Info & contact
Although Swedish, I was born in Pakistan, and grew up in both countries. The diverse landscapes and cultures I have lived in, or passed through on various journeys, influence much of my practice. I make use of symbols and narratives to try to describe and communicate.
The german word Zugunruhe, (from Zug - to move, migrate and Unruhe - anxiety, restlessness) sums up the ideas behind my work. It is generally used to describe the restlessness of migratory birds before and during their period of migration, but the same phenomenon can be seen in resident birds and animals.
Humans also experience feelings of restlessness and yearning for movement and freedom. When we travel or migrate, our sense of identity, belonging and home are affected. We long for that which might no longer exist.
I am currently living in rural Sweden.
Contact
Sturegatan 33
56831 Skillingaryd
Sweden
Click here for a map.
ester.svensson@alumni.rca.ac.uk
+46 709 448 001
Education
2011-13 MA Ceramics & Glass (Excellent pass), Royal College of Art, London
2004-8 BA(Hons) Ceramics (First class), Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, Scotland
2002-4 1st & 2nd year of BA(Hons) Illustration, Edinburgh College of Art, Scotland
2000-2001 Art Foundation, Helsjöns folkhögskola, Sweden
Awards / Grants / Residencies
-2017 Gasworks Fellowship hosted by Vasl in Karachi, Pakistan
-2015 Nominated by Alison Britton for Perrier Jouet Arts Salon Prize
-2013 Loopart13 Residency, Deptford, London
-2013 Estrid Ericssons Stiftelse
-2013 Eva & Oscar Ahrens Stiftelse
-2012 J. L. Eklunds Hantverksstiftelse
-2012 Eva & Oscar Ahrens Stiftelse
-2012 JNW Drawing Prize (Honorable Mention)
-2008 Student Life Award, (Glasgow School of Art)
-2008 J Arnold Fleming Prize
Selected Shows
-2020 Under Rådande Omständigheter / Under Current Circumstances, Vandalorum, Sweden
-2019 It Was Or It Was Not, The Chapel on the Green, Wales
-2017 Kill the Indian, Save the Man, with Serena Katt, Playground, London
-2017 Returning a Stranger, IVS Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan
-2016 These Walls Must Fall, Geddes Gallery, London.
-2015 Resor, Bla Stallet, Goteborg, Sweden. Part of GIBCA Extended
-2015 Many a Slip, Marsden Woo, London. Group show curated by Alison Britton
-2014 Sagorna, Natur, Karuizawa, Japan (solo)
-2014 Black & White, Icheon Cerapie, Gyeonggi-do, S. Korea
-2014 No One Owns The Land, HOUSE 2014, Brighton, UK
-2014 State of Flux, An Talla Solais, Ullapool, Scotland
-2013 Wonderland, Milton Keynes Arts Centre, Milton Keynes, UK
-2013 And Then This, Roca London Gallery, London
-2013 Scoop! Phillips Gallery, London
-2012 Point of Departure, Great Western Studios, London
-2012 Other Places, miss annabel dee* gallery, Essex
-2012 7 Wetherby Gardens, Fitzgerald/Smith Collection, London
-2011 International Mixed Exhibition, Usak, Turkey
-2011 Be(Longing), Two Little Birds, Gothenburg, Sweden (solo)
-2009 Window, Sintra, Gothenburg, Sweden
-2009 Young Guns, Sydney, Australia
-2008 New Generation, Compass Gallery, Glasgow, Scotland
-2008 ROAR! Oxo Tower Wharf, London
-2008 Not Broken, Owl & Lion Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland
