In his films, videos, and photography John Skoog combines research into history and everyday life with a poetic and fictional atmosphere that is grounded in the film and literary traditions. His work explores social contexts of individuals and communities; unpacking their complex relationship to collective rituals and historical forces, as well as to existential and natural scenarios of transition. Skoog’s works make clear references to mythological iconography; they remind us of the profane origins of myth and in this way they aim to demystify both nature and society.
John Skoog was born in 1985 in Kvidinge, Sweden. Skoog graduated from the Städelschule, Frankfurt in 2012. Recent solo exhibitions include: hamletnosferatu, Johan Berggren Gallery, Malmö (2016); Mad Horizon, in collaboration with Emanuel Röhss, Index—The Swedish Contemporary Art Foundation, Stockholm (2016); 3 filmer, Konstföreningen ARTiE, Eslöv Konsthall, Eslöv (2016); Palace, Kunstforum Baloise, Basel (2015); Värn, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien (MUMOK), Vienna (2015); Slow Return, Museum für Moderne Kunst (MMK), Frankfurt am Main (2015); Shadowland, Pilar Corrias, London (2015); LAND, Museu d’Història de Catalunya, Barcelona (2015); L A N D, A Tale of a Tub, Rotterdam (2014). Redoubt, Towner Contemporary Art Museum, Eastbourne (2014); Federsee, Johan Berggren Gallery, Malmö (2013); Sent på Jorden, Art Lab Gnesta, Gnesta (2013); Shadowland, Lampione, Frankfurt am Main (2013); Sent på Jorden and Förår, Pilar Corrias, London (2012). Selected group exhibitions, screenings and festivals include: SWEDISH ART: NOW!, Sven-Harrys konstmuseum, Stockholm (2016); Mixtape 2016, Pilar Corrias, London (2016); SMK Friday, National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen (2016); Busan Inernational Film Festival, Busan (2016); Berlin International Film Festival, Berlin (2015); Fade into you: Cameron Jamie & John Skoog, Kunsthalle Mainz, Mainz (2015); International Competition, Ann Arbor International Film Fest, Ann Arbor (2015); International Competition, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Edinburgh (2015); Mainzer Ansichten, Kunsthalle Mainz, Mainz (2015); Cold War, Hot Peace, Slought, Philadephia (2015); „I multiplied myself to feel myself.”, Kunstraum Niederoesterreich, Vienna (2014); Real DMZ Project 2014, Cheorwon-gun, Gangwon-do & Artsonje Center, Seoul (2014); Shadowland, Stockholm Film Festival, Stockholm (2014); 1 km film Stockholm International Film Festival, Stockholm (2014); A Time for Dreams: 4th Moscow International Biennale for Young Art, National Centre for Contemporary Arts (NCCA), Moscow (2014); Ars Viva Preis: Truth/Reality – Björn Braun, John Skoog and Adrian Williams, MMK Museum fur Moderne Kunst Frankfurt am Main; GAM – Galleria civica d’arte moderna e contemporanea, Turin; Neues Museum Weimar, Weimar (2013-14); Taming the Narrative, Basis as a part of b3 Biennale, Frankfurt am Main (2013); Apollo, Weltkulturen Museum, Frankfurt am Main (2013); Surreale Dinge (as part of et al.*), Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt am Main (2011).
In 2015 Skoog won the 12th Goteborg Festival’s Startsladden, one of the world’s most prestigious short film prizes. In 2014 Skoog received the Baloise Art Prize at Art Basel for his film Reduit (Redoubt), in addition to prize money, the film was donated to two European museums – MMK, Frankfurt and MUMOK, Vienna. Skoog has been awarded the ‘1KM film scholarship’ from Stockholm Film festival (2013), the Hessische Kulturstiftung travel grant (2013), the ARS-VIVA Prize (2013/14), Malmö Art Museum 2013 Art Grant, Aase & Richard Björklund fund, and the ARTFILM Prize, Lichter International Film Festival (2013) and a one year working grant from Stiftung Kunstfonds, Bonn (2014).
John Skoog lives and works in Copenhagen.
