Soap Opera at the Marshall House

Ása Helga Hjörleifsdóttir, director and associate professor at the Department of Film Arts at the Icelandic Academy of Arts, directs the video work Soap opera by Ragnar Kjartansson, which is now on display in i8 Grandi at the Marshall House.

The work, which is about 60 hours long, is a remake of 81 episodes from the American soap opera Santa Barbara, which enjoyed immense popularity in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, and Belarus in the 1990s and became an influential cultural touchstone in the years after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Ragnar and Ása Helga worked on the project together for several years and was Soap opera filmed at the GES-2 cultural center in central Moscow in 2021–2022. A review of the work recently appeared in The art newspaper, where Ragnar and Ása Helga talked to Ann Binlot about the work.

Master's talk

That one November 20, 2025 at 13:00 PM Ragnar and Ása Helga will discuss the work and answer questions in a masterclass organized by the Department of Film Arts in the lecture hall in Laugarnes.

Students are encouraged to see the work beforehand, but the exhibition in i8 Grandi at the Marshall House runs until November 22nd.

Admission is free and all are welcome!

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Ása Helga Hjörleifsdóttir, Associate Professor at the LHÍ Film Department, directs the video work Soap opera by Ragnar Kjartansson, now on view at i8 Grandi in the Marshall House.

The video installation, approximately 60 hours in total, comprises 81 restaged episodes of the American soap opera Santa Barbara, which rose to extraordinary popularity in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, and Belarus in the 1990s, becoming a cultural touchstone in the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Ragnar and Ása Helga spent years developing this work together and the Soap opera was filmed on-site at the GES-2 House of Culture in central Moscow during 2021–2022.

For further insight, see Ann Binlot's recent feature and interview with Ragnar and Ása Helga in The Art Newspaper.

Masterclass

On November 20, 2025 at 13: 00, Ragnar and Ása Helga will give a masterclass, hosted by the LHÍ Film Department.

Students are encouraged to visit the exhibition beforehand i8 Grandi Marshall House.

Admission is free and the exhibition is on view daily until November 22.

All are welcome!