Theory as Art

Antoher one of those hard-to-avoid Scandinavian artists is Lars Vilks. Though his level of international success has been no better than moderate, he remains an important figure, primarily on the Swedish art scene.

Vilks is unfortunately rather inaccessible unless you read Swedish, since a lot of his impact – not to say most of his impact – has been as a critic and a theorist. His essays and texts, published in abundance on vilks.net, are very much art in their own right – theory as art, so to speak. As a theorist he has one of the sharpest minds and wittiest pens. His How To Become A Contemporary Artist In Three Days is already a classic.

His most important work of art with a physical manifestation is Nimis, a collection of driftwood made into a strange construction with a hammer and nails. Vilks started building Nimis in 1980 and it continues to develop with each year.