
Ingrid Orfali, Moby Dick repasse, 1987 Photo: Prallan Allsten/Moderna Museet Bildupphovsrätt 2022
Sleepless Nights
From the 1980s in the Moderna Museet collection
28.2 2023 – 14.1 2024
Stockholm
Two characteristics of the 1980s are the financial ups and downs and the fear of HIV and AIDS. At the same time the art market is on fire, the alternative art scene provokes, and the cold war is coming to an end. Traces of this contradictory pivotal point between the political 1970s and the artistically terser 1990s can be found in the Moderna Museet collection. This includes works by some of the international megastars but, more importantly, by a large number of famous and unknown artists from Sweden.
The artists presented in “Sleepless Nights” include Barbro Bäckström, Stina Ekman, Eva Löfdahl and Marika Mäkelä, but also international names such as Tracey Moffatt and Cindy Sherman. The exhibition title is inspired by Teresa Wennberg’s large video installation “Nuit Blanche” from 1983. Wennberg is one of the many women in art who tested and experimented with new media and materials during this period.
A few male artists will also feature, including Torsten Andersson, Max Book, Daniel Buren and Pierre Lobstein along with Robert Mapplethorpe and Andy Warhol.
Guided tour with Curator Anna Tellgren
Join a guided tour on the opening day of “Sleepless Nights – From the 1980s in the Moderna Museet collection”! The exhibition’s curator Anna Tellgren tells us about the 1980s, the artists and their works.
Date
Tuesday 28 February 2023
Time
At 12
Place
In the exhibition, floor 4
The guided tour is included in the entrance fee. Collect your ticket to the guided tour at the information desk the same day.

“Sleepless Nights – From the 1980s in the Moderna Museet collection” is the first exhibition in the new presentation of the Moderna Museet collection.
Curator: Anna Tellgren