Aka Hoegh
Encyclopedia
Aka Høegh is a Greenlandic artist. Born in Qullissat
on Disko Island
, she moved to Qaqortoq
in her childhood, and has lived in southern Greenland ever since. As a painter, graphic artist, and sculptor Høegh focuses on nationalistic expressionism, creating art which reflects local, traditional myths, and is steeped in heritage and local lore. She frequently incoporates legend, nature, and provincial mythos into her works, devising strong connections between her art and local tradition. During the 1970s, she was regularly cited as the main artist in establishing a Greenlandic artistic identity.
, Finland
, Norway
, and the Faroe Islands
participated in the project.
As a member of the international artist group "Art for Life" Høegh is cooperating with eleven other artists to produce the world's largest painting in Spain. The painting's projected size is 24.644 square meters.
Apart from being guest student at the Academy of Arts in Copenhagen
, Høegh is an autodidact.
Høegh's art can be found on many public buildings in Greenland. The relief outside the Workers' Folk High School in her home town Qaqortoq is her work. The chimney of the new power plant is adorned by her artwork, as well.
Qullissat
Qullissat is a former settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. It was a coal mining town founded to exploit the national resources of Disko Island...
on Disko Island
Disko Island
Disko Island is a large island in Baffin Bay, off the west coast of Greenland. It has an area of , making it the second largest island of Greenland and one of the 100 largest islands in the world...
, she moved to Qaqortoq
Qaqortoq
Qaqortoq is a town in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. With a population of 3,230 as of 2011, it is the most populous town in southern Greenland, and the fourth-largest town in the country. The name is western Greenlandic and means "[the] white [one]".- History :The area around...
in her childhood, and has lived in southern Greenland ever since. As a painter, graphic artist, and sculptor Høegh focuses on nationalistic expressionism, creating art which reflects local, traditional myths, and is steeped in heritage and local lore. She frequently incoporates legend, nature, and provincial mythos into her works, devising strong connections between her art and local tradition. During the 1970s, she was regularly cited as the main artist in establishing a Greenlandic artistic identity.
Major works
She is most well known for heading the art project "Stone and Man" between the years 1993 and 1994 in her home town of Qaqortoq in southern Greenland. The work is a dynamic, ongoing piece, with more pieces being added to at semi-regular intervals. Initially 18 artists from SwedenSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, and the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
participated in the project.
As a member of the international artist group "Art for Life" Høegh is cooperating with eleven other artists to produce the world's largest painting in Spain. The painting's projected size is 24.644 square meters.
Apart from being guest student at the Academy of Arts in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Høegh is an autodidact.
Exhibitions and international co-operation
Høegh has had solo exhibitions in Greenland, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Alaska, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Latvia and Norway, as well as group exhibitions over most of Europe. She represented Greenland in "Scandinavia Today" in the USA, Mexico and Lithuania.Høegh's art can be found on many public buildings in Greenland. The relief outside the Workers' Folk High School in her home town Qaqortoq is her work. The chimney of the new power plant is adorned by her artwork, as well.