The final battle of group 1..
We've been on a six month roller coaster of art! ..and on Saturday it was time to wrap this stage of the Euro League.
As Warsaw had beaten Bristol 2-1 earlier in the week, neither Malmö or Glasgow could miss out on a place in the quarter finals. This battle was for honour and the group win only.
The setting for this event was (after some problems detailed here and here) the last ever Möllevångs Festival. A somewhat early start just after the big carnival parade produced a curious but not so enthusiastic crowd. No matter! The power of Secret Wars soon had everyone hypnotized by the white wall.
The Scots were looking for revenge after going down on home soil to an all-female Malmö team back in cold February. The weather has certainly changed since then and maybe the Glaswegians fortune was about to...as they ripped straight into a very funny Swedish-chef-from-the-Muppets-piece. Nice clean lines and a very coherent image - and a really funny concept! (bonus points for being the first team NOT using any kind of viking reference when battling Team Malmö..).
The home side's response was all about energy and style - using the Möllevångs festival itself as the inspiration and producing all kinds of crazy characters.
Very intense battle with two completely different approaches. After 90 min it was time to produce a winner and whatever happened it was sure to be interesting..
First up was the crowd's vote. Glasgow got a very good 108,1 and maybe Malmö was about to lose the crowd for the second time running!? Non-battling Malmö team member Pistolina looked desperate as she jumped up and down screaming her lungs out for the top spot...and it worked! 108,7 - close, but none the less 1-0 to the Swedes.
First judge was local artist and columnist Behrang Miri. He made it 2-0 to Malmö and all the tension was gone. Möllan legend Dick from Impala also cast his vote for the home team and what could have swung either way had ended a comfortable 3-0 victory.
A very nice and intimate outdoor event. Around 300 people gathered for the judging, and another few hundreds passed through during the ninety minutes. Secret Wars in Malmö is normally all out craziness, but we enjoy mixing it up now and then.. :)
A few words to be said about the judging and in particular the difference in art style between countries..
Through working with Secret Wars I regularly deal with a great number of both British and Scandinavian artists and I have noticed some very distinct differences in what is considered good Secret Wars art. British artists tend to value technical skill and clean styles, while Scandi artists seem to value individuality and energy above other things. This obviously creates a lot of raised eyebrows when it comes to something as difficult (impossible?) as judging art...but I guess that is the beauty of Secret Wars. A finished battle board that doesn't spark a discussion is not good enough if you ask me!
We want to thank everyone who supports Secret Wars in Malmö and in particular Pierre, Hanna, Möllevångsfestivalen, The Boom Bap, Behrang Miri, Dick från Impala, Sonny, Reebok, Edding, Casio, Terry, Ro and of course everyone who attended Saturdays event!
(All pics by Sonny Johansson)
