The Magazine Vannbæreren
2 Cover Pages
1974 & 1975

Early Illustrations

The publisher Regnbuetrykk published the Magazine Vannbæreren from 1974 to 1978. Location for Vannbæreren was Karlsøya, a smaller island west of Tromsø city in the north of Norway (latitude, nearly 70 N). Editor in chief was Jan Bojer Vindheim, today known both for his writings as many years as a leading politician for the Green Party in Norway (MDG).

Karlsøya is famous because of young people from the alternative movement who settled here in the seventies, with a green dream, new political ideas and/or spiritual worldview. Today there is still a good spirit on this small island, a community that every year produce Karlsøyfestivalen, one of the most exciting festivals in Norway. I was lucky to be part of those few who initiated what happened at Karlsøya. Still, that was not my original plan. From the west coast, I had first travelled to the old Norwegian capital Trondheim, where I should study art. Soon I became somewhat bored with parts of the milieu where many people, unfortunately, had become more interested in becoming 'an artist', rather than creating art. So I left the old capital, and it's upcoming artists and moved further north to explore the zeitgeist of the seventies. In Norway there was hardly any better place for that then Karlsøya, we later found out. I had some good years here. First, we were just some few people, and then came Jan and Vannbæreren, and the community opened up to the outside world. After a few years, I left the beautiful island, with good experience in artic farming, milking goats - and some illustrations for Vannbæreren ...

Vannbæreren was during it's publishing time, the leading magazine for the alternative movement in Norway. Many prominent Norwegian writers contributed, and Vannbæreren also introduced thinkers as Ivan Illich, Murray Bookchin, E.F. Schumacher, among others, for a Scandinavian audience. The cartoon - or rather the graphic story about Doktor Fantastisk (Doctor Fantastic), created by Axel Jensen and Tore Bernitz Pedersen was first published in its full length in Vannbæreren. This is the reason behind the cover above, as here Doktor Fantastic sail in his boat with Karlsøya behind, and on the sky, there is both northern light and a rainbow (Reinbueforlaget is ''rainbow publishing'' in translation). The cover page below was made for the edition of Vannbæreren that focused on the spiritual & substance. I did many illustrations inside the magazine as well, but this story is just some main lines to sketch a history, along with some very early artworks/illustrations.

Front cover on the Magazine Vannbæreren, Karlsøya, Norway 1974 and 1975
Jane's painting - from the first One Man Show, Oslo, Norway 1984
Hanne - from the second One Man Show, Oslo, Norway 1985
Gesamtkunstwerk, Oslo, Norway 1989
My ART Today

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