Gitte Sætre

Sætre´s interests lie within methods to understand particular forms of knowledge production, which in her culture circle around certain representations.

Trough various ways of working she investigates roles and positions within the art field. Her temperament is well placed within her artistic praxis and working with art is a way of thinking and dealing with her embodied unrest.

The core of all our problems is that we do not dare to choose ourselves, argues the Danish philosopher Søren Kirkegaard. It is a task in it selves to choose ourselves. It requires passion and special effort. The truth lies within subjectivity because it is the key to the common. However, the self is not a set core inside us, or a product of social circumstances. The selves is a problem, a relationship that relate to it selves to deal with itself.

Thus, the self is the way we relate to the way of thinking and feeling. What makes humans unique is that we are spirit, we are aware of our own existence. Therefore, our existence is not granted, in reality it is an art in it selves.

In the process of thinking about art and society Sætre started working with a video-performance series called Woman Cleaning, followed by a description of what she cleans. Ex. Woman Cleaning Tanks, Woman Cleaning European History…

In her latest works, a series of large watercolors on paper called  “Geopolitical Landscapes; Events in Water” (2023), Sætre  explores the convergence of nature and human influence through the lens of imagination. The series unfolds against a shared horizon, serving as a thematic backdrop. Weather phenomena take center stage, narrating tales of mirages, cloud formations, and atmospheric shifts. The skies morph into a canvas, teetering between splendor and an underlying sense of impending crisis.

Nestled by the sea, amidst the passage of warships and helicopters across the North Sea, the once-neutral weather now bears political connotations. The series serves as a reflection of this metamorphosis, where an obsession with apocalyptic scenarios permeates political, aesthetic, and scientific realms.
In this immersive journey, water acts as a responsive shield, adapting to shifting hues, unforeseen events, and controllable factors. It becomes a realm of introspection, allowing the mind to unearth longings, ancient memories, and meditative contemplations.

A third realm emerges—a landscape suspended between reality and abstraction, not yet tangible. “Events in Water” (“Hendelser i Vann”) uncovers hidden and intangible relationships within the landscape, illuminating the unseen threads that bind nature, humanity, and the ethereal.
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Step into this captivating realm, a landscape that transcends the mundane. “Events in Water” beckons exploration into uncharted emotional, intellectual, and existential territories—a glimpse into a world beyond familiarity, a haven for the inquisitive spirit. This marks the inception of a series delving into geo-political landscapes.