Artist Talk & Work Residency: Nora Joung
Published
In her new project for Volt, which will take the form as a performance and an exhibition, Nora Joung uses legal documents from 1982 as a starting point to examine a court ruling which determined that it’s not illegal for politicians to break promises made to their voters.
At BEK Joung will record and mix voiceover for a video work, and in collaboration with Snorre Solberg, from whom she has commissioned the soundscape of the video, they will put together video and audio. Video and audio tracks are part of a larger installation that also includes several projections, and these she will work on synchronizing.
BEK will organize a lunch presentation of the project on Wed 23th, at 13.00. The exhibition Joung is working towards will be shown at Arna Industrihus in Ytre-Arna 30 October – 3 November 2019, and is curated by Marie Nerland as part of Volt’s program in 2019.
The textile company A/S Arne Fabrikker was the main employer and community organizer in Ytre Arna in Hordaland from it was founded in 1846 to it was demolished and closed down towards the end of the last century. Fattigvesen (supporting poor people), housing construction, church and health services were all linked to the factory. Then the company after some time with increased competition, extraordinary sales failure
and other depressive tendencies were abolished, creating unrest among the
employees. In a public meeting with the industrial workers, the then Minister of Industry for the Labor Party Government, Bjartmar Gjerde, gave what became perceived as a guarantee for the maintenance of 165 jobs. When what was perceived as a promise later was not fulfilled, three former employees filed suit against the state by the Minister of Industry to get compensation for lost work income. Joung’s project is based on the verdict in the appeal case where the plaintiffs lost the lawsuit against the state.
The project has received funding from Billedkunstnernes Vederlagsfond, the Arts Council Norway and BEK. Nora Joung has received Hordaland kunstsenter’s production grant from Bildende Kunstneres Hjelpefond. Volt’s programme in 2019 has received funding from Arts Council Norway, City of Bergen, Hordaland County Council (KUP) and Public Art Norway (URO).
Images above are videostills, including archive footage, an facsimiles.
About Nora Joung
Nora Joung works primarily with installation, video, performance and text. She’s educated at the art academies in Bergen, Gothenburg and Oslo. Joung works as an artist and critic, is on the editorial board of the small press H//O//F, and is one of four people behind the artist-run space Destiny’s in Oslo. Recent projects include Game of Life IV – The Prospect Cabinet at Kristiansand Kunsthall, and the performance Grini and Norway’s Futures at the Oslo Biennial.