating.

I soon became a member and later worked on an extensive research- and exhibition project for the museum about the legacy of Gallery Suðurgata 7. This resulted in a book and exhibition, S7 - Suðurgata >> Árbær (not in service), a collaboration with the Reykjavík City Museum and the Reykjavík Arts Festival 2014. The following year I was elected to the deputy board and served until 2017 (the museum's first year in Marshall House). That year I also worked part-time at Nýló for a few months. At the same time, I worked on a two-part exhibition, READ THROUGH - artworks in bookform from the collection, for the collection space in Breiðholt.

Through this work, I gained important knowledge of the internal and external operations of the museum, of its history and collection. The Living Art Museum has had a decisive influence on my work as an art historian and curator, while I have also been able to put my mark on the museum. That is precisely the core of Nýló: A museum that is based on open dialogue, collaboration that always puts art first.

Nýló has sought to address the void that arises in the artworld at any given time and fill it with fertile ideas: Whether it is creating an exhibition space for a new generation and unconventional media, collecting progressive art or creating a platform for dialogue and international collaboration.

In 2028, the museum will celebrate its 50th anniversary and will have been in Marshall House for more than 10 years. 

I am ready to put all my energy into making The Living Art Museum a vibrant space for art. With my candidacy, I want to start a conversation about the priorities of Nýló; how we fill the void, create fertile ground and allow the museum to grow and thrive in the years to come.

LET'S TEAR DOWN THE WALL BETWEEN OFFICE AND EXHIBITION SPACE!

Conversation comes first. Let's create a platform for collaboration, bridge the gap between generations and welcome new artists. Let's mobilize Nýló’s members and make use of their knowledge and experience.

LET'S CHANGE THE EXHIBITION SPACE, IF NECESSARY. LET ART MAKE THE DECISIONS!

Exhibitions reflect the museum’s identity. Let's increase the ambitions of the exhibition program, present international art on an equal footing with local art and create connections between institutions and artists beyond borders.

LET'S MAKE THE COLLECTION AND ARCHIVES MORE ACCESSIBLE!

The collection is the foundation. We need to talk about the future of the collection in all seriousness. Let's look for solutions to preserve 50 years of cultural heritage without it being behind closed doors.”

H.K. Rannversson is an art historian and independent curator. He was Head of Exhibitions at North Atlantic House in Copenhagen 2018-2022, and Head of Public Programs at Reykjavik Art Museum 2013-16. He has been a lecturer at Iceland University of the Arts since 2015 and has tutored at the Reykjavík School of Visual Arts and University of Iceland.

As an independent curator, Rannversson has worked on exhibition projects for Akureyri Art Museum, National Gallery of Iceland, Hafnarborg - Centre of Culture and Fine Art, Gerðarsafn – Kópavogur Art Museum, Reykjavik Association of Sculptors and Icelandic Art Center. These include exhibitions such as: Outside looking in, inside looking out, a collaboration between the Icelandic Art Center and the Icelandic Embassies (New York, Amsterdam, Helsinki, Oslo, Paris and Tokyo, 2023-25); Queen of Hearts – Sóley Ragnarsdóttir (Gerðarsafn and Augustiana, Denmark, 2024); Numbers, Places – Þór Vigfússon (Gerðarsafn and Y Gallery, 2024); Discotheque (Hafnarborg, 2021); HIGH & LOW – Contemporary art from Iceland (Nordatlantens Brygge, 2018); GONE WITH THE WIND – part 1. of the outdoor art exhibition series, the WHEEL (Reykjavik Association of Sculptors and Reykjavík Arts Festival, 2018); NORMALITY IS THE NEW AVANT-GARDE (Gerðarsafn, 2017); D24: RATE OF RETURN% (Reykjavík Art Museum – Hafnarhús, 2016) and Yearning for Space (Reykjavík Art Museum – Ásmundarsafn, 2015).

He has also held various positions of trust; served on the board of the ASÍ Art Musuem2017-21, was chairman of the Association of Art History and Theory in Iceland 2023-24, where he was appointed to a working group on the future vision of the National Gallery of Iceland by the Ministry of Education and Culture. He also sits on the acquisitions committee of the Reykjavík Art Museum 2023-25.

Heiðar Kári studied Architecture at the Royal Academy of Copenhagen, received a BA in Art History from the University of Iceland, and completed an MA in Artistic Research from the University of Amsterdam in 2012.

