Video installation 32′ loop
BAS Konsthall
16 September – 12 December 2023
Amidst his fragmented landscapes, Mats Hjelm beckons us to join him on his journeys to contemplate the intricate experiences of others and the complexities of understanding the world. As time flows through moving images on the screen, we may be reminded of the moments that have passed and that will not return.
”When today becomes yesterday, and tomorrow becomes eternity” as an oracle’s voice narrated in the film, Hjelm reflects and thinks through his lens to capture unconventional images from different places. The richness of his images intensifies as they accumulate to build scenes that evoke collages and create narratives, in an attempt to predict the future through the past – that moment when time blurs and all is seen simultaneously.
The work takes the audience on a poetic and melancholic journey through a range of captivating images without revealing the identity of the places that make up one world. The images in this four-channel video flow as a dystopian futuristic piece, their rich intensity unwavering. The Nigerian musician Tony Allen’s laid-back voice sings ’Don’t take the boat’ warning all who seek to cross the ocean in this perilous voyage, to reach the other side of the world.
The exhibition draws its name ’It Will Be’ from the poem’ 22nd Century’, which the artist borrowed from a song from 1970 by the musician Exuma who is a Bahamian visionary, humanistic philosopher, and people’s poet. In his poem, Exuma foresees the future both in the moment and through the past.
Mats Hjelm combines images, sound, music, and poems to transform a complex narrative into an immersive experience that remains a prophecy, and raises more questions than providing answers to our uncertain future.
Mats Hjelm captures unconventional images from various places, creating narratives that predict the future through the past. The exhibition titled ’It Will Be’ draws inspiration from the 1970 song ’22nd Century’ by musician Exuma, which foresees the future both in the moment and through the past. Hjelm’s immersive experience raises more questions than answers, transforming the work into prophecies about our uncertain future.
Abir Boukhari, curator
Image and editing: Mats Hjelm
Curator: Abir Boukhari/AllArtNow
Voice: N’gendo Mukii
Music and sound editing: Peter Adolfsson
Read Reviews:
Mats Hjelm at BAS Konsthall by Magnus Bons, Konsten.net, Nov. 4, 2023
Exhibition Views
Photo credit: Jean-Baptiste Béranger