TORBJØRN RØDLAND

Torbjørn Rødland’s portraits, still-lifes and landscapes were first developed “In the Norwegian Landscape”– born Stavanger 1970, and educated at Bergen Art Academy. He now lives and works in sunny Los Angeles, California. 

“Over the years, Rødland has created a body of images in which precision and critical rigour co-exist with an erotic, improvisational intensity that evades the reach of language. This standoff between intellectual and intuitive modes of perception places the unpredictable physicality of the world at the centre of his work. Rødland’s approach to image-making – using analogue photography in staged set-ups – draws attention to the constructed nature of the image, while leavings open the potential for unexpected outcomes. That his images hold the viewer’s gaze is not only the result of a pleasure in the act of looking, but also the indirect, uncertain nature of their messages.”

Hans Ulrich Obrist & Yana Peel text on the occasion of “The Touch that Made You”, solo exhibition at Serpentine Galleries, London, 2017 

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When asked the question, what does an image consist of, Rødland's answer was: "Layers upon layers of perception and identification." What we see, what we had already seen and what can now not be unseen. What we know, what we already knew, and what can now not be unknown. Who we are, who we were, and who we can now no longer remain. 

Torbjørn has had five exhibitions at STANDARD (OSLO) since joining the gallery in 2007. 

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