Programme of the week
Announcement 2025 – National Gallery of Iceland
The Vasulka Effect on RÚV
Documentary about Steina and Woody Vasulka
On RÚV’s player, you can now watch the documentary The Vasulka Effect, which tells the story of Steina and Woody Vasulka — true pioneers of video art and new media around the world. Watching the film is the perfect way to get to know Steina’s unique career before you experience her work for yourself.
See the movie here
Steina Vasulka, ljósmynd © Friðgeir Trausti Helgason
Event 3 October 2025 – Reykjavík Art Museum, Hafnarhús
Signals and Feedback: A Symposium in Honor of Steina
You are warmly invited to a symposium held on the occasion of the exhibition Steina: Playback at Hafnarhús on Friday, October 3, from 1 PM to 5 PM.
Organized by the National Gallery of Iceland and the Reykjavík Art Museum, the symposium will bring together Icelandic and international scholars to discuss Steina’s pioneering work and her lasting influence in the field of electronic media.
Admission is free, but registration for the event is required.
From Violin Power, 1978, courtesy of the artist and Berg Contemporary
Event 04.10.2025 – National Gallery of Iceland
Colloquium
Instructions and Iterations: Archiving Steina's Work
You are warmly invited to a colloquium at the National Gallery of Iceland on Saturday, October 4, from 10:00 to 12:00. The landmark exhibition STEINA: Playback provides a welcome opportunity to bring together artists, collectors, conservators, and curators working in the field of time-based media to discuss the preservation of Steina’s groundbreaking artistic practice.
The Vasulka Chamber and the Vasulka Foundation, in collaboration with Vasulka Kitchen Brno, invite you to a colloquium that will explore the complex technical challenges of preserving time-based art and how best to honor Steina’s artistic legacy. Together, participants will consider documentation strategies as well as the histories of installations, taking into account the instability and transformations that inevitably characterize time-based media.
Markús Þór Andrésson, Pari Stave
Event 5 October 2025 – National Gallery of Iceland / Reykjavík Art Museum
Steina – Playback
Curators’ Guided Tour
You are warmly invited to join a guided tour led by Pari Stave, curator at the National Gallery of Iceland, and Markús Þór Andrésson, curator at the Reykjavík Art Museum. The exhibition Playback is a joint project between the National Gallery of Iceland and the Reykjavík Art Museum, presented simultaneously at both institutions.
The guided tour takes place on Sunday, October 5, at 2 PM. Visitors will move between both museums to experience the exhibition in its entirety. The tour begins at Hafnarhús and continues to the National Gallery of Iceland on Fríkirkjuvegur.
Steina is among the foremost pioneers of video art and new media worldwide, a groundbreaking figure whose influence on contemporary art in Iceland has been profound. Through her work, she has uniquely intertwined video art, music, and technology in innovative and imaginative ways.
Regular museum admission applies.
Museum Shop 2025 – National Gallery of Iceland
Treasures from the Museum Shop
National Gallery of Iceland
The National Gallery of Iceland’s museum shop is filled with a wide selection of high-quality gifts, including greeting cards, jewelry, posters, books, and much more.
Among the many treasures is the book STEINA, the first comprehensive monograph in over a decade celebrating the work of pioneering video artist Steina, who is known for pushing perspective beyond the human-centered realm. Co-publication by the MIT List Visual Arts Center and Buffalo AKG Art Museum.
Buy the book here
Browse the webstore
Margrét Elísabet Ólafsdóttir, Markús Þór Andrésson, Pari Stave
Courses 2025 – National Gallery of Iceland
Adult Education
STEINA: Playback
We draw your attention to the course STEINA: Playback, taking place in November. The course is intended for those who wish to deepen their understanding of time-based media, i.e. art forms that unfold in time, such as film, video, sound, and digital technologies and modes of transmission.
Key concepts and the development of time-based media will be reviewed, and works by contemporary artists examined. The exhibition Steina: Playback will be central to the course, with a focus on the career and works of Steina Vasulka, a pioneer in the field of video art.
Teaching schedule:
▪️ Thursday, November 13, 17:15–19:00
▪️ Thursday, November 20, 17:15–19:00
▪️ Thursday, November 27, 17:15–19:00
The course is a collaboration between the National Gallery of Iceland, Reykjavík Art Museum, and Iceland University of the Arts.