We are thrilled to share that we have appointed a new curator of exhibitions at Bergen Kunsthall, Silja Leifsdottir! She will start working with us from 1 December, coming from Norsk Billedhoggerforening in Oslo. Silja Leifsdottir has been a strong curatorial voice in Norway for a decade, with projects and positions, for example at Fotogalleriet Oslo, as co-founder of the Oslo Art Guide , and the chair of the Norwegian Association of Curators (Norsk Kuratorforeningen). Working between formats and with a great curiosity for different audiences, she draws inspiration from archives as well as methodologies of foraging. She’s a graduate from the MA in Curatorial Practice, KMD, University of Bergen, and no stranger to the city.

Between 2011 – 2017 she worked as the coordinator at Fotogalleriet in Oslo while also running the artist-run space Holodeck with Kjersti Solbakken and Lina Norell (2011-2013). When moving to Oslo in 2011, Silja initiated what today is known as the Oslo Art Guide, which she has been the director of since 2012, including organising Oslo Art Weekend annually. Members of The Norwegian Association of Curators will recall that Silja was also previously the chair of the board.

Silja’s education includes an MA degree in Curatorial Practice from the University of Bergen and a BA in Fine Art Photography from The Glasgow School of Art. She has also attended KORO´s immersion program on art projects in public spaces and studied Cultural project management at the University in Tromsø.