Professor Lise Autogena exhibiting in the John Hansard Gallery, Southampton
Professor Lise Autogena will exhibit her and Joshua Portway’s video installation Kuannersuit; Kvanefjeld (2016) as part of the major retrospective exhibition Pia Arke: Silences and Stories at the John Hansard Gallery, Southampton 16 January – 11 May 2024.
The exhibition includes film works that examine environmental issues and colonial legacy within present-day Greenland by contemporary artists working in various contexts across Greenland and Denmark today: Julie Edel Hardenberg, Inuk Silis Høegh & Asmund Havsteen-Mikkelsen, Arnajaraq Støvlbaek and Lise Autogena and Joshua Portway.
Kuannersuit; Kvanefjeld, 2016 (duration 29 mins) by Lise Autogena and Joshua Portway
Kuannersuit; Kvanefjeld portrays the dilemmas facing the small community of Narsaq in Southern Greenland. Narsaq is located next to the pristine Kvanefjeld, and surrounded by a UNESCO protected landscape. Kvanefjeld contains some of the world’s richest rare earth mineral resources deposits and is one of the largest sources of uranium. For generations the Kvanefjeld region has been Greenland’s agricultural centre. This way of life is threatened if Greenland approves proposals for a foreign owned open pit mine, which could become the fifth-largest uranium mine and second-biggest rare earth extraction operation in the world. The film portrays a community divided, reflecting the difficult decisions and trade-offs faced by a culture seeking to escape a colonial past and define its own identity in a globalised world.
Kuannersuit; Kvanefjeld portrays the dilemmas facing the small community of Narsaq in Southern Greenland. Narsaq is located next to the pristine Kvanefjeld, and surrounded by a UNESCO protected landscape. Kvanefjeld contains some of the world’s richest rare earth mineral resources deposits and is one of the largest sources of uranium. For generations the Kvanefjeld region has been Greenland’s agricultural centre. This way of life is threatened if Greenland approves proposals for a foreign owned open pit mine, which could become the fifth-largest uranium mine and second-biggest rare earth extraction operation in the world. The film portrays a community divided, reflecting the difficult decisions and trade-offs faced by a culture seeking to escape a colonial past and define its own identity in a globalised world.
>> Read more about Kuannersuit; Kvanefjeld research project
Lise Autogena established Narsaq International Research Station (NIRS) in 2020, which hosts scientific and cultural research projects in South Greenland. NIRS facilitates collaborations with local residents, schools and organisations to ensure that new knowledge developed in the region is shared and made accessible to the local community.
Still from ‘Kuannersuit; Kvanefjeld’ by Lise Autogena and Joshua Portway, courtesy of the artist
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