
Martin Sæther
The work of Oslo-based artist Martin Sæther references Scandinavian decorative traditions from the popular vernacular that are on the verge of disappearing. In his show at VI, VII, most of the works are wall-mounted reliefs crafted from paper bonded to canvas, their off-white surfaces patterned with barely visible bumps that repeat at regular intervals. The effect is recognizable as an imitation of the fiberglass “strie” wallpaper commonly found in middle-class homes in Norway from the 1970s until the late ’80s.
Today, it isn’t unheard of for trend-conscious Norwegians to renovate spaces that