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We all need role models to relate and look up to – be it a superhero, an artist, or a revolutionary. Yet, these universally iconic figures are rarely depicted bypeople with intellectual disabilities.

The photo exhibition Icons explores the right to exist and to be seen, regardless of who you are. It features portraits of iconic figures – real and fictional – modeled by 21 individuals with Down Syndrome. Here, they get to act out their dreams and desires: in society, in pop culture, and in art.

This exhibition is about more than just photography. Ultimately, it is a powerful reminder that while we are all unique, we are not as different as we might think.  

Icons was born out of a unique collaboration between the Fotografiska Museum in Stockholm, one of the world’s largest centers for contemporary photography, and the Glada Hudik Theater, a Swedish theater group for people with intellectual disabilities. Helena Andersson and Linda Sandberg (idea and design), Emma Svensson (photographer), Pär Johansson (artistic director, Glada Hudik Theater), Pauline Benthede (global exhibition manager, Fotografiska Museum), and Per Broman (founder, Fotografiska Museum) were responsible for the production.

#OneCanMakeADifference
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This exhibition will be on display from March 2 until June 30, 2024.
Opening hours: Saturdays and Sundays between 12-5 PM.

#FREE admission, no registration needed. Government issued photo ID is required to enter House of Sweden (children under 18 are exempted).
Photo: Emma Svensson

Welcome! 

Axel Annica Karlsson Rixon

(Born 1962) lives and works in Gothenburg, Berlin, and Los Angeles. Karlsson Rixon has a degree from the Nordic School of Photography in Stockholm, and the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California. Karlsson Rixon was a professor of photography at the University of Gothenburg between 2003 and 2007, where the artist later earned a Ph.D. in Photography in 2016. Karlsson Rixon has exhibited extensively in Sweden and internationally and is represented in the collections at, for example, Gothenburg Museum of Art in Gothenburg, Norrköpings Konstmuseum, and Moderna Museet in Stockholm.

Sune Jonsson

(1930-2009) was a photographer, writer, and ethnologist that lived and worked in Västerbotten, Sweden. In addition to his photographic work, Jonsson was a skilled documentary filmmaker. In cooperation with Västerbotten Museum and Sveriges Television (Swedish Television), he produced documentary films about small farms, mining, and fishing in sparsely populated northern Sweden. Jonsson is represented in the collections at, for example, Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Hasselblad Center in Gothenburg, and Västerbotten Museum in Umeå. In 1993, he was presented with the prestigious Hasselblad Award.

Axel Annica Karlsson Rixon

(Born 1962) lives and works in Gothenburg, Berlin, and Los Angeles. Karlsson Rixon has a degree from the Nordic School of Photography in Stockholm, and the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California. Karlsson Rixon was a professor of photography at the University of Gothenburg between 2003 and 2007, where the artist later earned a Ph.D. in Photography in 2016. Karlsson Rixon has exhibited extensively in Sweden and internationally and is represented in the collections at, for example, Gothenburg Museum of Art in Gothenburg, Norrköpings Konstmuseum, and Moderna Museet in Stockholm.

Sune Jonsson

(1930-2009) was a photographer, writer, and ethnologist that lived and worked in Västerbotten, Sweden. In addition to his photographic work, Jonsson was a skilled documentary filmmaker. In cooperation with Västerbotten Museum and Sveriges Television (Swedish Television), he produced documentary films about small farms, mining, and fishing in sparsely populated northern Sweden. Jonsson is represented in the collections at, for example, Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Hasselblad Center in Gothenburg, and Västerbotten Museum in Umeå. In 1993, he was presented with the prestigious Hasselblad Award.

Axel Annica Karlsson Rixon

(Born 1962) lives and works in Gothenburg, Berlin, and Los Angeles. Karlsson Rixon has a degree from the Nordic School of Photography in Stockholm, and the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California. Karlsson Rixon was a professor of photography at the University of Gothenburg between 2003 and 2007, where the artist later earned a Ph.D. in Photography in 2016. Karlsson Rixon has exhibited extensively in Sweden and internationally and is represented in the collections at, for example, Gothenburg Museum of Art in Gothenburg, Norrköpings Konstmuseum, and Moderna Museet in Stockholm.
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