Strange Familiar

Texts by Georg Gundi, Viggo Mortensen, Jane Johnson, Kevin Power, and Gyrdir Eliasson

Georg Gudni has said of his work, inspired by his native Icelandic landscapes, “You go past the materials and into the painting itself.” The transparent, ethereal quality achieved in Gudni's paintings can seem fragile at times. At other times, it is as though the perfectly contained yet limitless view presented is advancing toward the viewer, layer by layer, out of thin air. Hills, mountains, and valleys delicately take shape through a mist that is at once tangibly and perfectly drawn but also evocative of invisible, faintly recalled imagery that seems to be drawn from the popular unconscious. Comprising a wealth of mostly unpublished material, Strange Familiar brings together Gudni's unique, finely layered landscape paintings with selections from his vast collection of drawings, watercolors, notebooks, maps, and photographs, accompanied by illuminating texts by prominent commentators.

Georg Gudni's work is represented in museums and collections worldwide. Kevin Power is an internationally respected expert on contemporary art. Jane Johnson is a British writer and publisher. Writer Gyrdir Eliasson lives in Reykjavik. Viggo Mortensen is a writer, artist, and actor.