INTERVIEW SIRI BERG IN SWEDISH – BY CATARINA ASTROM

INTERVIEW SIRI BERG IN SWEDISH

BY CATARINA ASTROM

Datam�sskulor, kullager, delar av turbofl�ktar och bilr�cken. I konstn�rinnan Siri Bergs m�lningar v�cks gamla n�tta tr�tta bruksf�rem�l till nytt liv.

Fascinationen f�r industriprodukter f�ddes redan i slutet p� 70-talet. Det var p� den tiden n�r man kunde inhandla det mesta av sm�delar f�r 5 cent och upp�t p� Canal Street i New York. Konstn�rinnan Siri Berg kan knappast ha tillh�rt den vanliga kundkretsen. Kvinnor runt femtio inhandlandes sm� radiokretskort m�ste ha varit s�llsynta kunder redan p� den tiden. Idag skruvar hon med f�rtjusning is�r datorm�ss f�r att plocka ut dess kulor som utg�r styrverktyg. Dessa anv�nder hon sedan i sina m�lningar. Hon s�ger sig f�ngslad �ver hur de bjuder p� s� olika gr�a f�rgtoner och att dess kulform l�ter skuggorna falla s� vackert n�r de klistras fast p� duken. M�nstren hon skapar best�r ofta repetitioner, g�rna d� i grupp om fem g�nger fem. Fast kompositionen kan lika g�rna best� av bara ett enda f�rem�l. Olikheten mellan ensam och grupp �r ett vanligt f�rekommande inslag i Bergs m�lningar som visar att ensam ibland �r starkare �n en grupp, f�r att andra g�nger p�visa precis tv�rtom. Konstn�rinnan sj�lv s�ger att hon attraheras av att se skillnaderna mellan en och trettio av samma f�rem�l.

Bakgrunden och f�rem�let i sig sj�lv tillsammans med valet av de o�ndliga kombinationsm�jligheterna ger kompositionen till sist konstverkets helhet och djup, en process som kan ta m�nader. Alla element �r lika viktiga. Berg v�ljer med omsorg bakgrund efter f�rem�l. Vissa l�mpar sig b�st p� matta metalliska f�rger i koppar, guld och silver, Siri Berg s�ger sig ha en f�rk�rlek f�r just metalliska f�rger. Ibland l�ter hon flera f�rger komma till tals p� samma m�lning och upprepar m�nstret. Det faktum att m�nga av industrif�rem�len �r med och f�rst�r milj�n har gjort att hon �nnu mer k�nner att det m�ste finnas en annan sida av myntet. A beauty of life. Hon tycker sig ocks� ha gjort iakttagelser att vissa f�rem�l ter sig mer kvinnliga andra mer manliga.

Siri Berg tillh�r minimalisterna och har s� gjort �nda sedan hon inledde sitt m�leri p� 40-talet. Det var bara p� konstskolan i Bryssel som hon m�lade det hon blev tillsagd till. Uppv�xten skedde i Sverige, hon kom ocks� att tillbringa tid i Tjeckoslovakien.

Mitt under brinnande krig flydde den unga judinnan med en lastb�t fr�n Norge till USA, en resa som skulle kunnat sluta hur som helst om unga fr�ken Berg inte lyckats charma de unga nazisoldaterna n�r de genoms�kte b�ten.

F�rsta tiden i New York arbetade hon som s� m�nga andra konstn�rer med skyltf�nsterdekorationer, senare ocks� inredning. Steget att st�lla ut sina alster som under �rens lopp v�xt fram tog Siri Berg f�rst p� 70-talet.

Hennes fr�msta f�rebilder bland minimalisterna �r Eva Hesse, Sol Lewitt och Carl Andre och p� sistone har hon �ven l�rt sig att uppskatta Frank Stella som inte alls tillh�rde favoriterna tidigare. Det var f�rst n�r han st�llde ut i ruff garagemilj� som Siri Berg k�nde sig attraherad av hans uttryckss�tt som hon upplevde "wild", "busy" och industriell.

