In Cairn (2012), Marius Moldvaer built, and moved a stone cairn back and forth on a meadow in a Norwegian mountain landscape over the course of seven days. Two miles from the nearest train station, at the site of major rail construction, and two thousand feet above sea level, the project became a reflection on the cultural and historic functions of the cairn as a road marker in relation to the continuous development and changes within the Norwegian mountain landscape.The project was presented as photographic documentation of the movement of the cairn, a subjective diary on the action of moving the cairn, and multiple historic and geographical notes, on both the global history and significance of cairns, and the change of the Norwegian mountain landscape and its geography.

In 2013 i revisited the site of the original cairn, believing it to be untouched, but contrary to this the cairn which I had so meticulously built and moved across the mountain landscape was torn down and made into a fire pit. At first i was disappointed, that the project had ben cut short and that all the work that I had done and thought of doing was for nothing, but as I thought about it I realized that the action done toward the cairn by these people was exactly the same action i had been orchestrating in the landscape myself. So during my visits to the cairn I collected part of the fire pit and took them with me to Aurland, then to Oslo, and finally to Spain before i returned home. In Heimat/Hiraeth, Cairn (2011-2015) includes the original photographs of the cairn, in addition to the stones from the fire pit, two photographs, one text documenting the discovery of the fire pit, and four books functioning as the plinth to support the rocks and coal. Through the installation in Heimat/Hiraeth my actions are intermingled with the actions of others, with the action of nature, which again emphasizes the original intent of Cairn that with us and around us nature changes, and so does culture and the values we place upon it.

Cairn was first exhibited in 2012 at Holodeck Showroom in Oslo in the Duo Exhibition action will be suspended, space will be laid bare. everything shall be extinguished. time will stop with Julien Discrit and curated by Lars Sture. The project was also included in a reworked edition in the 2015 show Heimat/Hiraeth at Kabuso Art Center in 2015.

Julien Discrit

Lars Sture