Best Of Reykjavík 2019: Best Gallery

So, you’ve shopped in the shops, drank the drinks, and eaten all the foods. And whilst those things are all super fun, culture and the outdoors are the missing pieces of the puzzle for a perfect trip. Whether it’s a gleaming museum or a grimy artist-run gallery, a springtime hike or a trip to try and glimpse the aurora, here’s where to do it.

Best Gallery

i8

Tryggvagata 16

The internationally lauded i8 gallery was instrumental in putting Icelandic art on the map, and remains a mainstay in keeping it there. Although it’s a commercial gallery, the works on show are rarely conservative—expect to see conceptual cutting-edge museum-sized displays, rather than conservative and conventionally appealing wall-based work. The gallery is home to many of Iceland’s finest contemporary artists and also brings international names to Reykjavík. Best of all, there’s a sharp wit and a sense of fun running through the gallery’s roster, in sharp contrast to the often academic or po-faced offerings of the contemporary art scene.

Runner-Up:

Kling & Bang

Grandagarður 20

After finding its new home in the well-received Marshall House art museum complex, the Kling & Bang collective have done their very best to continually make people smile with wonder at their creative, ambitious, vibrant and varied solo exhibitions and groups shows. Keep it up!

Runner-Up:

Newcomer: Ásmundarsalur

Freyjugata 41

After two years of extensive renovations, Ásmundarsalur has finally reopened and charms the panel with its “super bright and open space with huge windows” and its well-executed new exhibition, “LÍFfærin,” where the spectator can admire organs made of glass. Ásmundarsalur will soon commence its event schedule, and the panel cannot wait!

Previous Winners

2015-18: i8
2014: Kling og Bang
2011-13: National Gallery

You can buy a copy of the full Best Of Reykjavík 2019 magazine—an essential guide to having fun in Reykjavík—here, posted worldwide. We also have a Special Offer double-pack that also includes our Best Of Iceland magazine, about places to eat, see, swim, shop and stay, all around the country, here.