Artist John Raustein

The Artist
John K. Raustein is from Randaberg but lives and works in Oslo. He is educated at renowned art schools in Bergen (2000) and Copenhagen (1997), and primarily works with sculpture and textile installation. He has had several solo exhibitions at prestigious institutions, and his works have been acquired by numerous private and public collections. Examples include Equinor's art programme , the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Sørlandets Art Museum/Kunstsilo, Nordenfjeldske Art Museum, and KODE Art Museums in Bergen.

About the Art
John's work focuses on the theme of protection. The 1300s and 1400s were a time when several major plagues ravaged the city, including the Black Death, which killed over 60 percent of Stavanger's population.

John has created a room where the walls are covered with textiles embroidered with symbols. The symbols are taken from the primstav (a wooden Norwegian runic calendar) and represent Syftesok (St. Swithun's wake, 2 July). This is an old Catholic feast day, and in the district around Stavanger Cathedral, it is common for the symbol of Syftesok to be a bishop's staff. This is because the cathedral is dedicated to St. Swithun, the patron saint of Stavanger.

The room also contains several display cases filled with textile sculptures in silver. These are inspired by lucky charms and talismans. John's "textile amulets" not only carry the lustre and aesthetics of the metal but also a belief in magic and protection against disease, death, and evil forces. The silver, known for its magical and healing properties, gives the amulets an extra dimension of magical power, linking them to the Middle Ages, a time when religion, folklore, and superstition coexisted.