ARCTIC PAVILION
A Nomadic Art Project
Presenting artistic, collaborative, and site-responsive practices that invite new insights into contemporary realities.
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Photo: © Jennifer Garza-Cuen
CONTACT US
thearcticpavilion @ gmail.com
Welcome
The artist duo Otzko and Henningsen combine poetic expression with critical reflection to shed light on contemporary challenges in the Arctic and globally — particularly those related to climate, power, connections, and presence. They are the founders of the nomadic art project Arctic Pavilion, grounded in their own artistic and site‑responsive practices, which invites new insights into contemporary realities through research, movement and cross-disciplinary collaborations.
Ina Otzko is an interdisciplinary artist from Northern Norway whose work spans photography, video, sound, performance, text, and sculpture. Addressing urgent ecological, political, and existential concerns, her practice navigates memory, power, and the human relation to space and landscape. Rooted in deep listening and an expanded awareness of temporality, Otzko’s work evokes silent activism, merging poetic insight with critical intervention in ecological and social systems—inviting reflection, provoking resistance, and opening space for new ways of seeing. She holds master’s degrees from Goldsmiths, University of London, and Universität der Künste Berlin, and has exhibited widely across Norway and internationally.
Stein Henningsen is a visual and performance artist based in Svalbard, whose work addresses political, social, financial, and climate issues. With a background in engineering and international marketing, he combines conceptual rigor with activist engagement, using performance and visual practice to interrogate power, human–environment relations, and geopolitical dynamics. Henningsen founded the Arctic Action International Performance Festival, amplifying art inspired by the Arctic’s unique environment and social tensions. He has participated extensively in international performance festivals and cultural events and has exhibited in Norway and abroad.
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EYE IN THE SKY
A short film by Ina Otzko and Stein Henningsen
Premiered at Nordover Art Centre, Longyearbyen August 14th, 2025
Winner Environmental - Cannes World Film Festival (Nov.) 2025
Honorable Mentions - Berlin Kiez Film Festival (Des) 2025
UPCOMING:
V Arctic Art Forum / Climate House, National History Museum, Oslo March 15th, 2026
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What kind of sovereignty is possible in an age of satellites?
For the 100th anniversary of the Svalbard Treaty, artists Ina Otzko and Stein Henningsen presented EYE IN THE SKY — a short film that investigates the silent mechanisms
of power and presence in the Arctic today.
EYE IN THE SKY is not a documentary, but a poetic, political reflection on a shifting geopolitical landscape. The film unfolds across sound and vision to ask urgent questions:
What happens when industrial presence ends — and digital presence takes over?
What remains of sovereignty when decisions are made elsewhere, and enforced from above? And what kind of peace are we building in a world of constant surveillance?
As Norway’s last coal mine on Svalbard shut down in June 2025, the film captures this moment of transition — from resource extraction to signal extraction.
“Svalbard is no longer a periphery,” the artists say. “It’s a strategic center. Power today is exercised not through flags and armies, but through infrastructure, observation, and access.”
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EYE IN THE SKY invites viewers to look again — not just at Svalbard, but at the global systems of mapping, monitoring, and governance that shape our shared future.
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The project is supported by BKV, Fond for Lyd og Bilde / Arts and Culture Norway​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
