Festival Art Souterrain

Carry Me Home is a sculpture created from found bricks and repurposed materials collected from the streets of Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang / Montreal. Originating from Daniel Gillberg’s exploration of the city upon arrival, this work examines themes of identity, belonging, and the tangible elements that shape our sense of home. The bricks symbolize connection, memory, and labour, transforming them into more than mere construction materials; they become carriers of both personal and collective narratives. The act of collecting and recontextualizing these materials reflects a personal yet universally resonant.

Rooted in the artist’s nomadic experience and informed by a queer perspective, Carry Me Home investigates what it means to inhabit a space in a constantly shifting world. It prompts viewers to consider the essence of home: is it a physical place, a state of being, or something we carry within us? Through the thoughtful integration of discarded materials, the sculpture challenges perceptions of space and identity while engaging with themes of environmental psychology and new materialism.

Gillberg is a Swedish interdisciplinary artist based in Montreal. Through sculpture, photography, and installation, he explores how discarded objects relate to materiality, memory, and cultural identity. Drawing from his background in fine art conservation, he examines how these materials reflect human experiences and societal patterns.

He holds a degree in Conservation and Restoration of Fine Arts from the University of Gothenburg (Sweden) and studied photography at the Nordic School of Photography in Oslo (Norway). His work has been exhibited internationally, including in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, the United States, and Germany, where he completed a two-year residency at the Centre for Ceramics in Berlin. He is currently a Master of Fine Arts candidate in Sculpture and Ceramics at Concordia University (Montreal), focusing on sustainable practices in material culture.