Delta

In Delta Gerd Aurell and Helena Wikström investigate the outdoor activities on the Ume River Delta. Both artists live in the community of Holmsund, situated on the mouth of the Ume River, 15 km south of Umeå. As good as every day they travel from Holmsund to Umeå, passing through what appears to be a deserted landscape of dense forests. But one day they decide to turn off from the highway and what they discover is an area full of life and activity. They meet bird watchers, ice fishers, school children and cross country skiers – people who in their spare time take part in outdoor activities in the Ume Delta area. They also discover a landscape in rapid change, brought on both by natural processes and by man’s efforts to change nature.

Delta is the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet, in upper-case formed like a triangle. Delta is also a term used for the landforms on the mouth of a river, a constantly changing landscape due to deposition of sediment. In Swedish delta means to participate or to attend.

The many interviews and photographs of Delta has resulted in two books (Delta Winter and Delta Spring) that were presented in a full-size bird-hide in one of Bildmuseet’s exhibition halls. The piece was originally made for the project ”Spare Time: Utopias on the Verge of Commonness” initiated by the National Gallery in Prague.

Delta, 2011
Bird-hide, 2 books, photographs
In collaboration with Helena Wikström
”Spare Time”, Bildmuseet, Umeå
”Spare Time: Utopias on the Verge of Commonness”, National Gallery, Prague
”Survival Kit”, LCCA, Riga

PlaceBildmuseet, Umeå, National Gallery, Prague, Survival Kit, RigaYear2011CategoryInstallation Photography Art