Arngunnur Yr: Les Barricades Mysterieuses

At the most apparent level, Arngunnur Yr paints landscapes evocative of her native Iceland. Actually, they are more skyscape; the horizon line is near the bottom of the paintings, and the land is, at most, a bump of mountain in the distance. The effect is one of atmosphere and mood, rather than a description of place.

And our place as viewers is put into question. It is unclear whether we are situated on solid ground or a boat at sea. The churning clouds above seductively anticipate a glimpse of the celestial. But they could just as easily threaten an oncoming storm. The unsettling, ambiguous, and contradictory nature of this work invites compariso to the interior emotional landscapes we each inhabit.

The title of the exhibition, which translated means Mysterious Barriers, comes from a musical composition by Francois Couperin (1668-1733) written for the harpsichord. The Baroque qualities of Couperin’s music are echoed in Yr’s vast and exultant skies. The enigmatic aura of the work is alluring, but ultimately hinders full comprehension or definitive answers.