Humans and other animals

Lisa Strömbeck, artist and curator of this exhibition, grew up on a small farm in eastern Skåne. Twenty years ago she held a solo exhibition in these rooms entitled People and Animals . At that time, the discussion about speciesism had barely begun, while today it is a term that is used like racism or sexism. Biologically, humans no longer have a special position. Research maps species after species in terms of emotions, language and instincts and shows that we mammals are very similar. Today, we talk about humans and other animals or about non-human animals.

Academically, things are progressing, but in practice capitalism rules. Sweden has slightly better animal welfare than the rest of the EU, for example, Sweden is alone in having a law that requires cattle to go to green pastures 2–4 months a year. Swedish farmers often raise their voices that the law should be changed so that they can compete with prices internationally. But is it necessary? To quote Mahatma Ghandi: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by how its animals are treated.”

Participating artists: Annika Eriksson, Asmund Arle, EvaMarie Lindahl, Jonatan Pihlgren, Nathalia Brichet and Camilla Nørgård, Lisa Strömbeck, Smac McCreanor, William Hogarth.