The established and the emerging: art and fashion meet at Uncontaminated, Oslo

Last weekend, the Uncontaminated Oslo Fashion Art Festival enjoyed it’s debut in Norway’s capital. The two-day event was organised by NoiOne, a creative hub for artists, and co-curated by Riccardo Ruini of REM Agency in Rome.

Opening with Sølve Sundsbø’s solo exhibition ‘A Constant Journey into the Future’ – at the Akershus Fortress on the cliffs of the harbour – the festival celebrated those who ‘form a new frontier of fashion art in the current climate of digital media’ – showcasing work from Coco Capitán, Michal Pudelka, Charlotte Wales and collage-artist @BESSNYC4 among others.

Based in and around the harbour at the newly developed Tjuvholmen (home to the Thief hotel) and Aker Brygge, events included a series of panel discussions around art and fashion, featuring the exhibiting artists and a variety of industry voices – including anthropologist Charlotte Bik Bandlien, editor/journalist (and Wallpaper* contributor) Dan Thawley, and Henrik Haugan of architecture and design firm Snøhetta.

‘I feel that in contemporary society,’ explains artist Charlotte Wales of the convergence of disciplines, ‘fashion photography almost fulfills the same role as the fresco painters of the Renaissance. It’s all about how one chooses to interact with, ignore or use commerce.’

‘The convergence of art and fashion has established itself as an arena for innovative collaborations creating dialogues between the established and the emerging. In the current climate of digital media, it nurtures a new generation of artists with an instinctive approach and uncompromising vision,’ says Uncontaminated founder Rita Mostrøm Larsen.

‘Uncontaminated celebrates the new creativity flourishing at this juncture, not limited to neither fashion nor art,' she adds. 'The constant, uncompromised experimentation of Sølve Sundsbø and the free expressions of this new generation of raising talents.’