Born 1985 in Kvidinge, Sweden
Lives and works in Copenhagen
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2016
hamletnosferatu, Johan Berggren Gallery, Malmö – SE
Mad Horizon, in collaboration with Emanuel Röhss, Index—The Swedish Contemporary Art Foundation, Stockholm – SE
3 filmer, Konstföreningen ARTiE, Eslöv Konsthall, Eslöv – SE
2015
Värn, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien (MUMOK), Vienna – AT
LAND, Museu d’Història de Catalunya, Barcelona – ES
Palace, Kunstforum Baloise, Basel – CH
Slow Return, Museum für Moderne Kunst (MMK), Frankfurt am Main – DE
Shadowland, Pilar Corrias, London – UK
2014
L A N D, A Tale of a Tub, Rotterdam – NL
Tahi Moore & John Skoog, Hopkinson Mossman, Auckland – NZ (two person show)
Redoubt, Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne – UK
2013
Federsee, Johan Berggren Gallery, Malmö – SE
Sent på Jorden, Art Lab Gnesta, Gnesta – SE
Shadowland, Lampione, Frankfurt am Main – DE
2012
Sent på Jorden and Förår, Pilar Corrias, London – UK
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2016
Screening, Alexander Levy, Berlin– DE
Daata Editions Season 2, https://daata-editions.com/
SWEDISH ART: NOW!, Sven-Harrys konstmuseum, Stockholm – SE
Mixtape 2016, Pilar Corrias Gallery, London – US
2015
Cold War, Hot Peace, Slought, Philadephia – US
Mainzer Ansichten, Kunsthalle Mainz, Mainz – DE
2014
„I multiplied myself to feel myself.”, Kunstraum Niederoesterreich, Vienna – AT
Rundblick, Verein Kirschenpflücker e.V., Cologne – DE
Real DMZ Project 2014, Cheorwon-gun, Gangwon-do & Artsonje Center, Seoul – KR
A Time for Dreams: 4th Moscow International Biennale for Young Art, National Centre for Contemporary Arts (NCCA), Moscow – RU
Ars Viva Preis: Truth/Reality – Björn Braun, John Skoog and Adrian Williams, MMK Museum fur Moderne Kunst Frankfurt am Main – DE; GAM – Galleria civica d’arte moderna e contemporanea, Turin – IT
2013
Ars Viva Preis: Truth/Reality – Björn Braun, John Skoog and Adrian Williams, Neues Museum Weimar, Weimar – DE
Taming the Narrative, Basis as a part of b3 Biennale, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Echo Release, NKV Nassauischer Kunstverein Wiesbaden, Wiesbaden – DE
Apollo, Weltkulturen Museum, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Scenery, &model, Leeds – UK
Cinema-Teatro Apollo, Bellaria Igea Marina – IT
Art Film Preis, Lichter Art Film Preis, Frankfurt am Main – DE
2012
Zauderberg: The 2012 Graduates of the Städelschule, MMK Zollamt, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Taco Truck (as a part of et al.*), Jarhundrethalle, Lüften Mouson Arts & Music Festival, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Den Rörliga Bildens Konst, Kristiandstad Konsthall, Kristiandstad – SE
2011
Übermorgenkünstler II, Heidelberger Kunstverein, Heidelberg – DE
Surreale Dinge (as part of et al.*), Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Fotografi i Fokus, Skånes Konstförening, Malmö – SE
Superbia Luxuria (with M.Martinsen, S.Mosblech & A.Skoog), Wandas Video Look, Gothenburg – SE
2010
Haunted House (as part of et al.*), Alt-Sachsenhausen, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Även denna plats ett vittne bär (with M.Martinsen & J.Granqvist), Övedskloster – SE
2009
Livet med det okända, Galleri Koh-i-Noor, Copenhagen – DK
2008
The Brakhage Lectures, Städelschule/Deutsche Filmmuseum, Frankfurt am Main – DE
A-political exhibition, T.I.C.A. Tirana Institute of Contemporary Art, Tirana – AL
In the absence of Glenn Gould (with Z. Dempster), Ludlow 38, Goethe-Institute, New York City – US
Comportamientos/Diámetro, Pino Suarez, Mexico City – MX
Cali Contemporaneo, Centro Cultural de Cali, Cali – CO
2007
700 år, Tomarps Kungsgård – SE
PS1 Contemporary Art Center, Long Island City, New York – US
