Getting arty in Stockholm: museum hopping

The Klint show at the Moderna Museet.

I’ve been in an arty mood lately. Not sure if it’s just a coming out of winter hibernation thing or if I am missing my former life as editor of The Artist’s Magazine. But any way I look at it, I’ve obviously been seeking out inspiration.

Last Sunday we checked out the shows at two of my favorite Stockholm museums: the Moderna and Fotografiska. First stop was the Moderna or modern museum. The exhibits were Hilma af Klint: A Pioner of Abstraction and Moment and also Le Corbusier’s Secret Laboratory. The Klint show was OK. I liked some of her huge abstract canvases, but overall they just felt more decorative than thought provoking. As for the Le Corbusier, there were a few interesting pieces, but I’m not sure if I found out what his secrets were!

Checking out the show.

That said, I did enjoy both shows overall and think they are worth seeing. Also worth a stop is the new bar tucked into the restaurant at the Moderna. It’s a good spot to enjoy a glass of wine at the end of an arty afternoon.

The Henri Cartier-Breeson Fotografiska show.

The next stop was the Fotografiska or photography museum. There’s a Henri Cartier-Bresson retrospective that has about 250 photos from his entire career, so there’s a look to look at. And Henri has such a knack for capturing intriguing slices of life in photographic form, so there’s a lot to ponder. And oh my it was good to be reminded of how gorgeous black and white photography can be in comparison to the digital stuff.

Also at Fotografiska is an exhibit by Ruud van Empel called Pictures don’t lie. He is another kind of photo artist–he collages together fragments of photos into an image of something that is perfectly realistic, but in reality has never existed. The photos have a paradise lost feel and are an interesting contrast to Henri’s classical style.