CUTTING THROUGH SPACE Bjarni Sigurbjörnsson: Works on Paper (2003–2004) ECHOES OF HELLISSANDUR Victoria Chapman: Photographs (2025) El Nido by VC Projects is pleased to present two exhibitions in dialogue: Cutting Through Space by Bjarni Sigurbjörnsson and Echoes of Hellissandur by Victoria Chapman. Each artist draws from the Icelandic landscape—its stark beauty, elemental forces, and contemplative rhythms—to create work that bridges the internal and external, the material and metaphysical. Bjarni Sigurbjörnsson: Cutting Through Space – Works on Paper (2003–2004) This rare exhibition marks the first U.S. presentation of Sigurbjörnsson’s large-scale works on paper from 2003–2004. Influenced by Chinese aesthetic philosophy, the artist treats paper as “the skin of space,” using ink, charcoal, and water to create gestural compositions that explore transformation, tension, and the metaphysics of mark-making. Additional works from his Black Soar Cutting series further investigate elemental alchemy through the layering of salt, ink, and oil paint. A recent painting, Hugarhold (Mind-Field) (2022), connects early and current philosophies within a vivid field of color and gesture. “The juxtaposition between unmixable materials—creating patterns—and my deliberate actions is the prime vehicle in my creative process.” — Bjarni Sigurbjörnsson Cover image caption: Bjarni Sigurbjörnsson: Panmixia 3, 2003-4, mixed media on paper, 31 ¼ x 23 ½” Victoria Chapman: Echoes of Hellissandur – Photographs (2025) Following a meditative retreat in the remote Icelandic village of Hellissandur, Chapman presents a new body of photographs that respond to the region’s landscape and mythic atmosphere. Developed in close dialogue with Sigurbjörnsson, these images are not documentarian but intuitive—emotional impressions shaped by solitude, conversation, and elemental encounters. Moss, stone, lava, and light become portals to memory and transformation.