2025
Konstepidemin, Gothenburg, Sweden
A large grey cannon watches over the small town from the top of a hill, the rumbling sound from the testing of bombs echoes through the forest. Through collecting and processing archival material, 'Family Affair' takes a closer look at the arms manufacturer Bofors in Karlskoga and examines the company's hundred-year-old production chains, where the everyday life of the residents is intertwined with the economy of the arms industry in the middle of a dramatic natural landscape.
Using photomontages and objects from Bofors, Sara Annsofidotter explores how persistent labor, experimentation, and political maneuvering over time have led to the rise and fall of the region and its inhabitants. The area is marked by its connection to the chemist Alfred Nobel, whose accumulated wealth from the sale of dynamite is annually awarded to recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Annsofidotter herself grew up in the area, and several of her family members have worked at Bofors, including her grandfather, who drove nitroglycerin for Bofors during a time when the area was like its own little town, complete with a hockey team, a library, and a legendary hotel.
Soundscape by M€RCY (DK)
The exhibition is made with support from the Swedish Arts Grants Committee and the Danish Arts Foundation.
Photo: Hendrik Zeitler, Sara Annsofidotter