Minimalism �r ett uttryck som genomsyrar s�v�l Siri Bergs s�tt att skapa som hennes hem som ironiskt nog med tanke p� hennes f�rtjusning f�r industrif�rem�l ligger i just i en forna industribyggnad. L�ngt f�re inredningsreportagen bj�d p� minimalistiska avskalade hem i perfektionism levde konstn�rinnan under s�dana former. Skulle man gissa n�r man stegar in i hennes loft i Soho, vem som bor d�r hade f�rmodligen svaret blivit ett par i 30-�rs�ldern med intresse f�r trender. Stilen �r ungdomlig precis som det vilar n�got ungt �ver Bergs perfekta penseldrag i m�lningarna. P� v�ggarna h�nger en blandning av egna verk. �gonen dras genast till de gamla floppydiskarna som blivit till collage, uppklistrade p� svart veckad kartong. P� tio femton �r har de pl�tsligt f�rvandlats till mus�ef�rem�l och tanken att man faktiskt anv�nde dem p� fullt allvar f�r s� kort tid sedan k�nns hissnande. Men det �r inte bara synen av de bekanta diskerna som drar �gonen till en. Det �r minst lika mycket dess oregelbundna m�nster som f�r en att stanna till. Mitt emellan ituslitna floppydiscskivor ligger discskivor skyddade i sina fodral. S�rbarheten m�ter den skyddade v�rlden. Inte bara det, Siri Berg har fr�ng�tt sin egen princip med upprepande m�nster. Vad har f�tt henne att ta det steget undrar man. Svaret blir att det f�rst nu som hon k�nner sig redo f�r att bryta m�nstren. Att hon insett att precis som livet m�ste inte konsten best� av ett evigt m�nster av repetitioner som till slut bara kan leda till en enda sak – uttr�kning. Att v�ga bryta m�nstren har gett henne en positivare och mer avkopplande syn p� b�de sig sj�lv och sin konst, olikheten kan vara det vackra som f�r verket att sticka ut under f�ruts�ttningen att f�rem�len spelar v�l ihop.

Om det varit en kamp att ta steget fr�n upprepning till utbrytning har fenomenet knappast existerat n�r det g�ller att kasta sig mellan konstformerna. Siri Berg gillar f�r�ndringar, att g� fr�n stort till sm�tt, svart till vitt, collage till m�leri. P� samma s�tt brukar hon v�lja att presentera sin konst. Ofta blir h�ngningarna i sig rena installationer, d�r varje del har satts ihop under f�ruts�ttningen att de fungerar ihop. Men de ska ocks� t�las att ryckas loss fr�n sitt sammanhang. Varje del m�ste kunna st� �ven f�r sig sj�lv.

I m�lningarna i olja m�ter man strikta geometriska, matematiska kalkyleringar d�r kasten mellan f�rgerna kan vara b�de tv�ra eller fink�nsliga. P� senare tid har hon tilltalats av att l�ta f�rgskalan glida mer �ver i varandra n�got �ven naturen bjuder. Siri Berg visar p� ett tidningsurklipp hon gjort fr�n Irakkriget, en �kenstorm med en tanks mitt i. Hon h�ller f�r tanken och visar hur vackra f�rgerna kan vara. F�rgerna �r numera viktiga i hennes arbeten, �ven om hon s�ger att man m�ste akta sig s� man inte �verarbetar verken. Det g�ller att veta n�r man ska stoppa. Andra perioder har Siri Berg i stort sett enbart m�lat i svart och vitt. En f�rgskala som ist�llet bjudit p� utmaningen att ge m�lningarna en story med lekfullt matematiska inslag. Det var under den perioden som Big Bang kom till. En stor tjock ventilationsslang som m�lades vit och las i en plexiglasl�da. En av de f�rsta industri skulpturerna.

