How Future Art Institutions Support Artists

For this episode of the CHART Talks podcast, we are happy to share a recording of a discussion exploring how future art institutions can evolve to better support artists through new structures, resources and practices. It addresses shifting institutional models, sustainability and care, and how programming, funding and curatorial approaches can be rethought to strengthen artistic production and long-term practice, from art-life matter to what the curator can do on the long trajectory and confidence building between artists and institutions.For CHART 2026 we were delighted to present a conversation moderated by Fatoş Üstek, curator, writer and co-founder of FRANK Fair Artist Pay, in dialogue with Krist Gruijthuijsen, Director and CEO of EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art and Curator at Large at Kunsthaus Zürich; Marie Laurberg, Artistic Director and CEO of Copenhagen Contemporary and founder of CC Commissions and the Beckett-Prize; and Jakob Kudsk Steensen, artist working with environmental storytelling through virtual world building, video games and large-scale installations.

For this episode of the CHART Talks podcast's season 4, we are delighted to present a conversation between SUPERFLEX and Alice Sharp, Artistic Director of Invisible Dust and curator and art and science advisor for Climate Clock, part of Oulu’s European Capital of Culture 2026 programme.SUPERFLEX was founded in 1993 by Jakob Fenger, Bjørnstjerne Christiansen and Rasmus Rosengren Nielsen. Working as an expanded collective, they collaborate with a wide range of people, from engineers and gardeners to audience members, developing projects that take the form of energy systems, sculptures, infrastructures, contracts and public spaces. Their practice explores alternative models of social and economic organisation, often through participatory and site-specific works.Starting with SUPERFLEX and Alice Sharp’s collaboration on a new marine landmark in Haukipudas, Oulu, the conversation explores the relationship between art, science and climate action. They discuss SUPERFLEX’s engagement with the ocean and marine life, the role of cross-disciplinary collaboration, and how artistic practice can offer new ways of understanding changing environments. Together, they reflect on perspectives beyond the human and on how art can challenge the way we think about our relationship with the natural world.

For the latest episode of the CHART Talks podcast's season 4, we are delighted to present a panel discussion moderated by Karen Bro, journalist, author and art collector, in dialogue with Tanya Lindkvist, Director of Kunst På Arbejde, artist Marie Lund, Henrik Plenge Jakobsen, artist and part of the steering group, and Lars Daugaard Jepsen, Deputy Director of the Danish Chamber of Commerce (Dansk Erhverv), and who heads the team of advisers and craftspeople responsible for reconstructing Børsen. All participants are members of the steering committee overseeing the integrated art programme for the reconstruction of Børsen following the 2024 fire. Together, they discuss the role of art in rebuilding the historic building following the fire of 16 April 2024.Starting with Lars Daugaard Jepsen’s account of the fire and the rescue of Børsen’s artworks, the conversation goes on to consider how art can become an integral part of the building’s reconstruction. The panel also discusses the process of selecting artists for new commissions and the collaboration between artists, architects, craftspeople, and engineers. Marie Lund also introduces her ongoing work on a site-specific sculptural table for the Chairman’s Office, exploring materiality, function, and the relationship between the building’s history and its future.

For the first episode of the CHART Talks podcast's season 4, we are happy to share a recording of a conversation between the Sámi artist Carola Grahn and Maria Svonni, Founder and Artistic Director of Verdde and Director of Luleåbiennalen. Together, they discuss Grahn’s artistic practice, which spans large-scale installations, sculpture, writing, and performance, often exploring Sámi identity, collective memory, and our relationship with nature.Starting with Grahn’s recent solo exhibition Drick Drick at Liljevalchs, the conversation goes on to consider how her installations invite the audience to become active participants in the work. Through works including The Snow, Drick Drick, and Luhkietjijhtje nejpieh (Seventeen Knives), they discuss performativity, climate change, consumer culture, and the role of play and humour in addressing serious subjects.

For the first episode in the newest season of the CHART Talks podcast, we are happy to share a recording of a conversation moderated by Carola Wiese, UBS Family Advisory – Art and Collecting, featuring Anne Hilde Neset, Director of Henie Onstad Kunstsenter, and Lars Veen Uldal, Sustainability Specialist and young art collector, who is a member of the Henie Onstad Patrons Programme.Together, they explore how a new generation of collectors is reshaping the art world, challenging established market structures, collecting practices, and value systems. Bringing together an emerging voice and an industry perspective, the conversation examines how evolving priorities and modes of engagement are influencing the future of collecting and the broader art ecosystem.

