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Jörgen Thornberg
A Shot in the Foot - Un Ballo In Maschera, a Candy Opera, 2024
Digital
100 x 70 cm
5 200 kr
A Shot in the Foot - Un Ballo In Maschera, a Candy Opera
“Gummies or Dummies
In a land of intrigue, with masks held high,
A governor ruled under a candy-filled sky.
But rebellion brewed, with a dim-witted chap,
Who schemed with a gun and a terrible map.
The assassin cried, “I’ll take my shot!”
But gummies he munched, and focus was not.
The bullet flew—oh, fate so grim—
Not at the ruler, but straight at his limb!
The audience howled as he limped away,
A dummy foiled in a sugary fray.
Captured and bound, his fate was clear:
Tickles and laughter for one whole year.
Then Amelia entered, her heart in despair,
For Riccardo, her love was beyond compare.
Yet her passion was torn in a gummy plight,
With raspberry bears as her true delight.
Her aria soared, "Ma dall'arido stelo,"
As she sought her cure from a mystic fellow.
But instead of relief, her fate did shift—
She stumbled on stage, high on a gift.
Sherlock Holmes puffed in the background stage,
Winking slyly, potted beyond age.
The crowd roared as he stumbled around,
A heroine grounded, his dignity drowned.
The Sleuth puffed with amused delight,
As Amelia tripped through her aria's height.
The crowd, in tears, laughed at her fall,
While gummy wrappers rained over the hall.
Riccardo arrived, their duet began,
But gummy addiction foiled their plan.
He loved vegan sour fish, she adored the bears,
A candy conflict beyond repairs.
The plot unravelled in Act Three’s glow,
As Riccardo’s tickles stole the show.
Bound to the stocks, feathers at play,
Till his mind turned grassy, a goat to stay.
In the finale, the tickle stocks came,
Where Riccardo was bound in comedic shame.
Feathers danced on his naked sole,
Until his mind found a grassy goal.
"I'm a goat!" he cried, with hay in hand,
While Amelia mourned in a gummy-filled land.
"Yum, yum” he bleated with grassy delight,
Switching to hay by the opera's night.
Amelia turned to group therapy, seeking her peace,
With a fellow gummy lover whose troubles did cease.
Together, they sang of sweets and plight,
Leading the gummy group by starlit night.
The finale erupted in a sugary cheer,
As Verdi’s score soared through the air.
‘Gummies or Dummies’, the tale now told,
Of love, rebellion, and gummies bold.
Cats love fish but not sweet gummies,
Their taste is sharp, not soft and chummy.
So move over, Webber, with your feline muse—
This opera is the one the critics will choose!
With tickled toes and gummy delights,
It is a tale of love and comedic fights.
Riccardo’s goat bleats seal the fame,
‘Gummies or Dummies’—a legendary name!”
Malmö, December 2024
"Life is like a carnival," Frida Kahlo proclaimed, twirling a raspberry gummy in her hand, during the intermission of Nöjesteatern’s uproarious parody of Verdi’s ‘Un ballo in maschera’, now cleverly retitled ‘A Shot in the Foot’. The clever reimagining of Verdi’s masterpiece, with the libretto tweaked in just the right places, ensures that every punchline hits its target, unlike our hapless assassin. It's a testament to the intellectual wit behind this production.
The story, as reimagined, centres on a bumbling revolutionary who plans to assassinate the governor but instead manages to shoot himself in the foot, literally and metaphorically. The moral of the story? Never entrust a critical task to someone so nearsighted they think squinting into the mirror counts as self-reflection. To make matters worse, his scarred complexion gives him away, making him the easiest fugitive to describe since he is "the guy with the hook hand." Not only does he botch the assassination, but he’s also promptly captured and sentenced to a ruthless fate: a week in the stocks, being tickled under his feet with feathers. Honestly, I think Verdi himself would have approved of this comedic twist.
“As for me, I play Amelia, the female lead in ‘Un ballo in maschera’, a role filled with soaring passion and melodramatic torment”, said Frida. “Amelia is one of Verdi’s significant soprano roles, a character teetering on the edge of love and despair. The fact that I could sing opera came as a shock even to me—back on Earth, I sang mostly at rowdy parties, usually fueled by tequila and a good mariachi band. But somehow, everything becomes better among the stars, even Verdi.
In this version, Amelia’s romantic entanglements have expanded considerably. She’s not just in love with Riccardo (the governor and her husband’s best friend) but also with Leon, a couple of mysterious strangers, and the sultry Maria, who enters the story wearing a mask and never entirely leaves. This newfound subplot gives Amelia more forbidden desires to juggle, and the audience can’t get enough of it. The tangled web of passion eventually leads to catastrophe, with Maria’s sultry glances as deadly as any misplaced bullet.