Det Dolda (with Erik Berglin), Västernorrlands Länsmuseum, Sundsvall – SE
2006
So we closed our eyes, Galleri Blunk, Trondheim – NO
2005
New Swedish Video, Monkeytown Gallery, New York – US
Scandinavian Photography 1: Sweden, Faulconer Gallery, Bucksbaum Center for the Arts, Grinnell College, Grinnell – US
2004
Malm1, Malmö Konsthall, Malmö – SE
2003
47 konstnärsporträtt, Krognoshuset, Lund – SE
SCREENINGS
2016
20. Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur, Winterthur – CH
Mysteries Inside Facts: A Selection of International Contemporary Short Films, Los Angeles Filmforum, Los Angeles – US
Copenhagen Architechture Festival, Copenhagen – DK
Les Recontres Internationales: Paris, Gaîté lyrique, Paris – FR
SMK Friday, Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen – DK
Les Recontres Internationales: Berlin, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin – DE
Busan International Film Festival, Busan Cinema Center, Busan – KR
2015
International Shorts Competition: Berlinale, Berlin International Film Festival, Berlin – DE
Fade into you: episode XXXVIII, Kunsthalle Mainz, Mainz – DE
Ann Arbor Film Festival Presents, UnionDocs Center for Documentary Art, Brooklyn – US
International Competition, 53rd Ann Arbor International Film Fest, Ann Arbor – US
International Competition, 15th New Horizons International Film Festival, Wroclaw – PL
International Competition, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Edinburgh – UK
FOCUS: John Skoog, Lago Film Fest X+1, Revine Lago – IT
International Competition, Frontiera – International Documentary & Experimental Film Festival, Goiânia – BR
L’Âge D’Or, Cinematek Bruxelles, Brussels – BE
International Competition, Hamburg International Film Festival, Hamburg – DE
Directors Cut, Indielisboa Lisbon International Film Festival, Lisbon – PT
Shortscapes, Lake Como Film Festival, Como – IT
National Competition, Uppsala International Short Film Festival, Uppsala – SE
Focus Baltic Sea, Filmkunstfest Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Landeshauptstadt Schwerin – DE
International Competition, Tempo Documentary Film Festival, Stockholm – SE
Startsladden, Göteborg International Film Festival, Göteborg – SE
Värn, Folkets Bio, Stockholm – SE
2014
New Vision Competition, CPH:DOX, Copenhagen – DK
Special Screenings, Stockholm Film Festival, Stockholm – SE
+ Screening, Art center Ongoing, Tokyo & Doshisha University Clover Hall, Kyoto – JP
International Competition, 14th New Horizons International Film Festival, Wroclaw – PL
John Skoog, Eric M. Nilsson & Jan Troell, Lilla Filmfestivalen, Båstad – SE
International Competition 60, Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen, Oberhausen – DE
Recontres Internationales: Berlin, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin – DE
International Competition Milano International Film Festival – IT
International Competition, Indielisboa Lissabon International Film Festival, Lisbon – PT
Recontres Internationales, Palais de Tokyo & Gaîté Lyrique, Paris – FR
Sweden Up & Coming, Kino Riffraff, Zürich – CH
Ein abend mit… Sent på Jorden, Ve.sch, Wien – AT
2013
Spectrum, Rotterdam International Film Festival, Rotterdam – NL
International Competition 59, Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen, Oberhausen – DE
John Skoog & Makino Takashi, Kino Golem, Hamburg – DE
The Giant Corpse Flower Bloom, Microclima, Artnight Venezia, Venedig – IT
The Idea of North, Video_Dumbo, Eyebeam Art + Technology Center (Curated by Caspar Stracke and Gabriela Monroy), New York – US
Arbeiter verlassen die fabrik (1. Mai), (with Benedikte Bjerre) Eröffnung des Neubau, Hafen Zwei, Offenbach – DE
1km film, Stockholm International Film Festival, Stockholm – SE
International Competition, Festival de cinema independent de Barcelona – ES
2012
Les Rencontres Internationales: Berlin, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin – DE
