Ann Iren Buan’s first solo exhibition in the UK is now in its final weeks. The Oslo-based artist has long pushed drawing beyond the flat surface. Her monumental paper sculptures were shown at the Astrup Fearnley Museum, where Billedkunst singled out Drifters as one of the exhibition’s highlights. In 2019, she took part in the Drawing Triennial at Kunstnernes Hus alongside artists including Louise Bourgeois, William Kentridge, Käthe Kollwitz and Ana Mendieta. Her work is also held in the collection of the National Museum in Oslo.
In Carmine Ashes, Buan works dry pastel until colour acquires physical weight. Pigment is layered and compressed into tactile surfaces that seem to rupture the paper and move towards relief and sculpture. As Buan puts it: "Color is to me a material, just as paper and pigments". The images move from the artist at work to Golden Ochre Whispering, 2026, before opening onto the exhibition itself.
Carmine Ashes remains on view until 25 September at Siegfried Contemporary, London.
