Beta Gagga
Artist in residence for the month of June 2025
Elísabet Stefánsdóttir, known as Beta, grew up in Akureyri. She is one of four sisters and attended Barnaskóli Akureyrar and Oddeyrarskóli. At the end of her primary school years, she moved to Reykjavík.
“I work in various mediums depending on what suits each project, resulting in a visual cocktail. Old-fashioned wallpaper patterns evoke nostalgia and bring back childhood memories from Akureyri. Organic forms and the most popular interior colors of the year have been the focus of my work, and this year, music and lyrics have blended into this colorful cocktail. In my works, I also try to get closer to the core of human emotions and relationships. Music, colors, textures, and forms that transport me back to my childhood years. A sweet longing for the past that reminds us of loved ones, important life events, or fleeting moments that have shaped our self-image throughout life.”
Beta graduated with a BA in Fine Art from the Iceland University of the Arts in 2002, received teaching certification in art from the same school in 2003, and completed a master’s degree (MT) in Art and Vocational Education at the University of Iceland in 2024. She currently teaches at the Technical College in Reykjavík and Hafnarfjörður and has served as the chair of the Icelandic Printmakers Association since 2016.
She has participated in dozens of group exhibitions both in Iceland and abroad, including in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Poland, England, Scotland, Germany, Italy, and more. Her exhibition in Deiglan will be her 11th solo exhibition. She has also given lectures and workshops at the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, Poland.