Collagen skapar Berg med hj�lp av sina japanska woodblockprint. En metod som hon l�rde sig av masterprintern Cathy Caraccio som studerat i Kyoto. Metoden g�r ut p� att man anv�nder tyngden fr�n armarna att pressa fram trycken. Valet av papper �r viktigt enligt konstn�rinan. Hon kan sj�lv tillbringa timmar med att v�lja mellan de b�sta. I trycken precis som i sitt m�leri f�redrar hon motsatser. Hon blandar vilt mellan starka m�nstrade papper och papper vars struktur n�stan �r hel sl�t. N�r tryckmetoden s�tter fart l�ter hon fantasin fl�da fritt. Det �r f�rst n�r trycken �r gjorde som sj�lva skaparprocessen inleds att s�tta ihop dem till kompositioner. Inte ens d� finns det tid f�r kalkyleringar om varf�r som de ser ut som de g�r. Slutsatserna i en skapelse kommer f�rst n�r verket �r klart och det finns tid att luta sig tillbaka en stund f�r eftertanke. Det �r d� som tankarna brukar dyka upp om vad konstverket egentligen kan t�nkas st� f�r. Innan dess handlar det mest om en inre kreativ process. N�got som ibland kan vara sv�rt f�r en konstn�r att f�rklara f�r sina k�pare. Samma fenomen tycks r�da n�r det g�ller vilket stadie konstn�ren kontra k�paren befinner sig. Konstn�ren vill helst s�lja sina egna alster medan k�paren mer tilltalas av verk som har n�gra �r p� nacken. Siri Berg ber�ttar om att hon till en b�rjan hade sv�rt att finna k�pare till sina "industriella" tavlor. Folk vill hellre kunna s�ga att de k�pt en ren m�lning, inte en m�lning som bestod av collage av gamla industrif�rem�l. Trenden har idag v�nt, eller s� �r det tiden som hunnit ikapp.

Livet f�r�ndras och tiden rinner f�rbi i ett rasande tempo inte minst i datav�rlden. Datorns ibland inte helt l�ttbegripliga v�rld har aldrig avskr�ckt konstn�rinnan trots att hon redan uppn�tt mogen �lder n�r datorn blev var mans redskap. Sj�lv har hon haft dator i tio �r och tar med intresse emot nyheter p� omr�det. �ven i hennes m�lningar har ju datordelar blivit tacksamma ingredienser, bland annat anv�nder hon sig av iconer som utg�r delar av datorns hj�rna, sm� microchips som n�r de �r utn�tta f�r nytt liv i Siri Bergs m�lningar.

INTERVIEW WITH SIRI BERG

Balls from computermouses, ball bearings, parts of turbo fans and car racks; these are some of the things that the artist Siri Bergs incorporates in her paintings; transforming anew old, worn-out industrial things and quotidian flotsam and jetsam.

Her fascination for products from the industry started in the late 1970s. It was then when you still could buy things for 5 cents and up at Canal Street in New York. Artist Siri Berg could hardly have been one of that area’s most common customers. A Lady over 50 and buying small radiochips must have been rare customer at that time indeed. Today, Siri Berg is still thrilled in unscrewing computermouses so she can get out the little ball inside that stears it. She later uses these in her paintings. She said she is fascinated that they all have different grey colors and how their shapes creeate shadows when she is glueing them on to her stretched canvases. The patterns she’s working with are very often repititious, often they are in groups of five. But her painterly composition could also consist of one piece. The difference between one and a group is very common in Siri Berg’s paintings, that shows that sometimes the isolated element is stronger than a whole group, other times it is the opposite. The artist herself says that she found it attractive to see how different one object is in comparision to thirty of the same thing.

The background and the object itself are formed into endless combinations that gives the composition its finality, a process that can takes months to create. All elements have the same value and are all very important. Siri Berg chooses her backgrounds with care, for some of the objects are better suited for matte metallic colors, copper, gold and silver, although Siri Berg say she has a predilection for metallic colors. Sometimes she lets more than one color be on the same work and repeats the pattern. The fact that many industrial objects have destroyed the environment doesn’t preclude that there must be another side to this coin – a beauty of life. She has also made the observation that some objects feel more female, other more male.

