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Archive for the ‘Magne’ Category

Magne planning opera about Julia Pastrana

Posted by Jakob S on February 8th, 2013
Ceremony for Julia Pastrana

Magne Furuholmen, Ute Meta Bauer, Laura Anderson Barbata and Jonas Bjerre standing by Julia Pastrana’s coffin.
Oslo, 7 February 2013.

Magne is now planning an opera based on the tragic story of Julia Pastrana. She was a Mexican woman, born in 1834, who suffered from hypertrichosis, a syndrome that gave her a very unusual appearance.

She would eventually be exhibited at sideshows around the world as “Bearded and Hairy Lady” and “The Apewoman”, until her death in 1860. Bizarrely, her body was then mummified and would continue to be displayed in public for more than one hundred years, until it somehow ended up in storage in Oslo. Now, in 2013, Julia’s remains are finally being returned from Norway to Mexico, where she will have a proper funeral.

Magne has personally gotten involved in the process of returning Julia Pastrana to Mexico. Yesterday he took part in a closed ceremony at Oslo University Hospital, along with Jonas Bjerre, Ute Meta Bauer and Mexican artist Laura Anderson Barbata, where the coffin was formally handed over to Mexican authorities, represented by ambassador Martha Barcena Coqui. The funeral will be held in Sinaloa, Mexico on Tuesday next week.

Julia Pastrana

Julia Pastrana

“The story of Julia Pastrana is one of the most fascinating stories I have ever come across, both as an artist and as a fellow human being”, Magne tells VG.

Together with Laura Anderson Barbata he is now planning to turn Julia Pastrana’s story into an opera:

“We want to make a rich, proud and ambitious production. We’re aware that there’s also a Hollywood movie being planned, but we’re hoping to tell the story in our own way. This is about how society responds to unusual people, how we treat people with handicaps. It’s such a strong story that an opera would be appropriate. It will be a celebration of her”, Magne says.

“Julia Pastrana used to sing opera, so I think it’s a good idea if they make this a worthy tribute to her”, ambassador Barcena Coqui says.

Article in English: newsinenglish.no
TV report from yesterday’s ceremony: Østlandssendingen

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In Transit book launch

Posted by Jakob S on February 7th, 2013
In Transit book launch at The Thief

Books on display at The Thief yesterday

The release of In Transit was celebrated with a book launch at The Thief hotel in Oslo yesterday. The publisher Forlaget Press has posted a gallery of photos from the event on Facebook, including Magne in conversation with Ute Meta Bauer and Håkon Harket (head of Forlaget Press).

There have also been a couple of interviews with Magne in the press this week. First in Aftenposten’s paper edition on Monday, which is also available online at aftenposten.no. And yesterday there was an interview in Dagsavisen, from which I’ve translated a few quotes below:

You’re known as a musician, composer and visual artist, and have now released a book about your art career. How does that feel?

– The book has been in production for a long time, and was supposed to be published in 2010. So it’s a relief that I’ve finally been able to finish it. The problem is that I’ve always had new projects in the works. Each time I came up with a new project, it was also a new addition to the book. Now In Transit is finally ready, as a summary of my career. This is the first book of its kind that has been published.

First? Are you planning more books about your art career?

– He he. Yeah, from now on I’ll put out a new book each year. No, I meant that this is a special book with an overview of most of the stuff I’ve made over the last 20 years. My previous books have been of the “artist book”-type, while this is a book that also includes interpretive essays written by art historians and others.

What are you working on these days?

– I always have various projects in the works. Right now I’m working on an exhibition that will open in London in May, plus a couple of Apparatjik projects. I’m also working on some interesting projects that will combine music and visual arts in new ways for me. I can’t say more at the moment, as we’re having some important meetings about it this week.

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First look at Magne Furuholmen – In Transit

Posted by Jakob S on January 22nd, 2013
A sample from In Transit (English edition)

A sample from Magne Furuholmen – In Transit
(English edition)

Although it was not supposed to be released until next month, the English edition of Magne Furuholmen – In Transit has now started shipping from at least one Norwegian online bookstore. I received my copy today. The Norwegian edition, however, still seems to be scheduled for February 14th.

At 400 pages long, this massive coffe-table book gives a detailed look at Magne’s most important art projects from 1993 to 2013, with an overwhelming amount of photos.

Edited by Stephanie von Spreter, Thor Arvid Dyrerud, Henrik S. Haugan and Magne Furuholmen, the book also features essays written by Mark Gisbourne, Ute Meta Bauer, Sune Nordgren, Richard Dyer, Selene Wendt and Per Hovdenakk. The photos have been taken by Lars Gundersen and 14 others, including Magne himself.

For anyone interested in Magne’s art, this book is a definite must-have.

The English edition can be pre-ordered from amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and amazon.de. If you are in Norway, the English edition can be ordered from haugenbok.no and bokkilden.no. The Norwegian edition (scheduled for February 14th) can also be ordered from haugenbok.no and bokkilden.no.

Update: there’s also a pre-sale on a-ha.com from 28 January – 6 February.

Here are a few previews of the book (click to enlarge):

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Apparatjik in Aftenposten K magazine

Posted by Jakob S on January 13th, 2013
The cover of Aftenposten K, January 2013

Magazine cover

Magne and a few other Apparatjiks are on the cover of the January 2013 issue of Norwegian culture magazine Aftenposten K. Inside there is an 8-page interview with Magne, Martin Terefe and Jonas Bjerre, which was done in connection with the apparatjik xmess extravaganza performance in Oslo last month.

According to the magazine, Apparatjik were recently asked to do a tour of the U.S., but they declined the offer.

