THE EAST OF ICELAND!! POTENTIAL OR INDUSTRIAL DEATH?

Egilsstaðir is a small town in the Eastern part of Iceland. A very young town, I remember when I came there first in the 60’s it was very mellow commercial and school location central in the country being a link to all the fjords with very active fisheries. The main school was located close and the town holds still the main airport for the eastern part of Iceland. Even providing the occasional flight to Europe. The main and nowadays only sea-passenger transport from Europe comes into Seyðisfjörður with Smyril Line, only 45 km away. This town holds the Blue Factory where we run our summer school in an old herring factory that is off limits in the winter time because of snow avalance danger.

For the last years Egilsstaðir has been the hub for the developing of the sad Aluminium Factory in the East of Iceland that has damaged badly the highland environment with arrogant electric power stations etc. See here. But enough of that. Egilsstaðir has also many small activities driven by the locals producing small industry, bio food, crafts etc. Now after the gold-rush of the aluminium factory building the locals are opening up small activities again and I have been so lucky to visit some of them last week.

There is a small workshop being run there and included in that is a small project funded by the EU that goes by the name CC.  Þorpið (see post here) and various other funds supporting new iniciatives for crafts and arts driven industries. This is very much in line with the activities in close areas like Seyðisfjörður where the LUNGA arts festival is housed and I have blogged before. I must admit that after the sad industrial building activities period for the aluminium factory and the electric power station it will be possible to go back to small initiatives, creativity and personal design and services. It is the only way to run a society and create culture. Here are a few images from my visits in various posts. Great work in the workshop in Egilsstaðir where we met Signý Ormarsdóttir and Lára Vilbergsdóttir. Also the various things made by Anna Gunnlaugsdóttir and her husband out of reindeer bones and feet.

Reindeer materials 

My dear old friend the Scout Car 

Þorpið, a workshop in Egilsstaðir   (Blog here)

Eco Farm Vallanes (Blog here)

 

 

 

February 3, 2012   Posted in: ART, DESIGN, ICELAND, PONDERINGS, SUSTAINABILITY