Hugarflug 2025 - Unstable Systems by Sigmundur Pall Freysteinsson

Unstable Systems Instability can be a creative force in art, design, and architecture. Artists, designers, and scholars work both with and against systems that are ever-changing, fragile, or unpredictable. Whether dealing with technological systems, ecosystems, social structures, or sensory experiences, instability is often a prerequisite for creation. Instability opens pathways for new ideas and processes, reshaping how we approach and redesign the systems that shape our lives. It can also refer to the creative act itself—one that does not follow predetermined trajectories or established norms. Art, design, and architecture serve as tools to disrupt stable systems and/or shed new light on systems that appear stable but in reality, they are not. No system is truly stable, and when we resist that instability, it becomes a problem. Instability is perhaps the only certainty we can rely on. Hugarflug 2025, the annual conference on artistic research, will take place on September 11–12. It will serve as a platform for research that engages with instability across various systems—from technological advancements such as AI and interactive systems to issues related to politics, society, and the environment. We will explore how instability functions as a tool for generating new possibilities while also fueling unrest and transformation within society and academia. The Iceland University of the Arts invites proposals of all kinds, including presentations of ongoing or completed research by our faculty, students, and collaborators.

Hugarflug annual conference on artistic research

11. - 12. September 2025

Iceland University of the Arts

A Satellite Nation:

Tracing Colonial Fragility from New Iceland to Contemporary Iceland

Nicole Desautels

Thursday, 11. september, 2025 - 15:30 - 17:00

3x20 min Presentation + 3x10 min Discussion

Moderator: Guðbjörg R Jóhannesdóttir

Room:

New Iceland was established in the late 19th century by Icelandic immigrants fleeing famine, poverty, and ecological collapse, Icelanders were seeking a stable new homeland, through mass migration of the Canadian West. While this history is often celebrated as one of courage and endurance, it is also a story of colonial settlement on Indigenous lands—specifically the territories of the Cree and Anishinaabe peoples under Treaty 1 and Treaty 5. These lands were never freely given; they were taken, negotiated under pressure, and misrepresented.

Through this presentation I aim to question not only Canada's national myths but also the specific narrative of Icelandic settlement in what is now known as Manitoba. How does a history that occurred in the 19th-20th century impact current policies or social structures within Canada and Iceland? What if any is the connection to New Iceland and Iceland an island nation within Europe? I will explore this complex history and delve into the duality of Icelandic National Identity and Heritage through the lens of colonial settler violence. I will show examples of my work supported by historical documentation, advertisements and various forms of propaganda.

Nicole Desautels
Visual Artist

Nicole Desautels is a multimedia artist of Icelandic and Francophone descent from Treaty 1 Territory where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) from the University of Manitoba. Nicole is a recent graduate from the Master of Fine Arts Program through Listaháskóli Íslands (Iceland University of the Arts) in June 2025. Nicole infuses her practice with humour, and improvisation to challenge notions of empire and domination through site-specific installations.

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