“That’s because we only do the projects that we want to. Agreeing to do a tour means that you also have to be interviewed, you have to sell yourself, promote heavily. But then you’re suddenly doing what you wanted to break away from in the first place”, Magne says.

In the interview he also talks about how they prepared for the festival concert at Roskilde, by imagining that this was the first time anyone had come up with the radical idea of performing on stage in front of an audience.

But as we know, they have later played inside the cube again.

“The cube still exists. It’s a kind of refuge that we sometimes escape into. But it shouldn’t become an institution. It was exciting to see the [audience] reactions in the beginning, but now it’s become just another tool”, Martin Terefe says.

“That’s true. But I think that if we hadn’t performed inside the cube to start with, Roskilde would never have turned out as it did either. (…) Roskilde felt incredibly new and unconventional, because we emerged from the cube. However strange that may seem”, Magne says.

The magazine is now available on Norwegian newsstands and as an iPad edition.

Picture from Aftenposten K, January 2013

Magne, Jonas, Martin, Lowell and Rudolph
(Picture from Aftenposten K)

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In Transit book coming soon

Posted by Jakob S on January 12th, 2013
Magne Furuholmen - In Transit book cover

The new cover of the book

The long-awaited book In Transit, which provides an overview of Magne’s 20+ year career in visual arts, finally seems to have a confirmed publishing date; February 7th 2013 update: February 13th 2013.

First announced in December 2010, the book project has been delayed a number of times, but the Norwegian publisher Press now says it will be out next month.

A previous announcement described the book as follows:

“In Transit is the first complete presentation of his activities as a visual artist and brings us close to the creative process. This lavish book also includes all the most important artworks, like a Furuholmen “Greatest Hits”. In Transit shows why Magne F has become one of our most prominent international artists.”

In Transit will apparently be available in both an English and a Norwegian edition. The English edition can be pre-ordered from amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and amazon.de, while you can get the Norwegian edition from haugenbok.no and bokkilden.no.

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“Desembertoner” concert

Posted by Jakob S on December 23rd, 2012

Martin, Tini and Magne. Oslo Domkirke, December 21st.

Martin Halla and Tini Flaat Mykland performed the song “Falling Slowly” (by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová) at the “Desembertoner” concert in Oslo Domkirke on Friday, accompanied by Magne on piano.

Martin and Tini also did a couple of songs on their own; “Take It With Me” (Tom Waits) and “Wintersong” (Sarah McLachlan).

The whole “Desembertoner” concert can now be seen on TV2’s web-TV (subscribers only). “Falling Slowly” starts after 30 minutes.

Martin and Tini also performed two songs together on “God Morgen Norge” on TV2 on Thursday morning; “In The City” and “Falling Slowly”. There’s a video clip here.

Magne is producing the upcoming debut albums of both Martin and Tini, together with Martin Terefe.

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Martin Halla talks debut album

Posted by Jakob S on December 16th, 2012

Martin and Magne at a rehearsal
for The Voice, May 2012

Martin Halla has been interviewed by Aftenposten in connection with the upcoming Desembertoner concert, where he’ll be performing together with Magne.

His debut album is soon to be completed, he says:

“The recording process is almost finished. I’m going back to London in January together with my producers Magne Furuholmen and Martin Terefe, to add the final touches.”

– How will the album sound?

“Well, the music is a kind of… not indie, not pop, not rock, but something in between. With some jazz on top.”

The album is planned for release sometime in the spring of 2013.

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Magne seals time capsule

Posted by Jakob S on December 15th, 2012

Magne welds the final lid on the time capsule sculpture

Magne was at the National Archives in Oslo yesterday, to seal the final box in the time capsule project Til Ungdommen (see earlier news stories here and here).

Magne’s sculpture consists of 30 layers of aluminum on top of each other, made to resemble archival boxes. They contain letters from students all over Norway, who have shared their thoughts about the events of 22 July and about Norway today and in the future.

The sculpture also features a lot of words that students have punched into the aluminum plates.

“One thing I really liked about this project, was that it wasn’t my own project. It was a project that I could help facilitate, but was basically driven forward and completed by the students themselves”, Magne told Aftenposten.

The time capsule will remain sealed until 2031.

More pictures can be seen on Facebook and Instagram.

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“apparatjik xmess extravaganza”

Posted by Jakob S on December 12th, 2012

Picture from YouTube video. Magne on the left.

Magne was at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Oslo yesterday, as Apparatjik hosted a very different Christmas concert entitled apparatjik xmess extravaganza: santa bells bob.

Based on the Apparatjik installation Everybody is a composer, where the movements of museum visitors were recorded and turned into music, the composition was performed by the boys choir Sølvguttene. You can see a video clip from the performance on YouTube and a gallery on Flickr (by Alyssa Nilsen).

“This is a Sølvguttene Christmas concert, done Apparatjik-style. We’re calling it a “xmess extravaganza” because we prefer big words over smaller words. They are easier to notice”, Magne told Aftenposten.

“For us this is definitely a form of extreme sport, a musical meeting between anarchy and strict order. But the kids just think this is fun. They don’t care as much about following familiar patterns as adults do, and like trying new things”, the choir’s conductor, Fredrik Otterstad, said.

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“Desembertoner” concert on TV2

Posted by Jakob S on December 6th, 2012

As previously mentioned, two “Desembertoner” Christmas concerts will be held at Oslo Domkirke on December 21st, where Magne is one of the musicians taking part. He will be performing together with Martin Halla and Tini Flaat Mykland from The Voice.

TV2 in Norway has now announced that it will broadcast a 1-hour version of the concert the following day, on December 22nd at 22:10. It will also be repeated on December 29th at 12:45.

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