Robert Montgomery is an artist well known for his poems and words in public and open spaces. When created on the street his work causes people to stop and think. Words and poetry suddenly finding themselves thrust front and centre into spaces that you perhaps wouldn’t expect.
Perceived Notions
His latest work at Værnes Airport in Trondheim perhaps goes against some of the perceived notions about what street art is. “We wanted to play with those preconceived ideas a little” explained Martyn Reed, the Director of Nuart. “These types of projects give us the opportunity to show street art, in all of its forms. A specially commissioned poem painted onto the wall of an airport certainly does mix up the concept of where street art might be traditionally found.
Local and Universal
“I have written the poem to be both local and universal” the artist says of his work at the airport in Trondheim. “I wanted it to have a flavour of the North Sea, and at the same time allude to cities, humanity and travel more universally”. Growing up close to the sea in Scotland and loving the landscape of Norway, he felt that he had an affinity to the place.
World from Above
“The idea of the poem in the mural is the world looked at from above. Considering those elements of our world that are natural. Those elements that are modern. How our cities sit in the landscape, and the magical element that cities have for me, places of mystery and adventure. Ultimately, like much of my work, the poem is about love”.
Word Art and Nuart
It’s not the first time Robert Montgomery has created work in Norway. In 2016 a series of pieces appeared as part of the Nuart Festival in Stavanger. Then the following year in 2017 he became one of the founding artists of Nuarts sister event in Aberdeen. Sometimes painted onto walls and sometimes created used light and neon. He is an artist whose work can transform spaces.
Production
“We would normally produce this as a stencil or vinyl” said Martyn Reed about the production of the piece. “But in keeping with the nature of the project and our desire for quality whilst constantly trying to improve, we reached out and commissioned Ciaran Globel”. A street artist in his own right, Globel is known for his signwriting ability. Based in Glasgow his work will incorporate signage and text with more contemporary elements related to graffiti and street art. “To have these two incredible talents on one project is pretty special” says Martyn.
The mural by Robert Montgomery at Vaernes Airport in Trondheim was created during April 2023. It has been supported by Avinor, the owners of the airport and Nuart. All photos used in this article are courtesy of Nuart. For more information on Robert Montgomery take a look at his instagram and website.