Take Amelia’s big aria, ‘Ma dall'arido stelo divulsa.’ In Verdi’s original, she searches for a magical herb to forget her love for Riccardo. In this version, she stumbles across what can only be described as 19th-century hashish. Her reactions—wide eyes, inexplicable giggles, and sudden philosophical musings about candy—suggest that the librettist might have also been experimenting with substances. Sherlock Holmes makes a cameo in this production, puffing away on something far more substantial in the background, reminding the audience that Victorian-era drug use was surprisingly open-minded.
But the herbal remedy isn’t the only thing Amelia becomes entangled with. For the sake of moral propriety, the writers have her swear off hallucinogens and instead develop a dependence on sour vegan candy. Her internal torment is played out in a hilarious subplot where she tries to hide her addiction from her husband, Renato, who remains oblivious despite finding candy wrappers stuffed into every drawer. When the conspirators gather to plot against Riccardo, they indulge not in wine or cigars but kale chips and oat cookies, leaving the audience in stitches as they grimace at every bite.
However, one of my favourite scenes is the forbidden love duet between Amelia and Riccardo in the second act. In Verdi’s original, it’s a heart-wrenching moment where they confess their feelings but accept the impossibility of their love. In ‘A Shot in the Foot’, their romance is doomed not by politics or duty but by irreconcilable differences in candy preferences. Amelia is a devoted fan of raspberry gummies, while Riccardo has recently switched to vegan sour fish. The dramatic irony is palpable as they sing passionately about their love, each holding a bag of their preferred candy, knowing that such a fundamental divide can never be bridged.
The final act ramps up the absurdity even further. Instead of being assassinated, Riccardo is captured by the conspirators and subjected to the ultimate punishment: being tickled at the pillory until he loses his sanity. In a brilliant twist, he begins to believe he is a goat, switching to an all-grass diet and delivering his final aria while nibbling on a tuft of hay. Amelia devastated, turns to her trusty bag of gummies for solace, but her guilt drives her to therapy, where she meets another gummy addict. Their bond blossoms into a new kind of love, and they go on to find a support group for candy enthusiasts.
The reimagined opera is a whirlwind of humour and spectacle, but it also retains the emotional intensity of Verdi's original. The grand choruses, dramatic orchestration, and the candy-fueled finale combine to create one of the most emotionally charged yet hilariously absurd conclusions in operatic history.
Move over, Andrew Lloyd Webber—your ‘Cats’ may have had its claws, but this parody has fangs, feathers, and many gummy bears.
Our collaboration with the National Association of Dentists has dramatically contributed to the production's success. The play cleverly highlights the risks of excessive candy consumption in an educational way, and the association has been given free advertising space in the foyer. In return, all dental patients are encouraged to witness how the characters in the play, who are addicted to candy, are tormented, serving as a cautionary tale about the dangers of overindulgence,” Frida finishes and puts a red gummy bear in her mouth.
Jörgen Thornberg
A Shot in the Foot - Un Ballo In Maschera, a Candy Opera, 2024
Digital
100 x 70 cm
5 200 kr
A Shot in the Foot - Un Ballo In Maschera, a Candy Opera
“Gummies or Dummies
In a land of intrigue, with masks held high,
A governor ruled under a candy-filled sky.
But rebellion brewed, with a dim-witted chap,
Who schemed with a gun and a terrible map.
The assassin cried, “I’ll take my shot!”
But gummies he munched, and focus was not.
The bullet flew—oh, fate so grim—
Not at the ruler, but straight at his limb!
The audience howled as he limped away,
A dummy foiled in a sugary fray.
Captured and bound, his fate was clear:
Tickles and laughter for one whole year.
Then Amelia entered, her heart in despair,
For Riccardo, her love was beyond compare.
Yet her passion was torn in a gummy plight,
With raspberry bears as her true delight.
Her aria soared, "Ma dall'arido stelo,"
As she sought her cure from a mystic fellow.
But instead of relief, her fate did shift—
She stumbled on stage, high on a gift.
Sherlock Holmes puffed in the background stage,
Winking slyly, potted beyond age.
The crowd roared as he stumbled around,
A heroine grounded, his dignity drowned.
The Sleuth puffed with amused delight,
As Amelia tripped through her aria's height.
The crowd, in tears, laughed at her fall,
While gummy wrappers rained over the hall.
Riccardo arrived, their duet began,
But gummy addiction foiled their plan.
He loved vegan sour fish, she adored the bears,
A candy conflict beyond repairs.
The plot unravelled in Act Three’s glow,
As Riccardo’s tickles stole the show.
