LYS

● Current · opens 19.09.2026

LYS is a Nordic, cross-disciplinary art project where geology meets ceramics — in a dialogue about the kinship between nature’s own forms and the work of the hand.

In a darkened room, ceramic objects and minerals glow under fluorescent UV light. This is the essence of the exhibition: a “total exhibition” that activates the visitor’s senses and reveals nature’s hidden layers and the inherent light within materials. Here you encounter both art objects and the very building blocks of the earth — art and natural science merge, while pressing questions about resources, materiality and humanity’s connection to the earth’s interior come to the fore.

The project’s field of enquiry is geological materials gathered locally — from Oslo–Bamble and the Fen Complex near Ulefoss to Långban in Värmland. Local minerals such as feldspar, quartz, mica, zircon and manganese are worked into clay bodies, glazes and colouring oxides, to explore their light and colour properties in a ceramic context.

When porcelain production began in Europe, a market opened up for quartz and feldspar — the raw materials on which Porsgrunds Porselænsfabrik was built from the late nineteenth century. At the same time, the trade opened up a new world of minerals and led to the discovery of new elements. With the same eye, LYS re-examines Scandinavian geology, hoping to cast new light — UV light — on the possibilities that lie buried in the now-closed mines.

The project is based at the workshop 1400 at Porsgrunds Porselænsfabrik. LYS is the first of three exhibitions: Grenland in autumn 2026, Kunsthal Århus (Observatoriet Beholderen) in 2027, and Långban in 2027–2028. The full programme and guided tours will be published ahead of the opening.