The Purpose of Art and Love

In the hands of Katrín Inga, the purpose of art and love becomes a counterforce to the endless cycle of political and cultural collisions in the world.

The work Your Virtual Reality in the Reality of Virtual Reality was created specifically for Gjörningaþoka (Performance Fog), held at the Reykjavík Art Museum – Hafnarhús in 2022, in connection with the exhibition Abrakadabra – The Magic of Contemporary Art.

As described in the exhibition text:

“Abrakadabra is a mysterious word associated with magic. It is very old, and its origin is unknown. It likely derives from the ancient language Aramaic and means: ‘What I say becomes reality.’ Isn’t that somewhat how artists work? They conceive ideas and bring them into being as artworks. The exhibition Abrakadabrareflects the themes found within the melting pot of contemporary life. What defines the art of today? What are the subjects, methods, materials, and challenges of contemporary artists?”

Within this framework, Katrín Inga invited visitors into a virtual exhibition space — a guided tour through art and life — where she unveiled both the passions, sufferings, and sacrifices of the artist in devotion to the muse.

The work Your Virtual Reality in the Reality of Virtual Reality functions both as a self-contained VR video performance and as a site-specific piece created in dialogue with the context and aims of Gjörningaþoka: the presentation of contemporary art. It exists simultaneously as a VR video and as a living sculpture — an installation within the exhibition itself.

The viewer experiences the VR work within the same physical space in which the video is presented, creating a dual perception of space. In this merging of realities, the viewer becomes a living sculpture within the exhibition.

The conversation that followed the viewing was based on the VR piece itself — a re-creation of a dream the artist once had, about the sacrifice of the artist.