For the latest episode of the CHART Talks podcast, we are happy to share a recording of a conversation between the Danish artist Benedikte Bjerre and Mai Dengsøe, art historian and curator at Gammel Strand. Together they discuss Benedikte Bjerre's practice ahead of the artist's upcoming solo exhibition at Gammel Strand in May 2026. Primarily working with sculpture and installation, Bjerre consistently examines sculptural qualities in relation to the architecture of a given space all while using observations from her everyday life.Starting with an introduction to Bjerre's work to-date, the conversation goes on to consider how our understanding of art is shaped by the context in which we view it. Bjerre talks about her background as a sociologist and the motivation that brought her to contemporary art practice instead. Among other things they also discuss the role of humour in art, the importance of where you get your information from, behavioural modelling, and how Bjerre understands her place in a Danish vs. an International context.

In this episode we are delighted to present a conversation between Danish artist Kim Richard Adler Mejdahl and Magnus Kaslov, curator at SMK, the National Gallery of Denmark, and also previously curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Roskilde.Together, they explore Mejdahl's practice, where nostalgia and trauma intertwine through a distinctive blend of “sticky bubble gum nostalgia” and “gothic horror tragedy.” Central to the discussion are his previous works Provinsbøssernes Drøm (Hillbilly Faggot Dream), Rat Palace, Ode, and Hour of Moth. Music is discussed as a driving force in the creative process, often acting as the starting point and emotional backbone of the work. Ultimately, the talk traces how personal experiences, especially growing up with and losing a father, are transformed into art pieces, revealing both the pain and the liberating power of shaping one’s life into creative expression.

In this episode, we share a panel discussion exploring the notion of Nordic art, its values, and its future role within the global art world. Moderated by Helga Christoffersen, Curator-at-Large and Curator of the Nordic Art and Culture Initiative at Buffalo AKG Art Museum, the conversation also includes Anna Mustonen, Chief Curator at Kiasma in Finland and Curator of the Nordic Countries Pavilion at the 61st International Art Exhibition in Venice, Swedish/Czech artist Klara Kristalova, represented at the Nordic Pavilion in 2026, and Auður Jörundsdóttir, Director at Icelandic Art Center in Reykjavík.The conversation begins with a behind-the-scenes discussion of the development process for the 2026 presentation at the Pavilion of the Nordic Countries at the Venice Biennale. From this example of Nordic collaboration within the contemporary art world, the panel expands the discussion to a broader context. Together they reflect on how global perceptions of Nordic art have shifted since the 1990s, and consider the opportunities for sharing and collaboration within the current geopolitical moment. The conversation also addresses tensions within the idea of a shared Nordic identity, noting that for some people it remains a category they actively seek to escape.

In this episode, artist Ahmed Umar speaks with Mariam Elnozahy, researcher, writer and Artistic Director at Konsthall C, Stockholm, at CHART 2025 about material, memory, and belief. The conversation explores Umar’s series Glowing Phalanges, presented concurrently at CHART by OSL contemporary and previously exhibited at Kunstnernes Hus and Bergens Kunsthall. Umar reflects on growing up between Sudan and Saudi Arabia, his early training in painting, printmaking, and ceramics, and how his practice gradually shifted toward sculpture. The discussion traces the origins of his work back to a talisman he created in 2014, opening a complex reflection on talismanic motifs in Islamic Sufi traditions - objects both spiritually charged and theologically controversial. Together, they discuss Umar’s performance practice, including his enactment of the Sudanese bridal dance, and how these deeply personal artistic gestures can challenge colonial narratives, confront cultural expectations, and honor ancestors. Working largely alone, Umar describes his process as a form of intimate ritual—creating works that function as prayers for himself, his lineage, and the histories he carries.

In this episode of the CHART Talks Podcast, we share a panel discussion exploring the role that private patronage can play in times of uncertainty. Moderated by Astrid Wang, curator at the non-profit exhibition space MILAAP, the conversation also includes Khurram Jamil, founder of MILAAP, and the artist Nazgol Ansarinia, whose solo exhibition 'Dissolving Substances' was showing at MILAAP at the time of recording.The discussion considers private patronage as a flexible and independent model for supporting artistic practice, in comparison with institutional frameworks that often shape contemporary exhibition-making. The conversation covers how collectors can create platforms that amplify underrepresented voices and foster dialogue between the global south and the Nordics. Through Ansarinia’s research into water infrastructures in Tehran (set against the drying of Lake Urmia) the participants consider questions of access, ownership and the tension between public and private resources. Together, they explore how private initiatives can function as sites of exchange and visibility, and how independent support structures differ from institutional models in process, responsibility and reach.