Futures

The future is what has not yet happened, a coming but still unknown and uncertain fact. Therefore, the future is also something we anticipate, predict, speculate on, theorize, even try to calculate based on existing data and knowledge.

But the future is not entirely predetermined either. Different futures can become reality depending on a variety of factors. Embracing this uncertainty, the multiplicity of possible futures, makes us more inclined to embrace different perspectives, beliefs and outlooks. And to see how our decisions and actions today affect and enable different futures.

What changes are needed to achieve a good and sustainable future? When we talk about futures, we try to understand what are likely future scenarios, what will persist, what will change and how. In this process, it is important to look at the present as well as the past, to assess how current and past experiences and events point to different possibilities and potential futures. Art possesses precisely this invaluable ability both to depict decisive experiences and to imagine alternatives and new possible worlds.

Different futures are in our hands, they are possibilities, but possibilities for what? And for whom? What are the potential future impacts of the decisions made by individuals, organizations and governments today?

In case of crisis or war (Om kriget eller krisen kommer), the small brochure from the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (Myndigheten för samhällsskydd och beredskap) we all received with “important information for Swedish citizens” on how to prepare and what to do in case of crisis or war. But how do we prepare for the unknown? Or how do we deal with the crises and changes that are already a fact? And how do we envision – and enable – a society – democratic, sustainable, equal – and a future beyond crises and war? The future is this transnational issue that connects us to future generations, where we show our care for tomorrow and for everything and everyone that comes after us.

In 2025, Havremagasinet Länskonsthall Boden will be 15 years old. Fifteen years is our entire history. At the same time, this anniversary reminds us that we are only a small part of a larger story in motion in a complex, multicultural and rich region, in turn part of an even larger – planetary geography and history. As our eyes once again turns to the North, not least with the so-called green transition, we want to use the concept of Futures as kindling wood to invite you to another year of exhibitions, programs, activities, experiences and reflections with art as the heart, witness and companion of this geography in a time of great change.