Britt-Arnhild's House in the Woods

The giving of art

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I spent the morning at the National Gallery of Iceland.

And fell in love with a painting.
And its colours.

Veturlidi Gunnarsson made 
Winter Day in 1952 

I had never heard of this artist, and I can find very little about him on internet.
When I visited the gallery´s gift shop searching for a postcard of his painting there was none.
So all I have is the "forbidden" photo I took.

 

And the colours of the painting which I will keep in my heart.

 

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The exhibition I visited is called Winterscape.
Ad in the brochure I got when I bought my ticket, I read:
"...........in snow the earth often becomes much brighter than the sky, which is a reversal of the norm, affecting the earth as if were lit from below"

 

 

Iceland and Raykjavik are filled with tourists these days.
None of them found their way to the National Gallery while I was there.
I wonder if they know what they are missing....... 

Lunch at Harpa, the new concert house, and a birthday celebration.

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I have been to Iceland and Reykjavik many times. With family here, and a bed always ready, it is easy to go. My first visit was back in 1985, the summer Børge and Stina got married. We came over a huge group of us, from Norway, Terje and I with Torgeir 3 and Øystein 1, parents, siblings, aunt, uncles and friends. I think I fell in love with this unique country already that summer.

Later there has been other visits, baptisms, stops on our ways to and from USA, Àgúst acting in Oliver Twist......

Every time I come I love to go back to the old places I already know. Here I had coffee, there we bought an Icelandic sweather, here I met a penpal who took me sightseeing, there we bathed in a hot spring. But, as much as I like to memorize and relive the past, I love to find new adventures.
A perfect mix of old and new.

That´s what travels are all about, isn´t it?
At least it is for me.
Seek out the old. Meet something new. 

 

New since my last visit is Harpa, Reykjavik Concert Hall and Conference Center.

From the livingroom window in Børge and Stina´s penthouse appartment I can see the light shows through the hundreds of windows at night. Now I was curious to see this amazing building in daylight.

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I had been walking all morning, and decided to have lunch at Harpa. While I sat there, looking out the many windows, I suddenly saw a group of men outside.

I looked again.
Yes, it was my brother, and five of his Norwegian friends, from his youth.

Like me, one of them stopped to photograph the glass, the steel, the modern arcitecture.

Today is my brother´s 50th birthday.
An extra bonus for me to be here for the celebration.

A reception today,
and among the guests are five Norwegian friends from Børge´s youth.

The five friends + Børge has been out in the wilderness exploring Iceland, but they have also spent some time in the penthouse appartment.

Memories flowing.
I love to follow them, though my eyes of a big sister.
5 years their senior.

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Family.
Friends.
Memories.

 

Happy 50th birthday Børge. 

Backstage

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Lately I have been reading Macbeth several times, so I was well prepared when I arrived at The National Theatre of Iceland last night. I could not understand many words of the play, but I knew the plot. Still it was quite hard to follow last night´s story, where Àgùst played Macduff´s brave son.

Understanding or no understanding.
It didn´t matter much. My goal of coming here was to watch my nephew.
And I did. Oh yes, I did.

After the play Àgùst had promised to take me backstage.
Not at all an easy task, as everything on the scene was covered in blood.
Oh my! What a macabre play Macbeth is!

Àgùst had so much to show me,
and apparently he had told the other actors that he had a visitor
"Oh, you must be the aunt from Norway" 

Yes, I am the aunt from Norway.
The very proud aunt from Norway.

 

I am not Àgùst´s only fan though.
Embla, I think it is time the two of us start a fan club :-)

"Look tante BrittArnhild. Here is the blood we use when we are killed" 

 

Thank you Àgùst, Embla and Stine for a wonderful night.
I will be back for Àgúst´s next play!

 

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By the way, because of Àgùst´s long hair, some people believe he is a girl.
Take a look here to see his answer to that three years ago (Ardi, I am sure you remember it)

 

Traveling makes my blood boil

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It is official.
There is no doubt.

I was born a traveler.
I am a traveler.
I will always be a traveler. 

 

This trip to Iceland has been a dream for a long time. Three years ago, when Àgùst was acting in Oliver Twist at the National Theatre over here in Reykjavik, I came to see the play, and then I told Àgùst: "Every time you get a main role like this, I will come over and watch". So when he got one in Macbath, again at the National Theatre, I started to plan my trip. Then I got this bad cold and the sinus problems, and didn´t take the chance to book my tickets untill less than two weeks ago. 

Well, now my sinuses are fine  much better, and I AM HERE!

I spent the morning walking around in downtown Reykjavik. Nothing spesific in mind. Camera at hand. Cafés everywhere where I could sit down and have a cup, write a couple of postcard, work on my travel diary.

And funny colour combinations everywhere,
to seduce me. 

Can you imagine sitting here in the summer, eating sushi, watching tourists and boats, and an ever changing sky?

I will be back in Reykjavik in April.
May be the temeratures will be mild enough for an outdoor sushi then?

Three years ago, when I was here, the Concert Hall, Harpa, was under construction. This time I had my lunch, The Opera Singer´s Lobster Soup here.....

 

....... and I wrote your postcards :-)
Those of you who commented on the "post card post" and sent me your addresses, will soon have an image from Reykjavik in your mailbox.

 

 

Yes, it is official -

traveling makes my blood boil! 

Can it be the hot spings?

 

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The first photo: street art in Reykjavik, map of Iceland made by glass.
Three years ago I made a post about street art.
I could make another one any time. 

Iceland, here I come

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Photo: my htc smart phone, through the window,
from seat 30F 

Trondheim for tourists and blog readers

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Trondheim is awarded the best tourist destination in Norway,
with the highest rise in tourists and visitors last year.

