"The central element of Æsa Björk's installation entitled Embers, presents overlapping glass panels in various states of deterioration. Each component was made by melting crushed glass frit into lace-like sheets that are then gently reheated over a mold, a process called slumping, to create a subtle curve in each panel. Sections were then chemically mirrored reflecting back on the viewer as the perforations allow one to see through. Each piece is hung in a radiating pattern, emerging and rising from the second and central of the three stalls in the Cow Barn.
Extending from Embers is a related work. Ár-minni, that uses the same subtle curve, mirroring, and layering, but acts as a surface for looping, barely visible video depticting the flowing Berridale water. The title is a play on words in Icelandic relating simultaneously to the mouth of a river where it meets the sea, and memory. Pushing to the forefront, again, the dissolution of the mind."
Passage by Michael Endo December 2021
https://issuu.com/bullseyeprojects/docs/byre_passage2021_catalog_v5_issuu
"I found the narrative of Björk's work about the passage of time and the deterioration of body and mind wonderfully interwoven with the architecture of the building and the history of lost communities and industry in the area particularly moving and is a subject we look to explore further within our own collecting activities."
Sarah Rothwell, senior curator, modern & contemporary design, National museums Scotland.
Embers I-IV blir en del av glass samlingen til the National Museums of Scotland.