Les Rencontres Internationales: Madrid, Filmoteca Española, Madrid – ES
Den Rörliga Bildens Konst, Screening-tour på bibliotek i Skåne, Kristianstads Konsthall – SE
International Competition, Indielisboa Lissabon International Film Festival, Lisbon – PT
2011
Onde/Waves, Torino International Film Festival, Turin – IT
Les Rencontres Internationales: Paris, Centre Pompidou, Paris – FR
Zinebi 53, Bilbao International Festival of documentary and short films, Bilbao – ES
Best Swedish Shorts, Bergmanveckan, Ingmar Bergman Center, Fårö – SE
Message to Man, St Petersburg International Film Festival, St Petersburg – RU
Startsladden (best Swedish short), Göteborg International Film Festival, Göteborg – SE
Värmlands Film Festival, Filmhuset Palladium, Arvika – SE
2008
Calicontemporaneo, Artes Plásticas De Cali – CL
Diámetro, Videoprogram im U-Bahn Pino Suarez, Mexico City – MX
2006
New York Underground Film Festival, Anthology Film Archives, New York – US
CURATED EXHIBITIONS
2014
Near Dark, Towner Contemporary Art Museum (curated with Bjarke Hvass Kure), Eastbourne – UK
EDUCATION
2007-2012
Städelschule, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2010
Malmö Art Academy, Malmö, Sweden
2005-2006
School of Photography, Göteborg, Sweden
AWARDS, GRANTS AND RESIDENCIES
2015
Startsladden (Best Swedish Short), 12th Göteborg International Film Festival – SE
2014
16. Baloise Art Prize, Art Basel – CH
Arbeitsstipendium, Stiftung Kunstfonds, Bonn – DE
Frankfurter Künstlerhilfe, Frankfurt – DE
2013
Ars Viva Preis, Kulturkreis der deutschen Wirtschaft – DE
1km Film, Stockholm International Film Festival – SE
Aase och Richard Björklunds donationsfond, Malmö Museum – SE
Artfilm Prize, Lichter International Film Festival, Frankfurt am Main – DE
Jury Special Mention, Prix Scribe, Paris – FR
Hessische Kulturstiftung travel grant, Wiesbaden – DE
2012
Reisestipendium, Hessische Kultur Stiftung – DE
2011
Jury’s Special Prize, Message to Man: St Petersburg International Film Festival – RU
2010
Klippans kommuns kulturstipendium – SE
IASPIS – International exchange – SE
2009
Sparbanksstiftelsen Färs och Frosta – SE
2008
Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes 2008-2012 – DE
Elsa Killbergs Fond – SE
Städelschule Portikus e.V. – DE
2002
Jury’s Special Prize, Trollhättans Film Festival – SE
John Skoog commission for Daata Editions
For his Daata Editions commission, John Skoog has created 6 sound works of street-recordings along Boulevard Barbès between the metro stations Château Rouge & Barbès Rochechouart and around the street market at Porte de Clignancourt, in the neighbourhood Goutte d’Or … More
John Skoog at Index, Stockholm
Index presents Mad Horizon, an exhibition by John Skoog in collaboration with Emanuel Röhss. The exhibition will be the first major presentation of the artists in an institution in their native country Sweden. The center of the exhibition is John … More
John Skoog at Sven-Harry’s Art Museum, Stockholm
John Skoog’s film Shadowland will be included in the exhibition SWEDISH ART: NOW!, the first ever comprehensive exhibition to present the new generation of Swedish contemporary art – from established such as Klara Lidén, Nathalie Djurberg and Cajsa von Zeipel … More
John Skoog at Lago Film Fest X + 1
The Startsladden programme – a yearly award that crowns the best Swedish short film – presents four of the shorts running for the prize in 2015, including the winner, John Skoog’s Redoubt. It’s a polyphonic choir: we space from the bell jar of … More
John Skoog at MUMOK, Vienna
At Art Basel John Skoog received the Baloise Art Prize, with prize money of 30,000 Swiss francs, for his 2014 video Reduit (Redoubt). This work is the centerpiece of his new solo exhibition in Vienna, entitled VÄRN (Defense), curated by Rainer Fuchs, and … More
