Atelier Oslo was invited in autumn 2009 to do an installation in Galleri Rom, in Oslo
We wanted to create a bright and vibrant place in contrast to the gray and dark November night. A place that enabled all the body's senses; smell, sight, hearing and touch.
The forest that was moved into the gallery created a resting place away from the busy urban life. Here the spectator was invited to take off his shoes and walk around barefoot in the soft moss. The contrast to the surrounding city and the white walls of the gallery - oriented the focus to the color, smell and moisture of the borrowed scenery.
There was no specific path you had to follow; no specific items to look at, only the physical and sensory experience of being in nature.
The light in the gallery stood around the clock and made the gallery into a shining display case where one could look into and enjoy the beautiful scenery outside the gallery's opening hours.
Common Ground is a fantastical landscape that embodies the dream of a perfect hideaway. The olfactory, auditory and tactile experiences prevail the visitors´ mind to travel to an imaginary place: far away from the busy urban life. By being placed in the city, the trees take on a mythical status. The fragile living flora and fauna in this delicate forest draws your attention to the vulnerability of life. Common Ground offers a place to repose and inspires us all to rethink the relationship between nature and the built environment. (Curators: Mirey Yoshida & Henrik der Minassian)
