I became familiar with “The Divine Comedy” even before I could read. At home we had a beautifully illustrated edition with beautiful and creepy pictures. That’s why I felt almost childish anticipation when I heard that Håkon Bleken had set out to create a series of pictures inspired by “Inferno”. What a recipe for success, I thought! In the run-up to Christmas, Bleken’s meditations on Dante’s Hell are unfolding through two exhibitions and a large, illustrated new edition of the book. I was hoping for a repeat of my childhood’s strong, visual encounter with Dante’s powerful vision poem, this time conveyed through Bleken’s vital and expressive idiom. He himself describes this as his most important project ever. And that’s saying no small thing. About Håkon Bleken Photo: Kim Nygård / Adresseavisen Born in Trondheim 9 January 1929. One of Norway’s foremost contemporary artists. Alternates between painting, collage, lithography and charcoal drawing. Represented in central galleries and museums, and has carried out extensive decoration tasks. The breakthrough came in 1971 with a series of charcoal drawings. Graduated from the Norwegian Academy of Fine Arts (1949–53). Associate professor at the Department of Form and Color at NTH (1960-1972). Has, among other things, created illustrations for Ibsen’s “Hedda Gabler” and Hamsun’s “Mysteries”. Broken expectations When expectations are so high, the height of the fall is naturally correspondingly large. I have to admit that it has been a long time since I experienced such a severe downturn. Yes, there are great pictures in the series, but unfortunately I think the lion’s share lack the power and vitality that usually characterizes Bleken’s painterly universe. The meditations are surprisingly unimaginative. LACK OF IMAGINATION: Håkon Bleken’s images for “Inferno” lack power and vitality. Swipe -> for more examples. Few pictures, lots of text To take the book first: When I flip through the lavish publication, I feel disappointed that there is so much space between the pictures. The nice interaction between text and illustration does not occur here. When a picture relates to long passages of text, about 20 densely written pages (!) between each, it is difficult to know which events are actually being illustrated. Sometimes I have to read thoroughly in order to be able to see the various passages of text reflected in the illustrations. MAJOR INVESTMENT: Håkon Bleken’s meditations are presented through two exhibitions and an illustrated new edition of “Inferno” in Erik Ringen’s retelling. Photo: TROND ISAKSEN If Håkon Bleken had not previously shown himself to be an eminent illustrator and book artist, one could suspect him of simply not understanding the format. In this role, he is not the great, free artist who creates images that only refer to himself. He is a servant of Dante’s literary universe, one who must submit and conform to this powerful narrative. I don’t think he gets this right. Inconsistent design In the first picture in the book, we see two people walking along a gorge. It is easy to understand that it is the pilgrim Dante and his companion Vergil. Down in the depths, souls crawl and crawl with their hands outstretched in despair at the torments they live through. DIFFERENT LANGUAGES OF FORM: Compositionally, the image splits in two. Maybe there is a thought behind it, but it still works poorly. Photo: Galleri Kunstverket The upper part is charged with intense tension. The two wandering figures are characterized by a clear figurative and recognizable style. The figures in the lower part are drawn in a much more hurried and resolved manner; here the figures are carelessly drawn up as line drawings. The fact that the upper and lower parts of the image are done in such different idioms means that the expression falls apart. Perhaps it is exactly Bleken’s idea to create a separation between the clear up there on the edge of the cliff, and the chaotic down in the abyss, but purely pictorially this division does not work very well. Many of the images in the series are thus characterized by an inconsistent design. A car wreck in hell At times we are also jolted out of the timeless depiction of the vision poem with contemporary markers that I feel break the magical space. One example is a pink illustration of a head arranged on a plate, with elegant cutlery that looks like it was designed by Tias Eckhoff. MODERN: In some images, a kind of contemporary aesthetic is introduced that breaks with the magical space of the narrative. Photo: Kunstverket Galleri Apart from the rather grotesque motif, the expression, purely aesthetically, could have been the cover of a menu at a well-to-do, French restaurant. Another image that breaks with the basic mood of Dante’s work is a shiny blue turquoise motif in