Sverre Bjertnæs

Sverre Bjertnæs, born 1976 in Trondheim, is considered one of Norway's most important and central contemporary artists. During the last ten years, he has also made a name for himself on the international art scene with works that are characterized by a poetic processing of existential themes based on an autobiographical content. He has apprenticed with some of Norway's best-known figurative artists. In the period 1989-93 he was a student of Tore Bjørn Skjølsvik and in the years 1993-94 of Odd Nerdrum, then he studied for four years at the Norwegian Academy of Fine Arts in Oslo under Arvid Pettersen and Jan Sæther. His first solo exhibition was in Bjarne Melgaard's gallery Norsk Anarkistisk Fraksjon (NAF) in the year 2000. Afterwards, Bjertnæs collaborated closely with Melgaard, they shared a studio in New York and held four exhibitions together during this period. It was definitely a turning point, from the figurative to the more fluid and spontaneous in several genres and techniques. From working with figurative painting based on photographic representations, Bjertnæs has since turned more towards complex installations and multimedia

Why is Sverre Bjertnæs Interesting?

In Bjertnæs' work, one finds a strong interest in exploring and clarifying the dialogue-based starting point of the creative process, whether it is about art historical material or the collaboration with other visual artists, directors, actors or writers. Through the use of literary and art historical references, a distinctive, polyphonic dramaturgy is created.