LILJA MARÍA ÁSMUNDSDÓTTIR: THE YELLOW HOUSE

LILJA MARÍA ÁSMUNDSDÓTTIR

THE YELLOW HOUSE

Throughout the years, the yellow house where I grew up has always stayed with me. It was a place of colours, sounds and mystique. On the lively coloured walls, there were endless discoveries to be made. The lazure painting style created movement and ever shifting tones of colour that changed with the light of the hour. I could stare endlessly into the walls, constantly seeing new scenery, creatures and characters forming in front of me, transforming the world around me into a place that merged together with my imagination and found its way into my dreams at night. This was the place where my dreams grew and turned into vivid and clear images that later on would manifest themselves in this physical world through my artistic fascinations.

The Cave (Audio-visual sculpture)

In my dreams, I travelled to unknown places, to familiar places, mysterious places, which still inspire new ideas within me today. I travelled to the white cave with the never-ending music of the pianist who carries ancient wisdom engraved in his voice. I travelled to the unpredictable tunnels and shapes of the timeless maze of the imagination, and to the dark garden house where I met the lurking creature.

The Lurking Creature (Sound sculpture)

In the Yellow House : in front of the record shelves

The creature, born from the mud, was shaping the sound of the space with its movements. Later, I realised that this sound I heard was its voice. The house was constructed in a circle and climbing plants covered the black frame of the garden house. The smell of their tree bark filled the space. I would spend hours in the garden while listening to the sounds streaming from the house; my sister playing the violin, vinyl records resonating from the living room, my brother running around singing whole soundtracks from movies.

The lapis lazuli painted windowsill would take me into the wilderness where I collected stones to make small sculptures. There I practiced melting into my environment, believing with certainty that if I practiced hard enough I would one day be able to become invisible.
Now as I am older, the house still appears in my dreams. It feels almost like a checkpoint that reflects the state of my creative energy. During times of burnout, I have dreamt of it in ruins. And I have dreamt of it as a place where I still live during times when my creative energy flows and transforms effortlessly into new ideas.
A safe place, where I get to wander and make new discoveries.

Lilja María Ásmundsdóttir is an artist, composer and performer from Iceland. In her practice she employs interdisciplinary and collaborative methods, working with artists from different fields. Her works include performative installations and various sound sculptures, such as the audio-visual sculpture Hulda, The Lurking Creature and The Cave.