12/10/2025
🙌 Congratulations to Shoplifter / Hrafnhildur Arnardóttir, recipient of the 5th Elfi von Kantzow Alvin Art Award.
Shoplifter / Hrafnhildur Arnardottir is a renowned Icelandic contemporary artist, born in Reykjavik and based in NY. Her innovative work primarily utilizes synthetic and natural hair to create captivating sculptures, murals, and site-specific installations. Exhibited worldwide, she has collaborated with artists from various countries, including with musician Björk to create the hair mask for the cover of her album Medúlla. Shoplifter also represented Iceland at La Biennale di Venezia in 2019 with her installation Chromo Sapiens.
The Elfi von Kantzow Alvin Art Award is awarded to a woman visual artist with outstanding talent, vision and perseverance with strong ties to one of the 5 Nordic countries. Instituted by the American Scandinavian Society in 2019, the Elfi Art Award honors and continues in the spirit of her efforts for Scandinavian artists and the Scandinavian community in New York for over 60 years. She curated more than 250 Scandinavian artists and was known as the “Fairy Godmother” of Scandinavian artists in New York.
The Elfi statuette is by Tony “Rubin” Sjöman Tony Sjöman
Past awardees:
➡️ See link in bio to learn more about Shoplifter / Hrafnhildur Arnardóttir’s work and the Elfi von Kantzow Alvin Art Award
