Lucky People, performance of the national anthem in Stockholm, 1995, courtesy of Johan Söderberg, Jean-Louis Huhta, Skander Chand, and David Österberg; Kingdoms of Elgaland-Vargaland Coat of Arms

Inauguration of the Consulate General of The Kingdoms of Elgaland-Vargaland

by Leif Elggren and Carl Michael von Hausswolff
November 27, 2007-January 19, 2008
Reception: Wednesday, November 28, 2007, 5-8 pm

Declared in 1992 by Stockholm-based artists/musicians Leif Elggren and Carl Michael von Hausswolff, who decried themselves the benevolent kings, the Kingdoms of Elgaland-Vargaland encompass all border territories, digital, geographical, and mental. Passports, stamps, flags, national anthems, ministries, embassies and more have been created under direction of Kings Elggren and von Hausswolff since the constitution was written in 1992. Elgaland-Vargaland is an extended series of objects and performances concerning territorial ownership, the right to rule and the rights of individuals. Gallery 400 has become a general consulate for the Kingdoms with a display of printed materials representing the Kingdoms on view.

In their own words: "Elgaland-Vargaland is the largest - and most populous realm on Earth, incorporating all boundaries between other nations as well as Digital Territory and other states of existence. Every time you travel somewhere, and every time you enter another form, such as the dream state, you visit Elgaland-Vargaland."

Both together and individually Elggren and von Hausswolff have exhibited and performed extensively over the years, including projects at Documenta X, Blanche Nuits in Paris, the Johannesburg Biennial and multiple events during the last three Venice Biennales. In 1995 Elggren, with artist Kent Tankred formed the experimental music label Firework Edition Records, an offshoot of Firework Edition, an art edition publishing company formed in 1982 by Elggren and artist Thomas Liljenberg. A respected electronic musician, von Hausswolff won a digital musics award from Prix Ars Electronica (2002), and has released recordings on the labels 23Five, Die Stadt, Laton, Oral, Raster-Noton, Sub Rosa, and more. The music label Ash International has released all audio recordings of the Kingdoms of Elgaland-Vargaland.

http://www.elgaland-vargaland.org

View of vitrine, displaying official Elgaland-Vargaland paperwork, passport, stamps, currency, photographs, and national dish

This exhibition was presented in conjunction with the city-wide Festival of Maps, a celebration of humanity's greatest discoveries and the maps that record our boldest explorations.

Reviews

Art On Paper -- March/April 2008