Hans Rosenström

Date: Sept 5 – Oct 12, 2025
Location: Atelier Nord, Olaf Ryes plass 2 (entrance from Sofienberggata) 

Welcome to the exhibition opening on Thursday, September 4, 2025 at 6:00 PM.
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Broken Chord is a sound installation by Hans Rosenström composed of semi-reflective glass panels and multiple voices. The installation is shown for the first time at Helsinki Contemporary, Finland, in June 2025. Audiences can experience the site-specific art work at Atelier Nord between September 5 and October 12, where it also is a part of the programme of Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival.

About Broken Chord

In Broken Chord Hans Rosenström is interested in the fleeting, almost organic nature of the human voice in contrast with the sleek architectural structures of reflective glass facades. In the installation the glass acts as a barrier in between two worlds, the inner and outer, and the voice a vessel that penetrates these realms.

The recorded voices play from transducer speakers attached to the glass panels, allowing the glass itself to conduct the voices. Each panel carries a single voice, giving the translucent material a body and a distinct presence. The semi-reflective glass will capture not only the surrounding space but also the reflections of visitors. This merging of reflections creates an interplay between the audience and the material, blurring boundaries between the self and the other.

The voices in the installation stand both alone as isolated entities and at times merge into choirs. The editing of the sound recordings is adapted to the installation of the glass panels, which are positioned in relation to the gallery’s architecture, making the presentation of the work a unique experience.

The human voice in Hans Rosenström’s works

Rosenström often uses the human voice as material in his artworks. He thinks of the voice as something both deeply personal and inherently public. Not only is the voice an ephemeral extension of the self, projected to the world, but also an intimate tool that bridges the gap between individuals.

In addition to the poetical dimension of the voice Rosenström is interested in what the voice carries. Language and words colour our way of understanding the world and how we relate to one another, speech moves between bodies, gradually forming our minds and shaping our shared reality. As beautiful of a gesture as this is, we also know that this can also have severe implications.

About Hans Rosenström

Hans Rosenström (b.1978) was educated at the Malmö Art Academy (BA) and the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki (MFA). He has had numerous solo and group exhibitions both nationally and internationally, including at the Helsinki Biennial, Finland; Frieze Sculpture, London, UK; Kindl Center for Contemporary Art, Berlin, Germany; Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden, and public sound installations at Kings Cross, London, UK, and Puolalanpark, Turku, Finland.

Rosenström’s works have been acquired by both public and private collections such as the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York, USA; KIASMA, Museum of Contemporary Art, Helsinki, Finland; and EMMA, Espoo Museum of Modern Art, Espoo, Finland. He has received several awards and recognitions, including the Finnish State Prize for Media Art (2020), the William Thuring Award (2016), and in 2015, he was nominated for the Ars Fennica Prize. Hans Rosenström lives and works in Stockholm.

Credits:  Musical direction and co-composition of Broken Chord by Sophia Brous, performed by Eugène Blove, Sophia Brous, Alice Heyward, Gregor Kompar, Gabriella Liandu, Holden Madagame and Holly Sass.

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Files to download:

Press release

List of works and credits

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Images:

See images of the exhibition opening on Facebook.

See Installation images on Facebook.

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In connection with the exhibition, we’ve made a film where Hans Rosenström talks about the exhibition project. Watch the film here.

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The Finnish-Norwegian Cultural Institute has interviewed Hans Rosenström about the work Broken Chord and his artistic practice. Read the interview here.

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The exhibition is supported by Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival, The Finnish-Norwegian Cultural Institute, The Swedish Cultural Foundation, Oslo Council and the Arts Council.

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Photo credits:
Suusta suuhun. Installation view Helsinki Contemporary. 2019. Photo: Jussi Tiainen.
Unfolding Silence. Frieze Sculpture. 2023. Photo: Hans Rosenström.
Evanesce. 2022. Installation view Kohta, Helsinki. Photo: Jussi Tiainen.