What’s the first thing you see when you start driving from Keflavik Airport to Reykjavik? It’s the vast plains of lava rocks and moss heaths. Doesn’t that lovely green make your heart skip a beat? Except that it’s winter, and it’s covered with snow most of the time. Worry not: you can still appreciate the poetic shades of light of Icelandic mosses on paper, in watercolours.
England-born artist Derek Mundell spent a year painting the beautiful moss landscapes of Iceland, and the paintings are on display at the Gerðuberg Culture House (Menningarhús Gerðubergi), running up to and including this Sunday.
Mundell was inspired by the prize-winning Icelandic author Thor Vilhjálmsson’s book Justice Undone. “Last year in June I switched on the radio, and there was him reading this piece from the book,” Mundell said. He instantly connected with Vilhjálmsson’s words. “Thor could see all these colours and hear the stream running. It was so poetic, and I said, ‘I’m gonna have to look at my view on moss again’.” And that was the spark that started Mundell’s exhibition “Moss–Colonist of Fire and Ice.”
Photo source: Present Art
Not a lot of people can capture the beauty of moss heaths as well as Mundell does. You can really feel the power of nature in his paintings. So make sure to visit the gallery before Monday and get your moss fix.
See the show at the Gerðuberg Culture House (Menningarhús Gerðubergi), Gerðuberg 3-5, Reykjavík, 09:00-18:00 on weekdays and 13:00-16:00 on weekends.
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