If you are curious about what Artica’s current residents are working on, join us for an evening of short presentations, soup, and open studio with journalist and writer Audun Aagre, artist Laura J. Lawson, and artist Jessica MacMillan.
This informal gathering offers a chance to hear about their practices, learn how their projects are unfolding on Svalbard, and enjoy conversation with fellow community members. Following the presentations, there will be time for questions, informal discussion, and the opportunity to meet the artists and writer.
About the Residents
Audun Aagre is a journalist, documentary filmmaker, and author with extensive experience across Norwegian media, including Aftenposten, VG, NRK, and SVT. During his residency at Artica Svalbard, he is researching and beginning work on a nonfiction book about the 1906 scientific expedition to North-West Spitsbergen led by Prince Albert of Monaco and Norwegian polar scientist Gunnar Isachsen. Through archival research and field visits, Aagre is exploring how the expedition contributed to the foundations of Norwegian sovereignty in Svalbard.
Laura J. Lawson is a transdisciplinary artist whose work connects the humanities to interstellar exploration. Working across painting, sculpture, sound, writing, and installation, she investigates planetary science, outer space, and the search for life beyond Earth. During her residency, Lawson is developing research for a long-term project inspired by Europa, one of Jupiter’s icy moons. By observing glaciers, sea ice, and Arctic landscapes, she is creating a body of material that explores the connections between Earth’s changing cryosphere and future space exploration.
Jessica MacMillan is an artist whose work explores time, landscape, and planetary processes through sculpture and installation. During her residency, she is developing Insolations, an ongoing series of sculptures that use focused sunlight to burn patterns into wooden bowls. Created under Svalbard’s midnight sun, the works record the unique movement of the Arctic summer sun, creating physical traces of the Earth's orientation, rotation, and seasonal cycles. The project offers a poetic reflection on time, place, and our relationship to the planet.
When: Tuesday 9 June, 18:00–20:00
Where: Artica Svalbard, vei 608-3
Soup will be served.
This event is free and open to all – no booking required.