John Skoog at Museu d’Història Catalunya, Barcelona
‘LAND’, the first solo exhibition in Spain by Swedish artist John Skoog, presents the artist’s latest film ‘SHADOWLAND’, alongside other works from the artist’s practice. This project by A Tale of a Tub is in collaboration with LOOP Barcelona and … More
John Skoog at Museum of Modern Art, Frankfurt
In 2014, the 16th Baloise Art Prize went to John Skoog (b. 1985). The Baloise Group has been awarding its art prize to young artists every year since 1999. The group moreover purchases workgroups by the prize recipients and gives these artworks … More
John Skoog wins 12th Goteborg Festival Startsladden award
Pilar Corrias is delighted to announce that John Skoog is the winner of the prestigious 12th Goteborg Festival’s Startsladden for Reduit (Redoubt), (2014), regarded as one of the world’s most important short film prizes. Hauntingly beautiful with a minimal aesthetic, Reduit (Redoubt) centres on a … More
John Skoog special film program and finissage at A Tale of a Tub
To celebrate the exhibition L A N D by John Skoog at A Tale of A Tub there will be a special film program and finissage on Sunday 25th January, 5 – 7pm. During the finissage four of Skoog’s earlier … More
John Skoog at the 65th Berlinale
In February 2015, 27 films from 18 countries will be competing for a Golden and a Silver Bear for the Best Short Film. To mark the occasion, a special programme titled The Golden Night of the Short Bears with a … More
Koo Jeong A and John Skoog at Real DMZ Project 2014, Republic of Korea
Koo Jeong A and John Skoog are both included in the next presentation of the REAL DMZ PROJECT 2014. Having begun with a critical perspective on the ironies that surround the demilitarized zone, the REAL DMZ PROJECT has extended its parameters … More
John Skoog at Pilar Corrias is winner of Baloise Prize at Art Basel
John Skoog has been awarded the Baloise Art Prize at this year’s Art Basel | Statements (19 – 22 June 2014). Skoog’s new installation, Pilar Corrias’ first booth presentation at Art Basel, comprises of the video Reduit (Redoubt) (2014), an archival … More
John Skoog at 4th Moscow International Biennale for Young Art
The work of John Skoog is included in the 4th Moscow International Biennale for Young Art, one of the largest and most ambitious projects in the field of contemporary art, taking place this summer. Lead by the Artistic Director David Elliot the Biennale … More
John Skoog curates Towner’s Collection
John Skoog in collaboration with Bjarke Hvass Kure has curated the exhibition Near Dark from Towner’s collection, which opens on 8 February 2014. Drawing from the time when night approaches as surely as sleep, when street lamps are lit and every being becomes … More
Artist Talk with John Skoog at Towner, Eastbourne
John Skoog to give a slide talk about the history and development of his work including his newly commissioned film for Towner, Redoubt. Saturday 22 February, 2014 3:00 PM Towner the contemporary art museum Devonshire Park, College Road Eastbourne BN21 … More
John Skoog wins Stockholm Film Festival scholarship
Pilar Corrias is proud to announce that John Skoog (b.1985) has been awarded with a prestigious ‘1KM film scholarship’ from Stockholm Film festival, 2013. The motivation of the jury: “For evocative and compelling photographic portraits that move through time and space, … More
Keren Cytter and John Skoog at Basis, Frankfurt
Keren Cytter and John Skoog are both included in the exhibition Taming the Narrative at Basis, Frankfurt from November 1, 2013, to January 8, 2014. The noticeable increase of narrative aspects in art films in recent years has led to broad debate as … More
John Skoog at Towner, Eastbourne
