Arctic Frontiers 2013

Side event about architecture and landscape.

(foto: Michele Widerøe)

Arctic and Subarctic landscapes are more than ever contested as they are faced with an increased interest for mineral extraction and energy production. Such activities displace both traditional ways of living and landscape practices inherent to them. Well-balanced ecological systems comprising social, political, economical landscapes are disrupted by political and economical processes that transform them into mono-functional and mono-economical, industrial landscapes.
The conception of the Arctic is changing and the understanding of its landscapes has become ambiguous beyond earlier conceptions of it as mythical, sublime, and pristine. It does not fit the Westerns idea of landscape as pastoral and encompassable. This ambiguity may be one of the reasons why the circumpolar falls prey to exploitation. As the transformation forces and power structures take an increased interest for its resources, we find it necessary to develop a continuous and critical discourse defining, describing and challenging the dynamics and friction between the logics of exploitations and the landscape as a well-balanced ecology.
This conference aimsto identify different transformation forces in the landscape. Are emerging technologies and industries in the circumpolar acceptable, and is their conception of landscape compatible to agents and practices that harbor a holistic view on these landscapes? We want to discuss the value systems at work in relation to such contested landscapes, and maintain the conceptions of them as something other than commodities, to encourage understanding of and relation to such landscapes on their own terms.
Today the hegemonic political idea is that the seemingly endless landscapes of the north can be sacrificed and exploited in ways resembling the era of colonialism. Just within the latest few years the notion of landscape in public debate has turned from a complex focus on primary lifestyles and industries to a simplified picturing of the landscape as a technical challenge for extraction industries. We want to address these issues and create a liminal space for counter hegemonical thinking and debate. The intention of the conference is to be a counter-force to the prevailing forces and to encourage a more holistic approach to circumpolar landscapes – one that brings considerations of social justice and small-scale economies to the table. (text: Janike Larsen & Gisle Løkken)