artistic research

In 2019, a group of artists gather for an artistic research symposium on the island of Utøya, one of the sites of the 2011 terrorist attacks, the biggest collective trauma in recent Norwegian history.
Through the eyes of one of the artists we follow the group through the weeks as they present their individual research projects, receiving and providing feedback, and engaging in group exercises.
Near the end of the week, one of the artists disrupts the harmonious atmosphere with a pointed critique of the other attendees and the program. He leaves the island abruptly with everyone left to wonder whether this was a performative gesture, possibly suggested by the location, or an emotionally charged outburst resulting from his feelings of being an outsider.