Anneli Furmark: You Are the Centre of the Earth
October 9, 2026–April 4, 2027
Umeå 903 33
Sweden
Nina Mangalanayagam: Blank Pages
October 9, 2026–April 4, 2027
Drawing on photography, film and sound installation, Nina Mangalanayagam explores questions of belonging and composite identities, often with an autobiographical approach. At Bildmuseet, she presents new works about Sweden’s colonial past and its relevance today. In the exhibition Tomma ark [Blank Pages], we encounter traces from the Swedish colony of Saint Barthélemy, taking the position of the ‘free Black’ woman as a starting point. Mangalanayagam draws on the story of Ulrica, a woman from the archives, to explore this elusive position in Swedish history. Working through the archives’ fragments and gaps, the artist connects contradictory narratives and offers fresh perspectives on colonial history and how it shapes contemporary society.
Mangalanayagam’s artistic research is largely based on the work of historian Fredrik Thomasson and the archive material that he and his research team have made available. Sweden’s physical colonial archives are held in the French National Overseas Archives in Aix-en-Provence, and are fragile and difficult to access. As part of her investigations, Mangalanayagam has visited archives in Sweden and France, as well as the island of Saint Barthélemy. In her research, she reflects on history through what she has encountered in these locations, and on how historiography has shaped the island and Sweden’s self-image.
Nina Mangalanayagam (b. 1980) grew up in Sweden, with Danish and Sri Lankan roots. She studied photography at the Royal College of Art in London and has a doctorate in artistic research from the University of Westminster. She works as a senior lecturer at HDK–Valand Academy of Art and Design at the University of Gothenburg, where she also conducts her research.
Nina Mangalanayagam / Blank Pages is produced by Bildmuseet, Umeå University, and runs until April 4, 2027. The exhibition is part of a research project at HDK-Valand, funded by the Swedish Research Council. Curator: Cecilia Andersson.
Anneli Furmark: You Are the Centre of the Earth
October 9, 2026–April 4, 2027
Anneli Furmark’s works, graphic novels as well as painting, often explore the ways people relate to one another, to the landscape, and to the place. Her narratives frequently unfold in northern settings, with particular attention to houses and built environments. Bildmuseet presents drawings, comics, paintings and sketchbooks from the past fifteen years. Also on view is a film created especially for the exhibition, in which actors give voice to short stories from Furmark’s graphic novels.
Anneli Furmark (b. 1962) grew up in Luleå in the North of Sweden and is based in Umeå. In 1997, she graduated from the Umeå Academy of Fine Arts at Umeå University, and has since worked across painting, comics, drawing and writing, producing books and exhibitions as well as commissioned illustrations. Her first collection of graphic short stories, Labyrinterna och andra serier [The Mazes and Other Stories], was published in 2002. She has since published eleven books, two in collaboration with other authors, and has contributed to many anthologies and magazines.
Her 2020 novel Gå med mig till hörnet [Walk Me to the Corner] follows Elise and Dagmar and an unexpected love at a time in life when they thought calmness would prevail. Her latest book, the short story collection Kattflickan och andra berättelser [Catgirl and Other Stories], 2024, revolves around unforeseen and slightly eerie events, featuring characters at different stages of their lives and in different time periods.
Several of Anneli Furmark’s works have been translated into French and English. Gå med mig till hörnet [Walk Me to the Corner] has also been published in several other languages, including Finnish, Spanish and Tamil. Her books have won the Swedish Comics Association’s Urhunden Prize on four occasions, and have been included in the official selection for the annual Angoulême International Comics Festival in France.
The exhibition Anneli Furmark / You Are the Centre of the Earth is produced by Bildmuseet, Umeå University, and runs until April 4, 2027. Curator: Brita Täljedal
