Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson's first major Australian exhibition, Mercy, opens at the National Gallery of Victoria on 26 June, featuring eight video works including The Visitors, which the Guardian named the best artwork of the 21st century in 2019.
A Mother's Spit Becomes a Meditation on Ageing
In Me and My Mother (2000), Kjartansson stands beside his mother, Guðrún Ásmundsdóttir, who repeatedly spits in his face. The work was initially deemed a failure by a guest lecturer, but Kjartansson embraced its blurring of reality and performance. Every five years, the pair restage the piece, documenting their ageing. The latest instalment, filmed in 2025 when Ásmundsdóttir turned 90, shows her struggling to spit. 'She almost can't spit any more. It's very hard for her,' Kjartansson said.
The Visitors: A Cult Phenomenon
The Visitors (2012) is a 64-minute, nine-screen video filmed in one take at Rokeby Farm in upstate New York. Each screen shows a musician performing a haunting song, reflecting on Kjartansson's first marriage, friendship, and the decaying mansion. Bootleg recordings on YouTube have garnered over 340,000 views, with many commenters describing tearful responses. The work premiered in Australia in Perth in 2015.
Music and Emotion at the Core
Kjartansson's works rely heavily on music, drawing from Elvis, Abba, Mozart, and a 1996 German comedy song for Sunday Without Love (2025). Regular collaborators include members of Sigur Rós, Múm, and American musicians Aaron and Bryce Dessner. His wife, artist Ingibjörg Sigurjónsdóttir, also contributes. Kjartansson's father once told him, 'It's beautiful and sad to be a human being,' a sentiment that permeates his art.
Global Homogeneity and Political Undertones
Scenes from Western Culture depicts mundane, comfortable lives, inspired by Kjartansson's observation of global sameness. 'You travel as far as you can go, but it's the same cafe as Reykjavík,' he said. No Tomorrow (2022), featuring eight dancers on an empty stage, began rehearsals as Donald Trump started his first presidency. Kjartansson paraphrases artist Agnes Martin: 'All art is about beauty. It's either a celebration of the beauty of the world or a demonstration against the lack of beauty in the world.'
Mercy: A Biblical Title in Nick Cave's City
The exhibition title Mercy reflects Kjartansson's interest in the double edge of grace and violence. 'Being in Nick Cave's city, I want to be biblical,' he said. The repetition in his videos, like prayers, transforms simple gestures into acts of devotion. Me and My Mother evolves from brutal to comic to a profound meditation on ageing and love.
Ragnar Kjartansson: Mercy runs from 26 June to 4 October at the National Gallery of Victoria. The artist will speak at the exhibition on 27 June at 3.30pm.
