An Enemy of the People in Oslo

I work at Kunstner-forbundet as a gallery assistant, and this autumn I start my education at the Art Academy at KhiO. I have worked hard to get into the academy – I don’t feel I have another choice, although becoming an artist is not very useful for the society. I do not want to end up as an arts-and-craft teacher. And I definitely don’t want to work as a nurse.

I belong to the modern nomadic Sami people, the ones who have moved more than 21 times, the ones who are photographing, the ones who have never unpacked all their boxes, the ones who have a good overview over what is happening in the art field of Oslo, the reasonable but not fanatical, the people who still ask their mums for money, the ones working part time but I do not belong to the sports interested or the ones arguing about what to watch on television.

I live in Oslo because of studies. I was only supposed to live here for one year, but you sort of get stuck here, maybe because it is better to live here that in the countryside. There are so many things happening here. I hope I don’t live here in 10 years time. I feel temporarily at home here – I felt like a tourist for the first 6 months, and then Oslo also became mine. To navigate, to create memories for different places in a city is important for a feeling of home. I look at places differently since I first moved here. Tøyensentret for example was this big impenetrable mass, but now it has opened up more. People from smaller places move here, but even if they know each other from before, it is not given that they stay in touch when moving to a bigger city. 

I would not necessarily say that the strongest is the one standing alone. If one stand against another and is able to hold one’s own and not waver, he is strong. Norway is a social democracy – still it is the minority that shall vote over the majority – I am referring to the minority of power. One has to ask: Is Tomas Stockmann strong, a fanatic or blind? Strenght is defined by context.

For the performance I will cycle through Tøyen and Grønland up towards the theatre. Or maybe I will ride for «free» on the subway – in case I feel like spending a lot of money I will pay the 30 kr it cost for a 5 minute journey