OSLO.- The National Museum of Norway in Oslo announces the launch of a major new performance programme, In the Moment, taking place from Saturday, October 25 to Sunday, October 26, 2025.
Supported by Lise M Stolt-Nielsen and her family, In the Moment offers a significant institutional platform for performance art with talks, events and works. The inaugural edition will feature new live performances by international contemporary artists Meredith Monk, Elina Waage Mikalsen and SAGG Napoli.
Featuring live performances alongside conversations and events, this dynamic initiative establishes a vital platform for performance art and the critical discourse surrounding its history and future. The programme has been generously supported by Lise M Stolt-Nielsen and her family, reflecting their longstanding commitment to advancing performance art in both Norwegian and international contexts.
In the Moment will celebrate the breadth and vitality of contemporary performance art, explore its evolution throughout the 20th century, and examine its evolving relationship with museums and institutions. Emphasising the fluid, interdisciplinary nature of performance, the programme will bring together a range of practices by established and emerging artists, showcasing the diversity of the genre.
The program was initiated by Stina Høgkvist, then the director of collections at the National Museum, together with Lise M Stolt-Nielsen and Klaus Biesenbach in 2023/2024. The 2025 program is developed by a committee consisting of Stina Høgkvist (now director of Northern Norwegian Art Museum), Geir Haraldseth, curator National Museum, Klaus Biesenbach, Director of Neue Nationalgalerie Berlin, a longstanding and renowned curator of performance programs at institutions including MoMA and MoMA PS1, New York and MoCA LA.
In the Moment features live performances by three contemporary artists. These include the pioneering composer, performer and interdisciplinary artist Meredith Monk (b. 1942, New York), recipient of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 2025 Venice Biennale Musica. Celebrated for works that seamlessly integrate voice, body and movement, Monk will appear in concert on Saturday 25 October in the museum’s main auditorium, performing with members of her renowned Vocal Ensemble, Katie Gessinger and Allison Sniffin.
Throughout the weekend, SAGG Napoli (b. 1991, Naples) will activate the museum’s outdoor square with an interactive performance exploring themes of rage and emotional embodiment - characteristic of her practice, which bridges the physical and psychological. Meanwhile, Sámi-Norwegian interdisciplinary artist and musician Elina Waage Mikalsen (b. 1992, Romssa / Tromsø) will foreground questions of whose stories are represented in the museum, and who has the power to tell them - disrupting institutional narratives and centring alternative ways of knowing. Monk, Napoli and Mikalsen will also take part in a public conversation on Sunday 26 October, reflecting on their individual approaches and the changing role of performance in contemporary art.
In addition to the performances, a series of lectures, panel talks and conversations will explore the curation, production, research and conservation of performance art. Curated by Håkon Lillegraven (Curator of Education, National Museum of Norway), this programme will bring together leading voices from museums and cultural institutions worldwide, fostering new international and cross-institutional dialogues.
Contributors will include: Alison Burstein (Curator, MoMA, New York); Ana Ribeiro (Conservator, Tate); Hendrik Folkerts (Curator of International Contemporary Art and Head of Exhibitions, Moderna Museet, Stockholm); Helle Siljeholm (artist, choreographer, and PhD fellow in artistic research, Oslo); Jina Chang (Conservator, Nasjonalmuseet); Kjersti Solbakken (Director, Bergen Kunsthall); Lotte Løvholm (Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde); Saša Asentić (choreographer, researcher, and cultural worker, Oslo/Novi Sad); and others.
