Symposium | In Focus: Artist Retrospectives

Registration is required, but attendance at the symposium is free of charge.

Friday, 20 November, 1:00–5:30 PM
Multipurpose Room, Reykjavík Art Museum, Hafnarhús

1:00–1:05 PM
Sigurður Trausti Traustason
Introduction to the conference theme.

1:05–1:45 PM
Jessica Baxter
(Not) My Major Retrospective: Curating Narratives of Trauma, Defiance and Recovery in Tracey Emin’s A Second Life at Tate Modern
This presentation will explore different approaches to curating an artistic output as rich and multifaceted as Tracey Emin’s, while examining the creative possibilities and limitations of the ‘retrospective’ model in a major national museum. How should curators approach artistic content that fearlessly confronts the gender-based violence and patriarchal conditions that have shaped an artist’s lived experience? Can – or should – a museum construct multiple, canonising chronologies through an artist’s career? And how might an exhibition narrative engage audiences both familiar and unfamiliar with an artist’s work? This talk will consider the curatorial research and decision-making process for Tracey Emin: A Second Life, the dynamics of working closely with a living artist, and the process of adapting the exhibition with the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art for a new Nordic context.

Jess Baxter is Assistant Curator of International Art, Tate Modern, where she worked on Tracey Emin: A Second Life (2026), Leigh Bowery! (2025) and A World in Common: Contemporary African Photography (2023), as well as multiple collection displays and photography acquisitions. She was one of the British Art Network’s Emerging Curators for 2023-24.

1:45–2:15 PM
Markús Þór Andrésson
Expedition to X
Since 2017, ten mid-career retrospective exhibitions have been presented at Kjarvalsstaðir in autumn. This presentation will examine the exhibition series and the diverse approaches that have been taken in developing the same fundamental retrospective concept. Particular attention will be given to the role of the curator, the museum, and the wider professional art environment.

Markús Þór Andrésson (b. 1975) is Director of the Reykjavík Art Museum, a position he assumed in 2025 following eight years as the museum’s Chief Curator. He studied at CCS Bard College and has worked as a writer, curator, and filmmaker. His work has focused primarily on Icelandic artists and art history. He oversees the museum’s operations across its three locations and is also responsible for projects relating to public art in Reykjavík.

2:15–2:35 PM
Coffee Break

2:35–3:05 PM
Brynja Sveinsdóttir
Variations on a Familiar Theme
Approaching retrospection through exhibitions of works by Gerður Helgadóttir (1928–1975), Barbara Árnason (1911–1975), Hörður Ágústsson (1922–2005), and Valgerður Briem (1914–2002) at Gerðarsafn, 2024–2026.

Brynja Sveinsdóttir has served as Director of Gerðarsafn since 2021, having previously worked as the museum’s Exhibition and Collection Manager from 2015. She studied Art History, Philosophy, and Applied Cultural Communication at the University of Iceland, and Curating at Stockholm University.

3:05–3:35 PM
Dagný Heiðdal Retrospective Exhibitions at the National Gallery of Iceland Retrospective exhibitions surveying the careers of individual artists, both living and deceased, have occupied an important place in the exhibition history of the National Gallery of Iceland since 1955. This presentation will focus particularly on the museum’s retrospective exhibitions of the past twenty-five years, their preparation, and their scope.

Dagný Heiðdal is an art historian and Registrar at the National Gallery of Iceland, where she has worked since 2002. She trained as a history teacher at the University of Iceland and holds an M.A. in Art History from Lund University.

3:35–4:05 PM
Harpa Björnsdóttir
At the Margins: Retrospective Exhibitions of Icelandic Naïve Artists
Harpa Björnsdóttir has, alongside her own artistic practice, worked extensively across the Icelandic visual arts and cultural sector, including as a curator, project manager, researcher, and advocate for self-taught and outsider artists. Over the years, she has organised numerous exhibitions of naïve artists, including at Gerðuberg Cultural Centre, the Icelandic Folk and Outsider Art Museum (Safnasafnið), the National Gallery of Iceland, and the Reykjavík Art Museum.

4:05–4:35 PM
Sigrún Inga Hrólfsdóttir
A Research Fellowship on the Role of Women in Icelandic Art This presentation will discuss the three-year research fellowship on the role of women in Icelandic art, established by the Reykjavík Art Museum in collaboration with the Department of Art History at the University of Iceland. Particular focus will be given to the first research project, in which Sigrún Inga Hrólfsdóttir examined the career of Hildur Hákonardóttir.

Short Break
4:40–5:30 PM

Panel Discussion: The Role of Retrospective Exhibitions Today Participants
• Jessica Baxter
• Markús Þór Andrésson
• Brynja Sveinsdóttir
• Dagný Heiðdal
• Harpa Björnsdóttir
• Sigrún Inga Hrólfsdóttir
A panel discussion on the role of retrospective exhibitions in contemporary museum practice, their value as a research tool, their impact on artists’ careers, and their place within the work of art museums.

5:30 PM
Closing Remarks and Reception
A summary of the day’s discussions followed by light refreshments.