Mariken Kramer (Norway) – “Patterns of Inclusion”, 2013, 9:36
“Patterns of Inclusion” is produced in collaboration with students and teachers at Sofienberg Secondary School, a school with youth who have a minority background and short residence in Norway. The students’ participation in the project is a reflection of their own social reality within the framework of Norwegian asylum and immigration policy.
The work investigates ideas of social inclusion and mechanisms of exclusion through the metaphor of a Norwegian children’s ring game. This game can be understood as a representation of how we as social beings constantly try to be included, be part of the circle. The notion of community in this connection is symbolized by the ring, and maintained by the fact that one person at all times is excluded.
Mariken Kramer
is a Norwegian visual artist based in Oslo. Her projects are largely based on an interest in underlying mechanisms of interpersonal encounters and relationships, as well as the vulnerability of the individual within the social group. She is concerned with psychological an social aspects of that which constitute the individual, as well as how we as individuals perceive and (re)present our identities in relation to the collective that we are part of (or excluded from). Her works, whether it is photo, sound pieces or video, are linked thematically and take on social or personal issues related to that of being human among other humans.