Legacy of Sigmund Aarseth

September 30 - November 13, 2022

G. Bernhard and Johanna Fedde were founding members and instrumental in the establishment of the Scandinavian Heritage Foundation in 1985, now Nordic Northwest. Throughout their lifetime they were generous with their resources, knowledge and leadership to promote Nordic heritage and culture. Johanna and Bernhard Fedde were avid art collectors. They collected many paintings by Norwegian artist Sigmund Aarseth. A letter written by Johanna was found in her estate detailing her discovery and love of his paintings.

Sigmund Aarseth was born in Hjørundfjorden on the west coast of Norway in 1936. He developed a range of decorative styles derived from Rosemaling and other traditional decorative painting techniques. He preferred to paint directly from life, so throughout spring, summer and fall he spent the majority of his time outdoors, capturing the ever-changing light and seasons on canvas. Sigmund exhibited all over Norway, as well as in Sweden, Iceland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, England, Spain and the U.S.

See the virtual tour here: https://app.lapentor.com/sphere/aarseth

Crafts of Christmas at Nordic Northwest Exhibit

November 19, 2022 - January 1, 2023

This season, we are highlighting the crafts of the Nordic countries that mark the Christmas season. Crafts are an important part of celebrating the Christmas season in the Nordic countries. Often derived from traditions that have existed for hundreds of years, the Nordic countries are known to go all-out on their celebrations of Christmas. From the Jul Hearts of Denmark or the Gävle straw goats of Sweden, craft traditions from these countries ring in the season. Come to Nordic to see a spectacular display and a chance to learn more about each of the countries’ traditions!

New Nordic Cuisine

January 9 - March 27, 2023

This exhibition focuses on a Nordic value-driven food system that has captured the attention of world-famous chefs and home cooks alike over the past 15 years.
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The 2004 Nordic Food Manifesto articulated a set of values for approaching food through the lenses of local production, seasonality, ethical production, and innovation. The manifesto has sparked a robust dialog about food culture, both in the Nordic countries and around the world. By examining Nordic food trends in a light-hearted, interactive format, this exhibition introduces visitors to contemporary Nordic food and its driving values today.
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Accompanying the exhibition is the Nordic Cuisine YouTube channel, which brings stories to people from recipe demonstrations to restaurant tours, to interviews with influential chefs and foodies.
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This exhibition was organized by the Museum of Danish America, Elk Horn, Iowa.

This exhibition is sponsored by Scan | Design Foundation.

Tattoo: Identity Through Ink

April 1 - July 1, 2023

For more than 5,000 years, tattoos have been used to document the history of humanity one painful mark at a time. Spanning cultures and continents, tattooing has adorned European nobility and Native Americans, celebrities and Scandinavian sailors, punks and presidents, and seemingly everyone else in between. Today, tattoos have never been more popular. Tattoos are so much more than decoration. Tattoos are a powerful visual language of the skin, and, like texts, they permanently record memories, life stories, and personal achievements.
Tattoo: Identity Through Ink tells the story of tattoos and the people who have them. We’ll explore the ways individual and group identities are formed, reinforced, and celebrated through tattoos. Of course, there is a Scandinavian connection–with celebrated artists like Norwegian Johan Frederik Knudsen and Norwegian-American Amund Dietzel, the question of whether or not Vikings had tattoos, and the rise of a whole modern Neo-Nordic style of tattooing. But the exhibition also allows us to explore more deeply the traditions of body ornamentation in other cultures and our connections to them.
The exhibit is curated by renowned anthropologist Dr. Lars Krutak. Krutak is a Research Associate at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He has authored four books on the subject of indigenous body modification and produced and hosted the Discovery Channel series Tattoo Hunter. In this exhibition, Krutak shares his ongoing journey to understand how ancient and more contemporary tattoos “make” the people who wear them.
This traveling exhibit is organized by Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School and made possible by the generous support of Jon and Mary Hart.