Gesture of Defiance (2022)

Exhibited in the GSA MFA degree show, Florence Street School (Glasgow, UK)

Gesture of Defiance is an interactive installation where the audience were invited to trace a historical one-man protest in Iceland and project their own political anger onto targets. The targets were based on a historical photograph of the aftermath of the protest. The work stood for 9 days and collected stains.

Exhibition text:

In 1972, in an opening ceremony of Parliament in Iceland, Helgi Hóseasson demonstrated his frustrations by splashing skyr over the president, ministers and bishop as they walked into Parliament. A carpenter, anarchist and social outsider, Helgi Hóseasson had publicly fought against various issues. One of the more personal being him wanting the church to revoke his baptism, as he resented that it had been done without his consent. This public yet personal gesture of acting out against authority had not been seen before in Iceland, producing this iconic image in the aftermath.

You are invited to trace Helgi’s actions and vent your own frustrations:

• Pick up the bucket of skyr

• Think of an authority figure that has made you angry

• Use the spatula to throw skyr at the targers