The Misery House

FEB / 2024
Inspired by Gudjon Bjarnason

This project explores memory and overlooked history by documenting the untold story of The Misery House, ,the remarkable home of Icelandic artist and architect Gudjon Bjarnason in Stokkseyri. I first came across the house in 2015 and was immediately struck by its raw, haunting presence. Years later, I reached out to Gudjon and discovered that the building was much more than a home it was an artistic experiment: his guinea pig, his baby, his diamond in the rough. Constructed using wood salvaged from a shipwreck, the house earned its name for both its origins and its atmosphere. Hearing Gudjon speak about it revealed a deeply personal relationship between maker and place, inspiring me to explore the poetic connections between landscape, memory, and the spaces we inhabit.

This house survived an Icelandic recession, numerous costume theme house parties, brutal weather conditions, vandalism, and arson. Gudjon imagined that one day it would be a museum of his life. Unfortunately, it was eventually torn down by the municipality in 2017. This drawing is an archive of Gudjon's memories, filled with his stories of The Misery House.

View full museum catalogue here