Roskilde Festival is, of course, about music and celebration – but the festival's Art & Activism programme also includes a wide range of events and art installations. This year, many of them explore and challenge our patterns of overconsumption and the consequences they have for the climate.
You can immerse yourself in a massive artwork made from used clothes, encounter a textile zombie, try your hand at dogma knitting, process your climate grief, and join a conversation with Greta Thunberg about global solidarity.
Scroll down and dive into the lineup.
Our relationship with clothes and fashion is shaped by rampant overconsumption – and this has major consequences across the world. That’s the central message in the powerful installation Return to Sender by Kenyan art collective The Nest Collective, which you’ll find at Indre Plads, next to the merch booth between the Orange Stage and Arena.
The work consists of 50 tonnes of second-hand clothing, symbolising the vast amounts of textile waste exported to the Global South, where it often ends up dumped on enormous landfill sites. Inside this patchwork landscape, you’ll find a video work showcasing two of Africa’s largest second-hand markets, where the grotesque effects of our consumption habits are made starkly visible.
The large volumes of textile waste exported to Africa are often referred to as Dead White Men’s Clothes. British artist Jeremy Hutchison has used this phrase as inspiration for his performance Dead White Man, which will take place twice during First Days – along with a workshop where you can help transform him into a textile monster.
Hutchison has previously haunted prestigious locations as a roaming textile zombie, using humour as a powerful way to shed light on a pressing issue.
Workshop: Dead White Man. Sunday 29 June at 13:15, Flokkr
With the climate crisis and ongoing conflicts around the world, international solidarity and global justice are more important than ever. That’s the starting point when Operation Dagsværk hosts a conversation between three powerful young voices exploring similarities and differences in global struggles.
On stage: Inuit artist and activist Nina Sikkersoq, climate activist Greta Thunberg, and Danish-Palestinian organiser Dalia Kababo, who has played a central role in the Palestinian mobilisation in Denmark.
Tuesday 1 July at 14:00, Re:Act
On Monday, you’re invited to plant a literal hope for the future. Climate activists from Nairobi will host the Future Trees workshop, where you can plant a tree while formulating a personal hope for what’s to come.
With any luck, your tree – and your hope – will grow strong.
Monday 30 June at 12:00, The Yard
Many of us experience sorrow in the face of the climate crisis. To help process these emotions, the youth movement Flor invites you to Sensory Connections – a gathering where you’ll connect with yourself and others through presence, movement and sensory exploration.
Weave a grief wreath using natural and recycled materials, take part in a sensory walk from Flokkr to The Yard, and explore other species’ perspectives with the help of a whale guiding you through the Camp Site.
Workshop: Wreath of Mourning. Monday 30 June at 14:30, Flokkr
Sensory tour with Flor. Monday 30 June at 15:00, Flokkr Container #1
Dogma knitting is the antidote to mass-produced, chemically dyed yarn. It’s a simple, natural, and sustainable method that makes use of the resources at hand. At Hedestrik’s workshop, you’ll learn the practice firsthand: pulling threads from raw Danish wool, feeling the warmth of lanolin, rolling your own ball of yarn and coming up with a knitting idea – before you begin to knit.
Workshop: Hedestrik. Monday 30 June at 11:00, Flokkr
One of the clearest signs of our overconsumption is the massive food waste plaguing countries like Denmark. That’s why it’s crucial to get better at transforming ingredients that would otherwise be discarded into delicious new dishes.
Acclaimed chef Matt Orlando will show how it’s done – and you’ll get to sample innovative products made from upcycled ingredients.
Talk: Matt Orlando. Thursday 3 July at 14:00, Food Is Now
Thypisk isn’t just a sourdough pizza company based in the coastal town of Nr. Vorupør in Thy – it also operates on regenerative values. For Thypisk, prioritising life over work is key. They believe life is complex and that your job doesn’t define your identity. Learn more about their philosophy at this year’s festival.
Talk: Thypisk. Thursday 3 July at 18:00, Food Is Now
On Tuesday, The Green Flea Market takes over Flokkr. Besides browsing for pre-loved treasures, you can join workshops, attend a conversation salon, visit a mental health corner with tarot readings and acupuncture, play chess in the lounge, or explore various community stalls. The aim is to bring people together around ideas and actions rooted in community, social responsibility and more conscious consumption habits.
Tuesday 1 July at 11:00, Flokkr
