Magnus Bärtås, “A Tower Taller Than Myself: A Brieftopian Experiment in a Prison”
What do prisons and museums have in common?
Having emerged historically at the same time, they are considered opposites, yet at their core they share a common trait: the principle of observation.
In one of his latest projects, Magnus Bartas works with inmates from the city of Kalmar in southern Sweden, where the prison and the local museum are located 500 meters apart. Over the course of six months, together with six inmates, the artist establishes a connection between the confinement of the prison and the openness of the museum, and they collaboratively create a work of art.
He describes the entire situation that arose as “brieftopian,” or a sudden opportunity to break a pattern and create something radically different.
Magnus Bärtås is an artist, writer, professor of fine arts, and head of research at Konstfak, working primarily with text, video, and installations. In 2010, he won the Grand Prize at the Oberhausen International Film Festival, and in 2024, together with Behzad K. Noori, he won first prize from the Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia at the same festival.
With the support of the Ministry of Culture.