The Birdwatcher is a site-specific exhibition developed for Bærum Kunsthall. It takes the form of a magical-realistic birdwatching world, where fiction and fact are intertwined. The birdwatcher emerges as a mythical figure – both a tribute and a methodological approach – that gives us a language to investigate questions about seeing and being seen, perspective, caution and care. This investigation takes as its starting point the landscape just outside the kunsthall. Here lies the Storøya nature reserve, one of Norway’s most species-rich areas and a historically important place for birdwatchers. Tungodden and Dahm have been interested in this landscape, and how birdwatchers have observed changes in nature, wildlife and human activity over time. Today, birds are threatened by both climate change and the destruction of nature. What does it mean to view our human and non-human neighbors with greater caution?
The exhibition includes maps with an accompanying audio walk to the bird tower on Storøya, which the audience can take with them on their way out. There will also be guided audio walks on 30 and 31 May at 1-2pm.
The exhibition has been selected via the art gallery’s annual Open Call. The jury for 2026 consisted of Ieva Epnere, Ieva Astahovska, Edd Schouten, and general manager Pernille Gjærder Olsen.
Benedicte Dahm (b. 1997, NO) works with installation, audio walks, books, drawing and animation. Through storytelling, she examines the infrastructure around us, local history, everyday objects and movement in public space. She often works site-specifically, which can take the form of audio walks that follow water systems through cities, ceramic installations, alternative maps, readings or illustrations. Dahm has a bachelor’s degree from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts and a master’s degree from the Academy of Fine Arts at the University of Bergen. She has exhibited at, among others, Hordaland Kunstsenter, Skog Art Space, Kiosken, Visningsrommet USF, Trykkeriet and the BJCEM Biennale.
Oda Tungodden (b. 1992, NO) is a visual artist based in Bergen, with artistic roots in South Africa. She holds an MFA from the University of Bergen and a BFA from the Michaelis School of Fine Art. Her practice examines how art can establish space for dialogue and interpersonal understanding, with a focus on belonging, narratives and relational processes. The concept of kindness functions as a consistent ethical and methodological point of orientation. Painting is central to her work, in dialogue with space and viewer. In parallel, she works with relational and performative formats. She has exhibited at, among others, Hordaland Kunstsenter and Visningsrommet USF, and has participated in Vestlandsutstillingen and Høstutstillingen. Internationally, she has exhibited at, among others, Livingstone National Art Gallery and 99 Loop Gallery.