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Nuart latest public art project – the Nuart Sandnes Art Trail sees them in Stavanger’s neighbouring city Sandnes. Based on a shared desire to activate Sandnes city centre through the creation of a series of site-specific murals, installations and interventions, this weekend marked the launch of Norway’s first official Street Art Trail.
Long term, the Trail will be developed with the aim of connecting Sandnes’ urban centre with the city’s surrounding rural areas. The Trail will ultimately be ‘activated’ using new technology, with biking and walking tours offered on weekends.
Artists M-city (PL) and Bergen-based Nipper were the first invited artists to create works for the Trail.
M-city’s ’Canoe’ mural tells the story of a group of seafarers working together to move their canoe along the water. They follow their own light, attached to the bow of the canoe, and row in unison through wind and high seas. The water that surrounds them is vast but they work together to navigate their route safely, bound not only by the chains that connect them but also by their trust for one another. ’Canoe’ is about people attempting to find their own way with the guidance and support of others: a fitting analogy for a project that is built on community and collaboration.
Bergen-based Nipper initiated a huge game of ‘finders keepers’ with his Mission Directives project, which creates alternative zones of communication through the installation of temporary artworks in and around city centres. Each original artwork is free to take home but contains instructions to continue the project by either performing an action in public space or making a new ‘Mission Directive’ and adding to one of the 20 bull-dog clips he has installed around Sandnes city centre.
Sandnes also received a bonus artwork from Nipper this weekend – a wheatepaste situated in the tunnel under the train tracks. The piece is called ‘Moses’.
The image is a portrait made from Michelangelo’s sculpture of Moses (the law giver) with an additional abstract element. The paste-up is made of 16 pieces. It’s a technically difficult piece to make since the second, forth and sixth rings had to be placed first and judging the spacing and dealing with wind isn’t easy. The abstract shape was then placed on top and circle’s one, three and five pasted into place to finish. I wanted to give the piece an odd sense of depth and weight. The portrait is skewed, but if you stand at the right angle you can see the whole face. I hope I’ve added something interesting to the space.” Nipper
Sandnes is the fastest growing city in Norway with a staggering 30% of the population age 20 and under. Sandnes has been chosen to host 2017’s prestigious National Festival of UKM (Norwegian Youth Festivals of Art). Expect more from Norway’s seventh largest city in the next year!