Stories on the Fridge – Lasse Persson
18.8 – 19.9 2021
The exhibition “Stories on the Fridge” is created by the artist Lasse Persson in collaboration with children from the preschools Lekatten, Rörsjön, Södertull, S:t Gertrud, Boken, Bladbaggen, and Möllevången. The exhibition is part of the film project “Barn filmar Malmö” (Children Film Malmö), which, in the spirit of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, aims to make children’s thoughts and perspectives visible.
Creator of several children’s films
Lasse Persson is a creator of animated films, working as an animator, animation director, and animation producer. He has directed most of the films about “Lilla spöket Laban” at Pennfilm Studio. In the spring of 2020, he was involved in the film project “Barn filmar Malmö” (Children Film Malmö) and visited seven preschools. There, he had conversations with children aged four to six while they drew pictures about the things on their minds.
Bringing drawings to life
These are drawings that typically end up on our fridges without much comment, and the stories are forgotten. Some of these drawings were turned into short animations by Lasse Persson, grouped around themes for the films “Corona på kylskåpet” (Corona on the Fridge), “Blod på kylskåpet” (Blood on the Fridge), and “Konst på kylskåpet” (Art on the Fridge). Together, they are called “Berättelser på kylskåpet” (Stories on the Fridge). A fourth film, “Regnbågen på kylskåpet” (The Rainbow on the Fridge), was later added. In this film, Persson developed a method of collaborating with the children, and every participating child had a story represented in the film.
Persson strives to remain faithful to the each childs intentions with their stories and drawings. The children’s own words about the drawings are read by professional actors. For adults, it becomes a return to the experience of being five years old, reopening the eyes of a five-year-old. For children, it becomes evident that their storytelling with images and words is worth listening to and can become great films. The need for a space to meet, create, and converse is also evident in this project, at a time when it has been scarce. The ability to express oneself, articulate feelings and thoughts, and be seen and heard are basic needs and human rights, as outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
“Barn filmar Malmö” is an effort to engage the city’s youngest residents in a citizen dialogue regarding the planning and design of the future of Malmö. As part of this work, all 209 preschools in the city have been offered the opportunity to tell their stories about the city through film. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child became Swedish law on January 1, 2020. The film project has been formulated to align with the efforts made in Malmö to implement the Convention on the Rights of the Child in the city’s strategic work.
The project is an initiative by Pedagogisk Inspiration Malmö, a department within the City of Malmö that works for school development and educational research in all forms of schools in the city. The project is carried out in collaboration with the production companies Film Fatale and Swedish Ecstasy Film.