The solo exhibition of artist Tarik Kiswanson at Bonniers Konsthall: A tour into the world of his psychological state of mind

While walking down the street in Stockholm City and taking a glimpse up, various artistic posters hanging on the lamp posts came into my sight. One of them immediately drew my attention, showing a giant egg-like sculpture put upside down. The poster was promoting the first solo exhibition of artist Tarik Kiswanson at Bonniers Konstall, a contemporary art museum located close to the city centre. I can't hold myself from visiting there and seeing the art in real.

Tarik Kiswanson, Nest, 2020-2023

The exhibition space was filled with an enormous amount of white space under a high ceiling, which gave a sense of emptiness. In the first exhibiting room, a minimal and modernist-influenced built-in installation was located at one end. An unusual oval of geometric geometry named Nest was hung underneath the mezzanine floor. The surface texture of the oval was perfectly smooth—so smooth that it looks unreal. The shape gave the impression of eggs or seeds, evoking the ideas of "sheltering" and "becoming". 

Tarik Kiswanson, Cabinet, 2019

On the left side, an open but inaccessible room drew my attention to take a peep. Three metal filing cabinets were hidden inside on the mezzanine floor, titled Cabinet. They were carefully positioned in the white room without additional decorations. The cabinets could be interpreted as "irretrievable" or "lost archives" arguing that the administrative paper trail issued for our birth lasts longer than our lives and resembles the reflection of both life and death.

Tarik Kiswanson, The Fall, 2020

Later, a giant screen was placed vertically at the end of a long hallway. A video art titled The Fall showed a boy tipping on a school chair and falling backwards. It was filmed in extremely slow motion and looks almost like a frozen moment. The scene represented both the physical and psychological states of mind in the artist’s construction of identity in Sweden as an immigrant who fled from Palestine.

Tarik Kiswanson, Cradle, 2021

The main hall right next to the hallway showed the main piece, named Cradle. A giant monumental sculpture installed below the ceiling gives a strong impression of levitation. The sculpture consisted of a cocoon-like geometry attached underneath an Ikea baby bed. The sculpture metaphorically actualized the uprooted condition of the artists’ parents when they first moved to Sweden, the adaptation of culture and the transformation of their identities.

Tarik Kiswanson, Cradle, 2021 (Right)

Overall, the exhibition was curated at a remarkably high aesthetic level in terms of spatial design, including how and where the artworks were being arranged and placed. All the displayed artworks were strongly bonded to the artist’s origin, memories, and poetic thoughts that are tightly bound under the theme of levitation, revealing his perception of the past and the future in the present. On the one hand, the artist’s statement was clearly delivered through an abstract expression in physical forms. On the other hand, the exhibition taught us a lesson in understanding the conflict and difficulties of how an uprooted situation could be in art which showed us how fortunate and privileged we are without the necessity of facing these troubles. Nonetheless, whether you are passionate about contemporary art or not, the exhibition is absolutely unmissable and worth visiting.

TARIK KISWANSON / BECOMING
26/4 – 28/6, 2023

Bonniers Konsthall
Torsgatan 19
113 21, Stockholm

Notes:

https://bonnierskonsthall.se/en/utstallning/tarik-kiswanson/

All images captured by Didi NG Wing Yin