Helena Solveigar Aðalsteinsbur

Dear friends in the arts, and all who love Nýló,

While I have spent the past decade curating exhibitions in institutions across Europe, my heart lies firmly in grassroots organising and artist-led culture. Grassroots arts organising is my home. It is where I started  as an artist, and later as a curator, and this continues to shape how I see the role of art in society.

My experience working in large institutions has equipped me with valuable tools: strategic planning, fundraising and grant writing expertise, and extensive international networks from Senegal to Finland to Japan to the UK, to Ethiopia to the Netherlands. But what drives me, at the core, is my local Reyjavík community, experimentation, and collaboration. Nýló lives at the heart of that intersection, and I am eager to help it thrive.

In Amsterdam and London, I founded and ran an artist-led space while also curating at institutions including Camden Art Centre, Southbank Centre, and Hayward Gallery. I have worked with artists such as Ai Weiwei, Sophia Al-Maria, Jeremy Deller, and the Palestinian Sound Archive, supporting ambitious, politically urgent, and innovative work.

Alongside my international projects, my feet have always been rooted in the Icelandic art scene. I was most recently Director of the LungA Art Festival, co-founded the Laumulistasamsteypan collective, and have worked on projects at Kling & Bang and Gerðarsafn. With Laumulistasamsteypan, we once held an exhibition at Nýló that was designed as one big coffee break and I want to see Nýló’s lobby become a welcoming, bustling, creative space, with coffee brewing and conversations flowing. A real social hub for the arts.

Nýló should be the most daring, dynamic, and forward-thinking exhibition space in Iceland. A place where new movements take shape and grow, where creative risks are supported, and where both emerging and established artists are empowered to challenge norms. I want to work closely with ambitious curators, support grassroots initiatives, and invite international artists into meaningful exchange with the local scene.

The museum should feel alive! I imagine expanding the bookstore, hosting regular soup nights, launching an annual performance art festival, and organising film screenings that feature video art from around the world. The reading group is a great beginning, and I want to build on it to create a lively event program, an open space for people to form lasting communities of arts related discussion, experimentation, play and relation.

Exhibitions that have shaped me include the GRASRÓT series, which had a deep impact on me as a young artist, and I was infatuated with their self led initiatives. Looking ahead, I want to see ambitious exhibitions that highlight Nýló’s strengths as a platform for live and evolving art forms. One of my favorite stories from the museum comes from March 1981, when a newspaper, Dagblaðið, opinion piece by local sailors critiqued a performance program at Nýló, claiming it “broke all records in foolishness and extremes,” debating whether boiling water in a kettle could be considered art. “As written before,” they continued, “we respect people’s right to behave like fools and call it whatever they want: remarkable expression, new art, or performance.” Experimental art sparks conversation and I welcome it!

Sincerely,

Helena Solveigar Aðalsteinsbur

Odda Júlía Snorradóttir (she)

It is with great pleasure that I am running for the Chair of the board of the Living Art Museum, with the interests of artists and art itself at the forefront! The Living Art Museum plays an incredibly important role and provides crucial nourishment for the development and progress of visual art in Iceland. The original goals of the Living Art Museum, collecting and exhibiting that and those that don’t get a place elsewhere, are still important and relevant. It is our role to be alert and follow what is happening both here and internationally. Nýló should be a living open conversation with the world around us!

I bring both great passion and experience to the table. I have a BA in Art History and an MA in Curation from the University of Iceland. I have curated exhibitions in Nýló, the Nordic House, Hafnarborg, Estonia and in Romania. I am furthermore one of the founders of the Icelandic Drawing Center. I have extensive experience in international collaborations through my work as a Managing Director of Sequences, my work at Nýló and as a freelance curator. I have taken on roles within all the departments of Nýló, first as collection’s manager, then general manager and now as interim director. I know the inner flow of the museum well and recognise all the most vital processes and obstacles. This experience has provided a unique insight into where Nýló has the potential to grow even further. Now I want to bring this insight into play to actively shape the museums directions and goals:

Open and active conversation:

The members of Nýló are its core. In this unique community generations meet, mediums, interests and expertise meet. Together we create a vast net within the art world that makes it possible for the museum to catch both exciting new currents and that which is at risk of falling out of frame. I want to grow this diverse group and ensure an open active conversation.

