Market Art Fair

Atti Johansson: Between Machines and Nature

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Atti Johansson in front of an artwork from the series Tiden är kort/Förbytta ting, circa 1967. Photographer unknown. Courtesy of Belenius

Belenius brings Johansson’s Mekanisk/Organisk series to Market Art Fair, curated by Karolina Aastrup.

Atti Johansson (1917–2003) was born in Kiruna and spent most of her life in Sollefteå, Northern Sweden. After studying at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen — commuting from her family in Sollefteå between 1954 and 1958 — and later in Paris, Johansson became part of the Swedish avant-garde until the 1970s. Her strong commitment to environmental issues was reflected in both her art and her private life.

In the late 1960s, Johansson developed Mekanisk/Organisk, a series that critically examined emerging computer technology. This body of work formed the foundation for several public commissions, including a ten-meter-long wall piece titled Vårt medvetande ligger långt efter teknikens framsteg at Gudlav Bilderskolan in Sollefteå.

 

  • Photo by Jessica Arneback
  • Atti Johansson. Courtesy of "Bildbas Sollefteå"

For the fair in May, Belenius presents works from Johansson’s Mekanisk/Organisk series, curated by Karolina Aastrup.

“[Atti Johansson’s] life and art were marked by the global issues of the present times: new computer technology, environmental destruction, nuclear power, the struggle for peace and the situation of women, ” says Aastrup. She continues: “Around 1967, Atti began working on a series of assemblages that she called Mekanisk/Organisk. The works focus on the tension between hard and soft, technology and humans. The works formed the basis for several public works, including a ten-meter-long wall decoration titled Vårt medvetande ligger långt efter teknikens framsteg.”

 

  • Lina Aastrup. Photo by Jessica Arneback
  • Photo by Jessica Arneback

 

“The tension between different poles runs like a common thread through Atti’s work: illusion and reality, hard and soft, artificial and natural, destructive and constructive. In everything she does, she comments on and examines her contemporaries – thoroughly, critically and with great integrity. In light of the climate crisis and the digital revolution we live in, Attis’ art is more relevant than ever.”

  • Photo by Jessica Arneback

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