Siri Berg belongs to minimalism and has pursued this style since she started making art in the 40’s. It was only in the artschool in Brussels that she painted what she was asked to do. She grew up in Sweden and also spent some years in Czechoslovakia

Mitt under brinnande krig (I don’t know how to say that in English) the young Jewess was escaping to the US on a cargo-ship from Norway, a journey that could have turned for the worst if it wasn’t for the way Berg had charmed the young nazi soldiers when they searched the boat.

From her beginnings in New York she supported herself as many artists have done: window displayer, later she became an interior designer. This helped in exhibiting her artpieces.The minimalist artists that Berg has looked up to through the years are Eva Hesse, Sol Lewitt and Carl Andr�, and one that she has underestimated is Frank Stella, althgough she wasn’t very impressed by him in the beginning until he exhibited in a rough garage enviroment.

Minimalism is an expression that you not only find in Siri Bergs art, but her home is also very minimalist and perfectionist and has been for years, long before it became trendy to live like that. Berg’s style is very young and modern, the same ingredients that you feel in her perfect stroke of the brush in her paintings. On the wall hangs her own art works. The eyes go immediately to an piece made of old floppy discs that have been glued onto a black, crumpled cardboard. In a period of ten-fifteen years those discs have changed to became old museum pieces, and the feeling that only some years ago were used makes you feel dizzy how fast time really flies. But it is not only the view of the well known discs that draws your attention. In the middle of the disc you find that it has been fitted together with the protected disc on its cover. The vulnerable meets the protected world. Not only that, Siri Berg has deviated from her principes. What has made her take that step, you wonder? The answer is that she feels ready to break the pattern of repitition, exactly like life.

Daring to take risks has given her more positive and relaxing views of both her art and her life. Diversity has become beauty, which makes art unique.

If it has been a struggle to take the step from repitition and break out of existing art forms. Siri Berg has always loved to move from big and small, black and white, and collage and painting; in the same way that she chooses to display her art. Often she mixes collage and paintings with industrial objects as well as creating installations under conditions of interactivity. Yet, every piece is autonomous.

In Siri Berg’s paintings you meet strict geometric, mathematical calculations that stand in strong contrast between colors that can that be both harsh and discreet. Lately she has found it attractive to let the colors bleed together, something suggestive of nature. Siri Berg shows a clip from the Iraq-war, a tank in a desertstorm. She lays a hand over the tank and shows the beauty of its natural color. Color is now very important in her art works, but she reminds us that you have to watch it so you not overdo it. You have to know when to stop. In other periods she has worked in only black and white. Color Combinations suggest other challenges; and give her art pieces a story, often with mathematical jokes. It was under that period that Siri Berg created Big Bang, a big ventilation hose that she painted white and placed in a plexiglasbox. Tis was one of her first industrial sculptures.

Siri Berg has also created work with the help of Japanese woodblock prints; a method that she learned from masterprinter Cathy Caraccio, who studied in Kyoto. When printing with woodblocks you use your own hands to compress the prints. The choice of paper that she uses is very important, Berg often spends hours in the art store in order to choose what works best. When printing, as when painting, she prefers things that are in opposition. When she starts to print she lets her imagniation fly. There is no time for calculations as to how the piece is finally arrive at.; the process is an internally creative one. This strategy is sometimes hard to explain. The same phenomen seems to happen when it comes to selling an art work. The artist always wants to sell the latest work, buyers very often prefer work that is a few years old. Siri Berg explains that in the beginning, she found it was very hard to sell her industrial art works. People wanted to buy a real painting, not a painting that was a collage of old industrial objects. The trend has now changed, or is it that time has caught up to her work?

Life changes and time never stops ticking, not the least in the computer world. Computers and the technological world have never frightened the artist, despite the fact that she reached maturity when the computer became a household tool. Siri Berg bought her first computer more than ten years ago and is thrilled to learn news related to it. Computer parts have been an important element to her painting. She’s now using an icon from the computer’s brain, small chips, that very soon will no longer become useful. In Siri Bergs paintings, they get a second life.