John Skoog will have his first solo show in a UK public gallery at Towner Contemporary Art Museum in Eastbourne, in January 2014. Skoog will make a new film for this exhibition that is set in the flat farmlands of … More
John Skoog is awarded Malmö Art Museum 2013 Art Grant
John Skoog is one of five artists who are this year’s recipients of the Malmö Art Museum 2013 Art Scholarship and Grants. Awarded annually the scholarships or grants support artists living and/or born in Skåne. John Skoog was awarded a 175,000 krona … More
John Skoog at NVK Wiesbaden, Germany
John Skoog’s new film Federsee is included in the forthcoming exhibition Echo Release at NVK Nassauischer Kunstverein Wiesbaden, Germany. The exhibition brings together for the first time a selection of works of the artist recipients of the Hessian Cultural Foundatition Grant. Artists in the … More
John Skoog at Weltkulturen Museum, Frankfurt
John Skoog with Christin Berg (DE), Benedikte Bjerre (DK), Andreas Bülow Cosmus (DK), Oscar Carlson (SE), Ian Edmonds (CA), Natasja Loutchko (SE), and Marcello Spada (IT) continue the work of their summer project at the Cinema-Teatro Apollo, Bellaria in Italy … More
John Skoog at Cinema-Teartro Apollo, Bellaria, Italy
John Skoog is part of a group of eight artists* who have been working on ‘The Re-opening of Cinema-Teatro Apollo’ in Bellaria, Italy. In 1910, Cinema-Teartro Apollo was built on the beach of Bellaria by the inventor and philanthropist Erardo … More
John Skoog at Video_Dumbo, New York
John Skoog’s film Sent på Jorden (Late on Earth) is included in Video_Dumbo, the eighth annual festival and exhibition of contemporary moving image art in New York. The festival is Curated by Caspar Stracke and Gabriela Monroy, and Co-presented by Eyebeam … More
John Skoog is awarded ars viva prize 2013/14
John Skoog is one of three recipients of this year’s ars viva prize for visual arts awarded by The Fine Arts Committee of the Association of Arts and Culture of the German Industry (Kulturkreis der deutschen Wirtschaft im BDI e. … More
John Skoog awarded the Hessische Kulturstiftung travel grant
John Skoog is awarded the Hessische Kulturstiftung travel grant. The jury was Dr. Ralf Beil (Director, Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt Institute), Anja Casser (Director, Badischer Kunstverein, Karlsruhe), Søren Grammel (Director, Kölnischer Kunstverein), Elke Gruhn (Artistic director, Nassauischer Kunstverein Wiesbaden) and Alice Koegel … More
Jon Asp, Stockholm Festival: First-time Directors Grab Spotlight, Variety, November 2014 (Download PDF)
John Quin, Review: John Skoog ‘Redoubt’, Art Review, May 2014 (Download PDF)
Laura McLean-Ferris, John Skoog’s “Sent på Jorden and Förår”, Art Agenda, January 2013 (Download PDF)
Review: John Skoog: Redoubt, Towner Museum, Aesthetica, January 2014 (Download PDF)
Exhibitions in Brief, Art + Auction, April 2013 (Download PDF)
Florence Ritter, Something you should see… John Skoog at Pilar Corrias, The Cultural Expose, November 2012 (Download PDF)
Mixtape 2016
Pilar Corrias presents Mixtape 2016, a compilation of film and video from nine gallery artists. The exhibition devotes two days to each artist, showcasing the unique aesthetics of their practices and collectively the diversity of the gallery programme. Mixtape 2016 stems from … More
JOHN SKOOG: SHADOWLAND
Pilar Corrias Gallery is pleased to present Shadowland, the second solo exhibition by Swedish artist John Skoog with the gallery. The exhibition features a new film alongside a series of colour photographs. Shot in the vicinity of Los Angeles, Shadowland … More
John Skoog: Sent på Jorden and Förår
For his first show at Pilar Corrias Gallery, John Skoog (b.1985) will present two new films, Sent på Jorden and Förår. John Skoog works with film and video. He follows in the tradition of Scandinavian film through the use of … More