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Lotta Antonsson's "I am everything" Exhibition Celebrates Three Decades of Feminist Art
๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ช Sweden /Culture & Society

Lotta Antonsson's "I am everything" Exhibition Celebrates Three Decades of Feminist Art

From Dagens Nyheter · (9m ago) Swedish Positive tone

Translated from Swedish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • Swedish artist Lotta Antonsson is exhibiting "I am everything" at Fotografiska in Stockholm, showcasing three decades of her work.
  • The exhibition features photo collages, sculptural installations, and object-based art, rooted in feminist themes of identity and power.
  • Antonsson's artistic process is described as intuitive and often last-minute, drawing inspiration from her childhood experiences with magazines.

Stockholm's Fotografiska is currently hosting "I am everything," a major exhibition celebrating the multifaceted work of Swedish artist Lotta Antonsson. Spanning over three decades, the exhibition offers a deep dive into Antonsson's unique artistic universe, characterized by her pioneering use of analog photo collages and a consistent engagement with feminist discourse. For those familiar with the contemporary art scene, Antonsson is a significant figure whose work has consistently challenged perceptions of identity, power, and the female gaze since the 1990s.

I do the same today as when I was a child: cut and paste.

โ€” Lotta AntonssonAntonsson reflects on the origins of her artistic technique, linking her childhood hobby to her current practice.

Antonsson's artistic journey began in a rather unconventional way: cutting and pasting images from magazines her nurse mother brought home. This childhood pastime, involving a diverse array of publications from the sensational to the mundane, laid the foundation for her artistic practice. She describes her current process as a continuation of this early method โ€“ "cutting and pasting" โ€“ albeit on a much grander and more conceptually complex scale. This exhibition brings together older pieces with more recent works, including photo collages, installations, and object-based art, demonstrating the evolution and breadth of her creative output.

It has been full speed until the last second. But I like working like that, because things happen then.

โ€” Lotta AntonssonAntonsson describes her working method, which involves intense creative activity close to deadlines.

What makes Antonsson's work particularly resonant from a Swedish perspective is its deep connection to feminist thought and its exploration of identity within societal structures. While she has spent significant periods based internationally in cities like New York and London, her current exhibition in Stockholm feels like a homecoming. Her approach, often described as intuitive and embracing last-minute creative bursts, reflects a distinct artistic temperament that challenges conventional timelines and museum practices. "I wait for myself" is how she frames her process, a sentiment that speaks to a uniquely Swedish value of self-reflection and a less rigid approach to productivity. "I am everything" is not just an exhibition; it's a powerful statement from an artist who has consistently used her craft to dissect and reassemble the complexities of being, particularly as a woman in the modern world.

I don't say 'I procrastinate' anymore but 'I wait for myself'.

โ€” Lotta AntonssonAntonsson explains her reframing of her creative process, emphasizing intuition over delay.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dagens Nyheter in Swedish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.