When Venke saw the place, she immediately fell in love with it and decided to buy it. The renovation, which has brought the 1950s fish-manufacturing factory back to its original state, was not easy however. “If I would have known on beforehand how hard it would be, I would have never started this,” she says laughing. “I never really had the idea of starting an art centre. It happened spontaneously. It is a typical snowball effect,” she says with a metaphor that suits the environment.
Bjarne Melgaard, EXPECTED / UNEXPECTED. Selected works 1995 – 2015.
In 2010, Venke organised a pop-up exhibition of the Norwegian graffiti artist Dolk. “It was a huge success! So I decided to start organising exhibitions here.” Since then, Kaviar Factory brings one exhibition a year. Often – but not exclusively - with works from the couple’s collection, including internationally acclaimed artists like Elmgreen & Dragset, Shirin Neshat, Ai Weiwei and Banks Violette.
The present show is a solo of Norwegian bad boy Bjarne Melgaard, known for his paintings with expressionistic, wild brushstrokes and a high portion of sex, drugs and rock & roll. In spring 2016, there will be a group show with around 30 artists from all over the world, including Cindy Sherman, Roni Horn, Tamuna Sirbiladze and Marguerite Humeau.
exhibition view SPEAK THROUGH ART (2014)
In only a couple of years, Kaviar Factory has established a firm reputation, attracting art lovers from all over the world on an artistic expedition through the North. That should not come as a surprise: the location is breathtaking and Kaviar Factory is definitely one of the most impressive art centres we have visited.