Marthe Kampen (b. 1986) lives and works in Eidskog municipality. Her artistic practice is centered around painting/pastel, woodcuts, and textiles. Here, she strives for an apparently simple yet powerful visual expression. Kampen often works in ongoing series where many variations stem from the same starting point, with consistent attempts to express something sincere in a chaotic and calculated contemporary context. Kampen has been active since completing her Master's at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts in 2012. She has regularly participated in exhibitions and carried out public decorations alone and in collaboration with Johannes B. Hansen, most recently at Drammen's new hospital, which concludes in 2025.

Here's Marthe's recommendations:

Arne Revheim

I have known about the artist's work for a long time and have always appreciated his approach to drawing, form, and color. Now I am excited about how incredibly strong and expressive the paintings and woodcuts have developed. It is clear that Revheim has a sense of humor and a good sense of colour. It is particularly the spaces in the composition that I experience as powerful, that activate the entire surface. He manages to make it look simple, playful, and superb! A print by Arne Revheim is high on my wish list.

Hans Kristian Borchgrevink Hansen

Consistently works to give a voice to the small everyday details of life. Like a little speck of dust in a sofa crevice or a vague memory of ice fishermen on the lake, or a crocs shoe flying through the air. The absurdity in Hansen's narratives gives a poetic touch to life's less important events and remnants; he elevates them to something greater so that we too can see it. He is an active artist working in a universe built upon drawing and painting, animated films, self-produced books, sculptures, and whimsical objects. An artistic practice I greatly respect!

Johan Söderström

I came across Johan Söderström on Atelier. I must say I'm very seduced by the texture and the milky surface. It's fascinating how he's so consistent in the use of color or its absence, and that it becomes a pure exploration of the possibilities in a relatively limited space. There's also a convincing line, and the expression is both playful and poetic. To me, it looks like a rewarding technique and executed with a curiosity for the image that I can relate to.

Espen Lomsdalen

I associate him with noise music, various performances combining painting and sound. I believe he is a skilled painter because he maintains a consistently high level and appears so free in his expression. To me, they are intuitive landscapes that draw you in and evoke a sense of rawness and darkness, combined with soft transitions and a distinct painterly colour palette. There's something honest and unpretentious about the paintings that I greatly appreciate!

Maj-Gret Gaupås

Another discovery on Atelier. She works with painting, drawing, and textile printing. I got excited and happy when I discovered this artist. She paints seemingly simple compositions, working with layers and colour in a more or less abstract expression. The titles were also something I noticed; she reuses the same title for several works, like 'Shitty snow'. Something I also do myself, the exploration of what lies between the picture plane and the title is intriguing. It seems that Gaupås is confident in what she does, but doesn't get stuck in it, but constantly challenges her own potential in the plane. I will keep an eye on this artist!