On Friday, 13 June, Norwegian Crafts hosted an internal seminar in collaboration with the National Association for Travellers/Romani in Norway, Christina Zetterlund and Nitja Centre for Contemporary Art. The aim of the seminar was to expand our knowledge of Romani handicraft traditions.

The seminar included presentations by Lillan Støen and Holger Gustavsen from the National Association for Travellers/Romani in Norway, as well as researcher Sebastian Casinge. The event took place at Nitja.

Following the presentations, participants engaged in a conversation about craft practices within the Romani community—exploring how these traditions can be supported and made more visible within the broader craft field. The group also joined a guided tour of the exhibition Taterlandet [Travellers' Land] at Nitja (on view 7 June–24 August 2025), led by Ellef Prestsæter, who curated the exhibition in collaboration with Elias Akselsen, Anders Nordby and Martin Sæther.

Additional participants included Laila Bækkevold, Head of Museum Education at the Glomdal Museum; Kjetil Storeheier Norheim, Adviser at the Norwegian Crafts Institute; Kathrine Wilson, Director at Nitja; and Ellef Prestsæter, Curator and Artistic Director of Guttormsgaards Arkiv, alongside the Norwegian Crafts team.

The seminar is part of Norwegian Crafts’ ongoing collaboration with Christina Zetterlund, as the organisation’s Curator in Residence for 2024–25. Central to this collaboration is the organisation’s ambition to expand established frameworks and engage with a wider range of voices within the craft field.

Contributors

Lillan Støen has served as a Secretary of the National Association for Travellers/Romani in Norway since 2007. Støen is also Deputy Chair of Innlandet County’s Multicultural Council, a member of the Equality Council of The Norwegian Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir), and a member of Arts and Culture Norway’s expert group for the collective reparation for the Romani people/Travellers.

Holger Gustavsen has been Chair of the National Association for Travellers/Romani in Norway since 2005. For many years, he has worked for the rights of national minorities in various areas, and he has contributed to the establishment of Latjo Drom, a department of the Glomdal Museum with a national responsibility for conveying the history and culture of the Romani people/Travellers.

Sebastian Casinge works at Hälsingland Museum and the Frantzwagner Society, and has for many years researched the history of the Romani people in Sweden (resande/tatere). Based on his research, he has written numerous articles on the subject, including about the many Romani people who were itinerant glass traders for Kosta and other Swedish glassworks. He has authored reports such as The Cultural Heritage of the Romani in Sweden (supported by the Swedish National Heritage Board) and The National Minority Roma in Dalarna over 400 Years (for the Dalarna region). Casinge has also produced an audio tour on the history of the Romani people in Stockholm (for the Stockholm City Museum) and exhibitions such as Knife-Kalle’s Treasures, which highlights the life and craft of the outstanding Swedish knife maker Karl Fredrik Johansson (Hälsingland Museum, Dalarna Museum).