FFF #5 – Reykjavik Museum of Photography and Iða Book-Cafe
This weekend’s Fake-Football-Fanclub outing (#5!) got postponed from the originally scheduled time on Saturday because we decided on a whim to have Finnur take the big kids to a technology-show in downtown Harpa instead.
Come Sunday, I was suffering from acute cabin fever, so when the opportunity presented itself, I just headed out to do my thaaang, even though it was late in the day.
On the schedule was checking out the second part of the show “From a Different Angle…” (Betur sjá augu…), see FFF #3 for the first part. The second part of the show was much smaller than the first part, and somewhat less interesting. That may just be because I have a preference for photos of people though. 🙂 (48 images total)
Driving to downtown Reykjavík at 4 pm.
Harpa, which I have conflicted feeling about. I can’t say that I like the outside of the house very much, but the red main concert hall is gorgeous and carries sound beautifully.
By the harbor. Hello pretty moon.
This house contains the Main Reykjavik Library, as well as the The Reykjavik Municipal Archives, and Reykjavik Museum of Photography.
Complicated opening times.
Beloved characters from Icelandic children’s books by Sigrún Eldjárn.
The museum is up on the top floor. I was surprised by how many people were in the museum shortly after 4 pm. Most of them were leaving as I was arriving though.
Cool snow photos. The photos in this part of the exhibit were all ‘landscape and/or environment’ themed.
Photos from 1882-ish. Icelandic houses were really crappy in the olden days.
Solar eclipses and more by Anna Þórhallsdóttir.
The museum display space is pretty small, much smaller than at the Icelandic National Museum anyway.
Hrefna remembers to take a selfie.
Sheep being herded, a greenhouse lighting up the environment, and a lakeside moment – all pretty friendly.
There was a little side-show going on in this little backroom. It had a projector, which rolled through a slideshow of images by Vincent Malassis called Petites Pauses. They were considerably more ‘male’ than the photos in the main show. Women take very few pictures of cars, they seem to like houses more.
A few people entered after I did.
Photos from 1973, while they were building a neighborhood of social housing. Yes, parts of it soon became quite the ghetto. We lived close by until I was 8 years old.
The view out the window as I was making my back out again.
Sigh. I apparently missed the 3-day long ‘Photography days’ program entirely by a day.
A small nook contained a small side-show, called BehindBehind by Elo Vázquez.
“There is a branch there. Get behind it. Take a picture. Share it somewhere.” #behindbehind. I thought it was pretty meta to have a person on the other side of the glass when I took this.
Yup, people behind stuff.
Brilliantly, the museum posts photos from its own collection in the staircase leading down from the sixth floor, where it’s located. These photos are GREAT!
This one in particular caught my eye: Girl given cod liver oil. Looks terrible!
The view from the fourth floor-ish.
Women celebrating getting the right to vote.
Once I reached the first floor, I entered the Reykjavik Main Library proper. It was shortly before closing time, but there were still quite a few people milling about.
This is the only library I know of where you can also rent out ART! (All the artists seem to be Icelandic.)
Yes, you can take a piece home to see how it fits, then then either keep renting it, return it, or buy it!
And it’s not just paintings!
This work by Freyja Önundardóttir rents for 10.000 kr per month, but you can buy it for 340.000 kr.
This work by Ólöf Björg Björnsdóttir also rents for 10.000 kr per month, but buying it will set you back 910.000 kr.
Heading to the exit. There were signs of a recent slam-poetry reciting.
The house from another angle.
I started walking towards the center of town looking for a cafe I hadn’t visited before, and found one basically next door. (The house I’d just left is directly behind this one.)
Woman entering the Iða book-cafe.
Cute dog!
A band set-up in one corner of the cafe.
The cafe itself was located quite far inside the space.
I was so tempted to buy this, but it didn’t have a price tag. Reminded me of childhood.
Barista busy baristaing.
Hot chocolate (3.75 out of 5) and raw-cake (with dates and stuff instead of flour and sugar).
There were tempting books all over!
Heading back to the car as the clock snuck closer to six pm. This area is still so blah.
A sort-of fenced-in foreign trawler.
Not the most secure fence ever.
Mount Esja being held up by a crane.
There’s a lot less ice on the parking lot now compared to a couple of weeks ago.
Driving home in the twilight.
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