Galleri F 15 appoints a new director

Galleri F 15 is delighted to announce the appointment of Lise Pennington as the new director of Galleri F 15 and MOMENTUM.

An art historian and curator with extensive experience in strategy and development as well as a strong curatorial vision, Lise Pennington joins Galleri F 15 from the ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, where she served as Chief Curator and Interim Director.

Welcoming the appointment, Anne Hilde Neset, Chairman of the board for Galleri F 15, notes:

“We are very excited to welcome Lise Pennington as the new director of Galleri F 15 and MOMENTUM. She is a candidate with extensive experience in development and strategic thinking and has a solid international curatorial background. Housed in a historic building situated in gorgeous countryside next to the sea, Galleri F 15 is a treasure. We have ambitious plans for developing the space, and we look forward to working with Lise in this next chapter of the institution’s history.”

After 12 years at one of Denmark’s largest art museums, Lise Pennington has a strong international network in the contemporary art world. She was a central figure in leading ARoS through an extensive development from 2015 to 2020, as well as the expansion of the museum with an underground gallery space and a major permanent James Turrell installation. She has a long history of curatorial projects, both group- and solo exhibitions and has curated, amongst many others, solo presentations by artists such Shirin Neshat, Isaac Julien, Douglas Gordon, Do Ho Suh, Grayson Perry, Nathalie Djurberg & Hans Berg, Freeman & Lowe, James Rosenquist and Joana Vasconcelos.

About her appointment, Lise Pennington says:

“I am very much looking forward to further developing the MOMENTUM biennale and Galleri F 15. MOMENTUM has long had the status of the most important biennale in the Nordics with great professional weight – and Galleri F 15 is a real gem. I see enormous potential in both MOMENTUM and Galleri F 15, the 19th-century manor house set in a historic landscape just outside Moss.”

Galleri F 15 has exhibited contemporary art and crafts for over 60 years and is currently in an exciting development phase with ambitious plans for the future. The MOMENTUM biennale was established in 1998 and merged with Galleri F 15 in 2006. The twelfth edition of the biennale opens on 10 June 2023.

“Together with the board and a strong team, I am greatly looking forward to working with the local community and sharpening the artistic profile even more. It is our ambition to work with an artistic programme that can increase awareness of the site both nationally and internationally alongside hosting local events, whilst simultaneously providing engaging education for adults as well as schoolchildren, young people and families,” says Lise Pennington.

As his 16-year tenure comes to an end, Galleri F 15 would like to take this opportunity to thank outgoing director Dag Aak Sveinar for his longstanding dedication to the gallery, the MOMENTUM biennale, and the local community.

Lise Pennington takes up the position on 1 September 2023.

Photo: Emil Herold.