Gothenburg, Sweden
Gothenburg city has annonced a new, major public comission by Theresa Traore Dahlberg and Afrang Nordlöf Malekian. Site-specific installation The River Organ (Älvsorgeln) is to be inaugurated in 2029.
The River Organ (Älvsorgeln) consists of long organ pipes built into the quayside. Above the pipes are shapes reminiscent of the lines of a sheet of music, made of recycled Bohus stone. The wind and waves from passing boats create notes that are played on the organ.
- We want to create a meeting place for reflection. The river and the wind create an endless improvisation. If you listen actively, you will hear new melodies,’ say artists Theresa Traore Dahlberg and Afrang Nordlöf Malekian.
In their work, they have been inspired by the history of the Packhus quay as a departure point for all those who emigrated from Sweden to America in the hope of a better life. Simple wind instruments were often carried on the journey. The ships used horns to signal their departure and journey. ‘The River Organ’ becomes a way of representing those who left and those who remain.
The artwork also links to the site's colonial heritage. Nearby, on the Packhus square, there used to be the Franska Tomten, which is linked to the Swedish slave trade.
- The pipes in the organ follow a five-note scale inspired by jazz scales, music associated with black freedom movements. Five-note scales are also typical of lullabies - a musical dialogue between generations,’ say Theresa Traore Dahlberg and Afrang Nordlöf Malekian.
The renovation of the Packhus quay started in 2019 and concerns the area from the quay outside Stora Tullpackhuset to the Gothenburg Opera. The entire project is expected to be completed in 2029, when the The River Organ will also be in place.
- We want to create a meeting place for reflection. The river and the wind create an endless improvisation. If you listen actively, you will hear new melodies,’ say artists Theresa Traore Dahlberg and Afrang Nordlöf Malekian.
In their work, they have been inspired by the history of the Packhus quay as a departure point for all those who emigrated from Sweden to America in the hope of a better life. Simple wind instruments were often carried on the journey. The ships used horns to signal their departure and journey. ‘The River Organ’ becomes a way of representing those who left and those who remain.
The artwork also links to the site's colonial heritage. Nearby, on the Packhus square, there used to be the Franska Tomten, which is linked to the Swedish slave trade.
- The pipes in the organ follow a five-note scale inspired by jazz scales, music associated with black freedom movements. Five-note scales are also typical of lullabies - a musical dialogue between generations,’ say Theresa Traore Dahlberg and Afrang Nordlöf Malekian.
The renovation of the Packhus quay started in 2019 and concerns the area from the quay outside Stora Tullpackhuset to the Gothenburg Opera. The entire project is expected to be completed in 2029, when the The River Organ will also be in place.
For more inforamtion, visit Göteborgs Konst (website in Swedish).
