FAITH
Light is of tremendous importance to one of the Faroes’ most powerful colourists, Torbjørn Olsen who uses it to tremendous effect in his expressively moody paintings of Tórshavn looking towards Nólsoy. Olsen has produced a large number of effective portraits as well as larger figure compositions such as altarpieces in several Faroese and Danish churches where his use of vivid colours emphasises the drama of a particular biblical reference, depicted both figuratively and abstractly.
Although the style of Sigrun Gunnarsdóttir is totally different, a blend of both the naive and symbolic, she also deals with Christian motifs in extremely simple imagery, which can often focus on a solitary figure or a bird set against a solid grey or brown background. Floating, surreal pictorial elements may also play a role, yet these images give an impression of being grounded and heartfelt.
Anker Mortensen employs the abstract tradition of painting in his work and coins poetic-sounding titles that help emphasise the intangible nature of painting. In recent years, Mortensen has specially cultivated the register of the colour blue which forms a kind of spiritual and/or poetic filter through which childhood experiences, poems and faith are transformed into artwork.