Reykjavík Museum of Photography

Icelandic photographers have long been fascinated by abandoned farmsteads, relics of the massive migration from rural regions into urban centres in the last century. They have mainly focussed on the exterior of the house and the Icelandic landscape around it. Such photos have tended to be in black-and-white with a touch of romantic mystery. Orri’s photographs have a different ambiance. He seeks to capture the colourful spirits and aura of the deserted that lives in the interior of the houses, and the irresistible palette of colours that evolve when the weather has taken its toll on the wallpaper, paintwork and furniture. 

Orri takes his photos on large-format sheet negatives with a simple view camera, using natural light. That is why the action is as important as the photographs – to arrive alone at a deserted house, often a long way from anywhere, and stay for many hours; alone with the camera and nothing else, to document a vanishing reality, document how the house has weathered, and how it was left  – whether in order, or obviously in haste. The sojourn raises questions; “Why did this house become deserted? Was it left behind in sorrow, or at peace?  Who lived here, and where are they now?” Thus every photo that Orri takes is in a sense a testimony of emptiness that calls for answers, about the deserted private space, the lost reality of vanished people. 

 “Why did this house become deserted? Was it left behind in sorrow, or at peace?  Who lived here, and where are they now?” 

Orri has shown his photos of deserted homes both in Iceland and abroad, but Interiors at Reykjavík Museum of Photography is the first exhibition where all the photos are shown together. The first photos in the series were shown in 2001 at Galleri Image in Århus, the oldest gallery of photography in Europe. The exhibition received very favourable reviews in the main Århus newspaper. In the spring of 2002 the exhibition was in Gallery Skuggi in Reykjavík, and later a selection of the photographs  were shown in group exhibitions in Moscow, France and Serbia. 



Orri studied photography at the School of Visual Arts in New York and completed his BFA degree in 1996. In 1998 he held his first one-man show of portraits at Café Mokka in Reykjavík. His photographs have been published in various magazines, such as Changing Faces, Iceland Review, Big Magazine and Ský.  
In addition to taking photos Orri also writes, records and arranges music. Orri and Dagur Kári are the duet Slowblow which has issued several CDs. Orri and Dagur composed and arranged the music for Dagur Kári’s films "Nói Albínói", "Voksne Menneskar" and "The Good Heart". Their most recent collaborative project is music for the film Brim by Árni Ólafur Ásgeirsson. 


Orri │Interiors

For over a decade, photographer Orri has been taking photographs of deserted farmsteads in Iceland, and in Interiors he shows a selection of the photographs taken 1999-2010.

Orri │In­teri­ors

For over a decade, photographer Orri has been taking photographs of deserted farmsteads in Iceland, and in Interiors he shows a selection of the photographs taken 1999-2010.

Orri │Interiors