Statement, Ampersand International Arts, 2003

Icelandic painter Arngunnur Yr's recent works of oil and wax on wood panel is titled All and None.  Yr intentionally paints images with a  universal appeal; classical motifs, seascapes and landscapes immediately recognizable and understood, somewhat reassuring. However, on a closer look the viewer is well aware of the work's subtle and insidious qualities. The peaceful images seem to be slowly disintegrating. It is that unsettling ambiguity that drives the artist. All and None walks on the fine line of the perfidious and mesmerizing; here the artwork emotes the simultaneous  contradictions we can experience : the precious and beautiful as well as the harsh and unattractive. All and None opens the door to an uncomfortable middle ground that leaves the viewer with some questions.

Talking about her work, Arngunnur Yr says:

" It can go either way, really, which is how our lives are. They are filled with wonder and horror and we need to tread a manageable path through our experiences. Ultimately I think my work ends on a positive note, but at least I feel that we need a reminder that life is an effort at times. I think we live in a very interesting time where people are searching and open, since we are so close to exhausting so many options and resources. I like my work to express a certain quest without necessarily giving away any definitive answers. They appear on one level as certain and definitive, but there is an underlying theme, one that leaves you looking for something else."