I am not surprised.
Not at all.
If I lived anywhere else in the whole wide world,
I would put Trondheim on my destination list,
at least once a year.

Bakklandet Skydsstasjon is by Andrew in National Geograpic Traveler awarded the best cafe in 2012.
You can see his list here 

I am not surprised.
Not at all.
If I lived anywhere else in the whole wide world, 
I would put Trondheim on my destination list,
at least once a year....

....and then I would make sure to write my travel diary at
Bakklandet Skydsstasjon.

 

I love to share Trondheim with you.
Through all seasons.

Mostly through my blog,
but to my immense pleasure,
more and more of you are coming to visit.

The first blog readers to come will be here for a week in the beginning of February.

More appointments are made for other months.

 

But there is still a bed and times for coffee and photo walks for you.

 

I look forward to see you :-)

And after our walk,
I´ll of course take you here. 

Decorating House in the Woods style

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With Christmas stored away (read: all the 50+ nativity scenes safely and snug in boxes down in a basement cabinet) The Houdse in the Woods suddenly has space for other things.
My home will never make it to the interior magazines, my home is MY interior paradise, with room to play with my collections.

Like the old grandma Olga´s dresser in the inner hallway, which now has got a travelling theme.
A small collection of globes,
a few dolls collected around the world,
a travel book

A teacup (also a travel memory), with three red roses.

Three roses for the holy trinity.

In the name of the Father, the Son & the Holy Spirit.

God, show me the way,
and make me willing to walk it 

Artist Dates

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A long time internet friend of mine, Roz, the owner of Autumn Cottage, has created a facebook group, ArtistDates, and invited me as a member. The idea is based on Julia Cameron´s old book The Artist´s Way.

I don´t have the book and has not much of an idea what it is about,
but the week or so I´ve been a member of ArtistDates, has already been of inspiration.

For a long time I´ve had some tiny little ceramic bowls standing on my desk. I can never resist these bowls when I travel, and over the years I´ve got a great collection. Since autumn, a few of these bowls have contained seeds gathered from The Blue Garden, seeds waiting for me to make special envelopes for them.

A few days ago I wrote in ArtistDates that I was going to have an  artist date with myself over the weekend, and when we came home from church yesterday, the time was there.

What a relaxing afternoon.
Terje volunteered  to make dinner, so I had all the time in the world up in my studio.

One step led to the next, and soon I found myself sorting through drawers, cabinets and files in the studio. Now I know where I have EVERYTHING, and creativity can flow freely :-)

At night, before going to bed, I started another ccreative project, a new travel diary for 2012.....inspired by a photo I found from Eritrea 1999.

But that is a tale for another day.

 

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Do you ever have artist dates with yourself?

 

 

 

By the way, Julia Cameron´s book is high up on my book wish list......

Dating the sun

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Yesterday I wrote a post over in The Blue Garden about the first sun rays playing hide and seek in our garden after weeks away. We live south of the Arctic Circle, which means that we have sun all through the winter. The sun is very low though, and can be seen for only a short time. The House in the Woods is situated on a north faced hill, which means that there are a few weeks when the sun hides too well to shine though our windows.

But now it is back, for a short time it shines brightly and playful through my studio window, it has reached the wall in The Blue Garden,

and this morning, when we dressed in warm winter coats, scarves and hats to walk through the ice cold morning to church, it was shining through the small window in our hallway.

 

Just a tiny stripe of light, falling on the poinsetta and a miniature quilt,

but what a pang of joy and love of life it gave me!

 

We followed the sun rays,
from the miniature quilt and the poinsetta,
all the way to Kolstad church,

where today´s reading and preaching was about Jesus, God´s image to the world. 

Lunch break in the sun

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Our days are getting longer, lighter.
Slowly, slowly still, yet, I can feel the difference from day to day.
I am back to work, with the last rest of my cold as a daily companion,
and the few light hours of the day are mostly spent indoor.

Yesterday we had an all day meeting with the deans in our diocese. Lunch was at a restaurant not for from the Archbishop´s Palace, and while walking back there after the lunch, I decided it was time to take a few minutes in the cold, sunny January day, walking a detour through the cathedral park.

 

My only camera was my HTC Desire cell phone,
luckily today´s cellphone, even this "old" one from 2010, has
quite good cameras.

Both our bodies and our minds need light.
I am looking forward to longer, warmer days,
but even a few minutes in the bleak, cold winter sun,
makes a huge difference.

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Thanks a lot for your comments yesterday.
And thanks for your nice words about my English -
I am beaming :-)

The swans live in.............

Sorry Lorrie, they are not in Oslo,
nor are they in Denmark Susan, though I would love to be there at one of my brother´s concerts.
Wendy, no, they are not in Sweden,

but
Joan and Dagmar.....YES, they are from Iceland, from the small pond in the middle of downtown Reykjavik.

I am goind there next weekend, to celebrate my brother´s 50th birthday, and to see my nephew acting in Macbeth at the National Theatre.
Lucky me :-)

Do you remember Àgùst taking part in Oliver Twist two years ago?
I promised Àgùst then that I would come over ever time he got a big role to act, and an aunt can´t break a promise, can she?

 

Yes, Dagmar, please tell me why you knew?
You got a postcard from me two years ago, didn´t you?

And you will get another one now. I already have your address :-) 
Joan, will you please email me your address.

What about the rest of you?
Who else want a postcard from Iceland?
Please leave a comment, and then email me your address.

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My lunch break walk in the sun is over,
yesterday is over.
Today is Saturday, and it is time to pack away Christmas.