Between 2024 and 2028, the Danish-Swedish visual artist Kerstin Bergendal is carrying out a concept- and time-based public art project at Götaplatsen in Gothenburg, commissioned by the Traffic Administration Office and in collaboration with Göteborg Konst, the Cultural Administration of the City of Gothenburg.

METHOD AND FORM

Götaplatsen holds a special position in Gothenburg. It is perceived and used as a fixed emblem of the city itself. Kerstin Bergendal has chosen to base her work on the fact that there are already vast amounts of images, ideas, literature, and research about Götaplatsen. Therefore, she has divided her work into several phases.

STEP 1 – Collection

The first step is a broad collection phase – a kind of "preliminary study."
The artist searches for, collects, and reuses parts and fragments from the extensive materials found in archives and research on Götaplatsen.

She is particularly looking for ideas and concepts that have contributed to the place’s current form and role in the city – plans, thoughts, structures, as well as technical and economic history.

At the same time, she looks for collaborators. She walks through the city, documenting what she sees and the conversations she has along the way. She seeks out individuals, professions, platforms, and organizations in Gothenburg that can offer further insight. Simultaneously, she listens to residents, whose memories and stories of the place can be woven into and illustrate the project’s focus.

Website as Archive

A website will gradually take shape alongside the artist’s work. It will function as a kind of travelogue or slow mapping of the city and the site. Here, the artist will introduce others’ images and perspectives on the city. But these borrowed viewpoints in the archive will be retold in her own words, photographs, or videos.

Gothenburg residents will be able to follow the artist’s journey into the "root system" of the place – and get an opportunity to rediscover the all-too-familiar aspects of their own city and their own space.

Public Conversations

During the process, the artist invites interested Gothenburgers to participate in conversations about the aspects she has chosen to focus on. The first talk was held together with author Marit Kapla on the staircase stage of the City Library in March.

The next conversation will be a series hosted in the Main Foyer of the City Theatre. Additional talks and events are planned in collaboration with libraries and cultural centers in various districts of Gothenburg. The goal is to establish and maintain a broad public dialogue and reflection on Götaplatsen – with different audiences, in different parts of the outer city.

STEP 2 – Artistic Result

The second step is to transform the collected material into a permanent artwork. The work will be added to the existing art at the site as part of the renovation of Götaplatsen in 2028.

However, the exact nature of the artwork will not be determined until the first step has been completed.