Helga Arnalds has worked on the border between visual art and performing arts for the past 30 years. Helga is the artistic director of 10 FINGERS founded in 1994  and has been developing an embodied devising method for the last decade using materials such as paper, plastic, soil, clay and sand to engage with the imagination of the spectator through the sensorial - visual language.

 

The essence of her work throughout the years is to listen to materials. Investigate their characteristics and expression. To give the material a soul "anima" by "animating" it. Each material has its own "nature" and its own stories. The award-winning performances The Monster my Little Sister, which was made of paper, LIFE a Mudpie made with soil, and The Girl Who Stopped the World, which was shown at the City Theatre and dealt with the environmental problem through plastic, are all examples of this approach.

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Helga also runs a ceramic studio working with colours and patterns, both by hand painting colourful patterns on the pottery and a centuries-old method hand molding stamps that create patterns in the clay. The result is colourful ceramic bowls and patterned cups and containers  that not only capture the senses but serve as a bridge between past and present resulting in craft that is both evocative and cutting-edge.

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Among many different recognisions for her work, she has received one of the most distinguished prizes given for culture in Iceland the Optimism Prize 2012( Bjartsýnisverðlaunin) The 10 finger company also received the Icelandic performing art’s Award for the best children’s performance in Iceland 2012 and 2015. 

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