• I want to increase visibility and accessibility of members to LIMBÓ, a space that is intended to be a place where members can react to the current and now.
• I want to have more member’s meetings. We recently started an event series where members get the chance to come and tell their stories of the museum. This is a part of our research and documentation program for the 50 year anniversary of the Living Art Museum.

Exhibitions

As an artist-run museum Nýló can and should allow itself to take on larger artistic challenges than other art institutions. I aim to create an environment in Nýló where artists can work toward their practice without having to compromise! Where artistic boundaries are pushed and traditions can be challenged. I aim to create a safe and accessible space for experimental work that is inviting to new currents in contemporary art, a space that facilitates artists and encourages them to take risks, where the unexpected is welcomed.

• I want to reach out to members more frequently.
• I want to seek and bring in fresh current from abroad.
• I want to lead surprising voices together, lift those up that have not been in the spotlight for a long time or have never gotten the chance to.
  
  

Collection and Archive

The Living Art Museum’s collection and archives is the autobiography of contemporary Icelandic art and is as such a unique source and documentation of Icelandic art. It is, like the museum itself, a polymorph that corresponds to the needs of the times. Introspection is an important part of this process. Does the collection and archive successfully serve its role? How has it changed and what is that role now?

• I want to find fresh perspectives within our archive by inviting diverse curators, artists, members and scholars to work with it.
• I want to increase accessibility to the archive with regular open days.
• I will bring full force to the negotiations with both the city council and the government regarding improved facilities for the archive that keeps on growing!

Finance

Through my experience as a staff member of Nýló I have been able to locate how and where the museum can increase its finances.

• This year we managed to negotiate for increased financial support from the ministry. In continuum of that I want to work towards an increased predictability and safety by negotiating more long term contracts.
• I want to continue to shape and grow our collaborations with international institutions, such collaborations makes it possible to apply to international grants and with the finance larger international exhibitions.
• I want to activate the Friends of Nýló program as I see that as a potential for opportunities we can develop further.

It is with confidence, great care and passion that I offer myself as a Chair of the board of the Living Art Museum.

Board (4 seats):

Anna Andrea Winther

I have been on the deputy board for the past year, and I am now running for a place on the main board of The Living Art Museum. I have over that time been a part of various projects within Nýló and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. I want to continue my work in the museum and continue contributing to the fine art sector in Iceland. 

Anna Andrea Winther (b. 1993) lives and works in Reykjavík. She graduated with an MFA in fine art from Glasgow School of Art in 2022 and a BA in fine art from Iceland University of the Arts in 2018. Anna will graduate with a teacher’s license from the University of Iceland this summer. Since graduating in 2018 Anna has worked independently as an artist, worked on various projects and in collaboration with other artists. Alongside her practice she works with children and young people. She has for the past year been on the deputy board of the Living Art Museum and is running for a place on the board.

Joe Keys

I have been on the board of Nýlo for the last two years. In my time, I have thoroughly enjoyed the position, it has led to working on multiple exhibitions and getting to know the collection in more detail. I am passionate about Icelandic art both past and present, and would gladly continue as a member of the board.

Sadie Cook

Sadie Cook (B. 1997) has published and shown nationally and internationally, including an upcoming solo exhibition at Hafnarhús as part of an artist duo with Jo Pawlowska. Sadie has photographs in books held by MOMA, the Tate, and the Met. They have been a guest critic at Yale, Harvard, and NYU.

Sadie graduated Yale in 2020, and received a Fulbright to Iceland in 2021. They have been based in Iceland ever since. Sadie lives in Reykjavik with their partner Diljá. Sadie runs Gallery Kannski and is on the deputy board of Nýlistasafnið.

They have enjoyed their time on the board. Their hope is to give back to a community and space that they believe is important. They are experienced in installation, construction, documentation and grant writing.

Þorsteinn Freyr Fjölnisson (He/Him)

Þorsteinn Freyr Fjölnisson (1993) is a curator and a reception manager at the Reykjavík Art Museum. He graduated with a BA in art history and theory from the University of Iceland in 2021 and MLitt in curatorial practice from the Glasgow School of Art in 2022. He has worked as a reception manager at the Reykjavík Art Museum since 2022, while also undertaking curatorial projects, for example, an exhibition for Logi Leó in gallery d in Hafnarhús, Vitamin-D at Hafnarhús, Listalestin at Hvolsvöllur and is currently working with the artist Kristín Helga Ríkharðsdóttir for an exhibition at Hafnarhús that opens in 2026. 

