TREE OF SIGNS

First, We Put Up a Tree

The sculpture Tree of Signs, a collaborative project between Gabríela Friðriksdóttir and French designers M/M, will be the first man-made structure in Urriðaholt.

A sculpture entitled Tree of Signs will be the first man-made structure to be raised in Urriðaholt. The work was conceived by French designers Mathias Augustyniak and Michael Amzalag, better known as M/M, in collaboration with artist Gabríela Friðriksdóttir. The sculpture is five metres tall and is made of bronze. According to Gabríela, the tree can be viewed as a monument to possibilities inspired by the generous and rewarding collaboration between different parties, thus reflecting the basis for the residential area that will rise in Urriðaholt.

Gabríela says that the idea behind the sculpture was conceived when M/M came to Iceland in connection with the French cultural festival Pourquois Pas? in early 2007. The conceptual work behind Tree of Signs began then, and basic sketches were exhibited at the Museum of Design and Applied Art in Garðabær. The tree is based on the same font as M/M used for the cover of Björk’s album Medúlla and which was used as a basis for all printed material and 3D objects that the duo created with Gabríela for the Venice Biennale. The font on the Tree of Signs, however, will be entirely three-dimensional and Gabríela’s drawings will be formed into bas-reliefs that hang on the tree like fruit, or seeds. “When we started discussing a possible collaboration with Urriðaholt and began to study the ideology behind the area, we discovered that it matched our ideas. Also, we had always wanted to raise the tree in an undeveloped area,” says Gabríela.

“We at Urriðaholt heard about M/M through the Garðabær cultural representative and subsequently took Mathias and Michael to Búrfellsgjá on a sightseeing tour. It is rare to find such pristine nature so close to a residential area and they were impressed by the natural beauty of the site. A short while later a decision was made for the tree to become the first man-made structure in Urriðaholt. It is symbolic and fun and sends a definite message about vegetation and growth in the Urriðaholt area,” says Sigurður Gísli Pálmason, who sits on the board of Urriðaholt ehf.

Collaboration with artists is important.
According to Gabríela, the best thing about the Tree of Symbols is that is not on a platform, unlike most other artworks in public spaces. “I find such spaces generally opposed to art because they create a predetermined framework around everything, meaning the work rarely has a chance to evolve organically and become part of the surroundings,” she says. This is also reflected in the fact that the font used for the work does not create borders but rather offers possibilities. “The philosophy of form and the philosophy behind Urriðaholt complement each other well. By which I mean playing with the possibilities of nature as opposed to colliding with it; using soft forms that create greater harmony."

Gabríela Friðriksdóttir

It is safe to say that Gabríela Friðriksdóttir (b. 1971) is already one of Iceland’s most important artists, as her works have been highly influential for the generation of artists that is currently emerging. She was Iceland’s representative at the Venice Biennale in 2005, at which she enjoyed the assistance of, among others, singer Björk and writer Sjón. Gabríela’s work has been said to reflect an internal landscape where a strange and imaginary prehistoric world merges with the present. She evokes a universe in which no rational words can draw clear boundaries between dark feelings and joy, and rather than gaining a sense of security the viewer must grapple with deep human symbols and recollections, in a moment when everything seems on the verge of destruction before being born anew. Gabríela searches for her subject matter in nature, music and pointless conversations between people, and works in different contemporary mediums.

M/M

M/M (Paris) is a collaboration between French designers Mathias Augustyniak & Michael Amzalag , both of whom are among the best-known graphic designers today. Michael Amzalag studied at the renowned Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts Decoratifs in Paris, while Mathias Augustyniak holds an MA degree from the Royal College of Art in London. The duo has worked on many diverse projects since establishing M/M (Paris). They have collaborated with musicians such as Björk, designed art books for museums like Musée d’Art Moderne and Centre Pompidou in Paris, and worked closely with world-renowned artists, including Philippe Parreno and Pierre Huyghe. The latter exhibited works at the Reykjavík Art Museum recently, in connection with a French cultural festival. M/M has worked for fashion houses Yohji Yamamoto and Calvin Klein, provided editorial content for magazines such as V Magazine, and Augustyniak and Amzalag were artistic directors of French Vogue for a two-year period.

The influential critic Hans Ulrich Obrist has said that M/M changed the ideas that Parisians had about graphic design. Today it is considered normal for designers to work in fashion, art and music, but 15 years ago this was not the case. Mathias Augustyniak and Michael Amzalag changed the landscape in the 1990s with their designs, and they are still at the forefront of that development. You could say that they are not limited to graphic design, but rather create a visual language that bridges the gap between different worlds.