which an eerie face sticks out of a pond – while something resembling a car wreck lies stranded in the background. I certainly don’t mean that you should paint in a high medieval style even if the text is from the 14th century, but I still don’t think a car wreck belongs anywhere in Dante’s hell. LIKE A CAR WRECK: The blue-turquoise picture breaks with the mood of “Inferno”. Photo: Kunstverket Gallery Highlights Despite my disappointment: Bleken’s “Inferno” series is not without bright spots. Among these is a fierce semi-abstract expression in which Dante and Vergil appear to have halted on the banks of a river of glowing lava. AMONG THE BEST: Fortunately, there are examples where Håkon Bleken is at his best. Swipe -> for more. Another stunningly beautiful image shows an eerie dragon-like mythical beast snarling dangerously with a long tongue near the two walkers. Here Bleken’s powerful form strength and musical sense of color come to the fore. Better on the wall The exhibition at Galleri Brandstrup of Bleken’s 32 pastels is more successful. Other and in many cases more powerful versions of the images are shown here, but also motifs that are not included among the 15 silkscreens. POWERFUL: Håkon Bleken’s pastels in the “Meditations over Dante’s Inferno” project are more successful than the silkscreens. Swipe -> for more examples. All in all, Bleken’s “Inferno” meditations work better on a gallery wall than as book illustrations. And when I stand in the galleries and look at the best of his pictures, I almost feel sad. Imagine what a unique project this could have been! But in the interaction with Dante’s powerful text, our great visual artist unfortunately falls short. news reviews Photo: TROND ISAKSEN Title: “Meditations over Dante’s Inferno” Artist: Håkon Bleken What: 15 silkscreens, which are exhibited at Kunstverket Gallery, as well as 32 pastels, which are exhibited at Galleri Brandstrup. The silkscreens are also included in a new edition of “Inferno” in Erik Ringen’s retelling at Solum Bokvennen publishing house. When: 17 November–23 December 2022 In 2018, literary critic Knut Hoem made a special broadcast of “Apen bok” about Dante’s journey to hell. Here is his verdict on the illustrated new edition of “Inferno”: Hell in XL format The first time I became aware of what an artist could add to a literary work was when De Norske Bokklubbene published Thomas Mann’s short story “Death in Venice” and equipped it with a picture cycle by Kjell Erik Killi Olsen. Killi Olsen’s pictures of a lonely man, sometimes with a hat, added a layer of meaning to the text. Or was it an interpretation? Was it so that the understanding was steered in a particular direction? Yes, indeed. A marching order to the imagination, but not in such a way that the images were disruptive to my own reading of the work. Killi Olsen’s pictures were much more open than, for example, Luchino Visconti’s film adaptation “Morte a Venezia” from 1971, which gave the imagination a marching order to a much stronger degree. Håkon Bleken’s paintings are placed in between the 34 songs, of which the first part of Dante’s Divine Comedy consists av.The image that makes the most impression on me exists in several versions. It is the image of Dante and his guide, the Roman poet Vergil. Red sparks The image stands in front of the first song in black and white. We see the outlines of two men talking to each other as they move. It’s as if they almost grow together. I imagine the two in confidential conversation, as it could have played out anywhere in the world. The same image then repeats itself between the twelfth and thirteenth song – but then the sparks have turned flaming red. It gets hotter the further down the circles we go. Dante and Vergil are getting bigger sinners to talk about. Missing rhymes and rhythms Håkon Bleken in his time read the New Norwegian translation of Henrik Rytter and Sigmund Skard. It is also the retelling I am most familiar with. I miss Rytter og Skard’s ingenious rhymes and rhythms, but many will probably find that Dante becomes more accessible in Erik Ringen’s Bokmål translation from 2018. It is great to sit with this great the book in a cafe and flip from page to page. Then there will also be room for Erik Ringen’s useful footnotes on the pages – and they are needed to get the most out of Dante’s allegorical underworld.Lysten gaupeIn the first song, our two companions meet a lynx, a lion and a she-wolf. It is probably carnal lust, haughtiness, and greed that they symbolize, these animals. Three qualities we cannot allow ourselves to have too much of, if we are not to be stuck forever in the circles of hell. Dante’s comedy needs, like all classics, a constant update. He has achieved that with these pictures.
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