In his curatorial studies, Þorsteinn focused on accessibility for minority and fringe groups at art museums and how to increase accessibility. He claims this is in keeping with the work of Nýlistasafnið, which mirrors the modern day and contributes to increased accessibility to the arts.

Deputy Board (3 seats):

Ásgerður Arnardóttir (she)

I am running for a position on the deputy board of the Living Art Museum. I'm a visual artist and have worked as a teacher in arts, animation, textiles and clothing design both in iceland and abroad. My work has been featured in exhibitions and art festivals in Iceland and Los Angeles. I recently returned to Iceland after spending three years in Los Angeles, where I studied Fine Arts at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts). During my time there, I explored courses across a wide range of disciplines and engaged in experimentation with all kinds of artistic methods and media.

I am deeply fascinated by grassroots organizations, artistic experimentation, and emerging currents within the art world, and I intend to use this curiosity as a guiding principle in my role. My time at CalArts and in Los Angeles has revealed to me the rich and expansive landscape the art scene offers—and the potential it holds for continued growth and transformation. I believe that my background in education, diverse professional experiences and research into various artistic media and methods will contribute to my role at the Living Art Museum in a meaningful way.

Deepa R. Iyengar

I have been serving on the board of Nýló since 2023, and am now seeking a deputy position. At present, I represent Nýló on the Sequences 2025 board, and am co-curating a show of Deaf Icelandic artists for 2026.

I have been, and will continue to be, focused on promoting inclusion of artists from underrepresented groups in Nýló’s selections. At the same time, I have gained appreciation for the board’s role to support opportunities to reflect upon Nýló’s collection in order to add new perspectives to Icelandic contemporary art history. It is challenging and interesting to coordinate these two missions.

About me: I am a visual artist living in Iceland since 2006, coming originally from the U.S., of Indian heritage. In 2023, I graduated with an M.A. in fine art from Listaháskóli Íslands. In Iceland, in addition to group shows during my graduate study (Verksmiðjan á Hjalteyri, the Einar Jónsson Museum, and Nýlistasafnið), I have shown work in venues including Reykjavík Art Museum - Hafnarhús, Kling&Bang, Gryfjan in Ásmundarsalur (as part of the artist collective D.N.A.), Gallery Kannski, Hamraborg festival, the Reykjavik Winter Festival, and Raflost festival.

Elín Elísabet Einarsdóttir

I‘m very interested in discourse about art and would love to be a part of that conversation at Nýló. I have a diverse skillset and experience that will be of use, including being a board member for the art collective/choir Kliður for approx. five years. I‘m good at collaboration and making things happen. Nýló is for many reasons one of the most exciting places in Iceland to enjoy art. I‘d like to do my part in its ongoing development and prosperity.

 I have degrees in drawing from the Reykjavík School of Visual Arts and in fine art from Iceland University of the Arts. Alongside my art practice I freelance as an illustrator, as well as studying creative writing at HÍ. I‘m based in Reykjavík and spend a lot of time in Borgarfjörður eystri. 

Sigríður Regína Sigurþórsdóttir

I offer myself for continued service on the deputy board of the Living Art Museum. I have been involved in the work of the museum for about five years, initially assisting in the collection and later as Collection Manager from 2022-2024, before joining the deputy board. I am a time based media preservation specialist currently pursuing a PhD in art theory at the University of Iceland. I care deeply about Nýló’s collection, and contributing to its artistic direction and dynamic exhibition program has been rewarding for me. I’m committed to the museum, am grateful for the trust that has been placed in me so far and hope to continue contributing to Nýló’s vision and activities.

Outgoing board
Sunna Ástþórsdóttir - chairman
Guðlaug Mía Eyþórsdóttir- vice chairman
Joe Keys - Treasurer
Deepa Iyengar - secretary
Lukas Bury - member of the board

Outgoing deputy board
Anna Andrea Winther
Sadie Cook
Sigríður Regína Sigurþórsdóttir

According to Article 6 in the charter, the board of The Living Art Museum hires an individual who is responsible for the museum's full-time or part-time activities, as well as other staff. The elected board will therefore consider the selection and hiring of a new museum director following the annual meeting.

A warm welcome to all members!

The image following is from Claudia Hausfeld's exhibition ANTECHAMBER. Photograph by Sister Lumière.