Kaffi Laugalækur

Music piece / Tónverk

This song reflects on the story of the ‘Vesturfarar’.
Around 1870-1910 almost one quarter of the Icelandic population left their homes and resettled mostly in North America, in search for better living conditions. Back then, life in Iceland was tough, poverty levels were high and many people suffered from hunger. Most of the voice recordings stem from the TV documentary ‘Vestur í bláinn’ (1975) and feature interviews with people who were part of the emigration wave. One of them, Salomé, talks about the journey, whilst Björn points out the difficulties of starting a new life in a faraway country.
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Þetta lag endurspeglar sögu Vesturfaranna.
Um 1870-1910 flutti tæplega fjórðungur íslensku þjóðarinnar til (Norður-)Ameríku, í leit að nýju og betra lífi. Lífið á Íslandi var mjög erfitt á þessum tímum, fólk var fátækt og skortur og hungur voru algeng. Flestir raddupptökur í laginu eru úr heimildarmyndinni ‘Vestur í bláinn’ (1975), þar sem var talað við fólk sem var sjálft partur af þessum fólksflutningum á sínum tíma. Ein þeirra, Salomé, talar um ferðalagið, á meðan annar, Björn, segir frá erfiðleikunum við að byrja nýtt líf í nýju landi, langt í burtu.

Art piece / listaverk

by Ewa Marcinek

Driftwood
Video, 2020
^{Project in collaboration with Michael Godden (cinematography, editing)}

“‘Driftwood’ brings into question politicising and romanticising human migration based on differentiating it from any other movements in nature. Historically, the wood drifting to the shores of Iceland has been a precious material in the mostly woodless island, hence returning driftwood to the sea is a quiet yet rebellious act against the economic and political perspective on migrations.”







Ewa Marcinek is a Polish artist, writer and producer living in Reykjavik. She is a co-founder of Ós Pressan, a multilingual writing collective and publishing group, and the international theatre company Reykjavík Ensemble. In her work Ewa plays with memories, identities and private stories.


www.ewamarcinek.com