Bound to the stocks, feathers at play,
Till his mind turned grassy, a goat to stay.
In the finale, the tickle stocks came,
Where Riccardo was bound in comedic shame.
Feathers danced on his naked sole,
Until his mind found a grassy goal.
"I'm a goat!" he cried, with hay in hand,
While Amelia mourned in a gummy-filled land.
"Yum, yum” he bleated with grassy delight,
Switching to hay by the opera's night.
Amelia turned to group therapy, seeking her peace,
With a fellow gummy lover whose troubles did cease.
Together, they sang of sweets and plight,
Leading the gummy group by starlit night.
The finale erupted in a sugary cheer,
As Verdi’s score soared through the air.
‘Gummies or Dummies’, the tale now told,
Of love, rebellion, and gummies bold.
Cats love fish but not sweet gummies,
Their taste is sharp, not soft and chummy.
So move over, Webber, with your feline muse—
This opera is the one the critics will choose!
With tickled toes and gummy delights,
It is a tale of love and comedic fights.
Riccardo’s goat bleats seal the fame,
‘Gummies or Dummies’—a legendary name!”
Malmö, December 2024
"Life is like a carnival," Frida Kahlo proclaimed, twirling a raspberry gummy in her hand, during the intermission of Nöjesteatern’s uproarious parody of Verdi’s ‘Un ballo in maschera’, now cleverly retitled ‘A Shot in the Foot’. The clever reimagining of Verdi’s masterpiece, with the libretto tweaked in just the right places, ensures that every punchline hits its target, unlike our hapless assassin. It's a testament to the intellectual wit behind this production.
The story, as reimagined, centres on a bumbling revolutionary who plans to assassinate the governor but instead manages to shoot himself in the foot, literally and metaphorically. The moral of the story? Never entrust a critical task to someone so nearsighted they think squinting into the mirror counts as self-reflection. To make matters worse, his scarred complexion gives him away, making him the easiest fugitive to describe since he is "the guy with the hook hand." Not only does he botch the assassination, but he’s also promptly captured and sentenced to a ruthless fate: a week in the stocks, being tickled under his feet with feathers. Honestly, I think Verdi himself would have approved of this comedic twist.
“As for me, I play Amelia, the female lead in ‘Un ballo in maschera’, a role filled with soaring passion and melodramatic torment”, said Frida. “Amelia is one of Verdi’s significant soprano roles, a character teetering on the edge of love and despair. The fact that I could sing opera came as a shock even to me—back on Earth, I sang mostly at rowdy parties, usually fueled by tequila and a good mariachi band. But somehow, everything becomes better among the stars, even Verdi.
In this version, Amelia’s romantic entanglements have expanded considerably. She’s not just in love with Riccardo (the governor and her husband’s best friend) but also with Leon, a couple of mysterious strangers, and the sultry Maria, who enters the story wearing a mask and never entirely leaves. This newfound subplot gives Amelia more forbidden desires to juggle, and the audience can’t get enough of it. The tangled web of passion eventually leads to catastrophe, with Maria’s sultry glances as deadly as any misplaced bullet.
Take Amelia’s big aria, ‘Ma dall'arido stelo divulsa.’ In Verdi’s original, she searches for a magical herb to forget her love for Riccardo. In this version, she stumbles across what can only be described as 19th-century hashish. Her reactions—wide eyes, inexplicable giggles, and sudden philosophical musings about candy—suggest that the librettist might have also been experimenting with substances. Sherlock Holmes makes a cameo in this production, puffing away on something far more substantial in the background, reminding the audience that Victorian-era drug use was surprisingly open-minded.
But the herbal remedy isn’t the only thing Amelia becomes entangled with. For the sake of moral propriety, the writers have her swear off hallucinogens and instead develop a dependence on sour vegan candy. Her internal torment is played out in a hilarious subplot where she tries to hide her addiction from her husband, Renato, who remains oblivious despite finding candy wrappers stuffed into every drawer. When the conspirators gather to plot against Riccardo, they indulge not in wine or cigars but kale chips and oat cookies, leaving the audience in stitches as they grimace at every bite.
However, one of my favourite scenes is the forbidden love duet between Amelia and Riccardo in the second act. In Verdi’s original, it’s a heart-wrenching moment where they confess their feelings but accept the impossibility of their love. In ‘A Shot in the Foot’, their romance is doomed not by politics or duty but by irreconcilable differences in candy preferences. Amelia is a devoted fan of raspberry gummies, while Riccardo has recently switched to vegan sour fish. The dramatic irony is palpable as they sing passionately about their love, each holding a bag of their preferred candy, knowing that such a fundamental divide can never be bridged.
The final act ramps up the absurdity even further. Instead of being assassinated, Riccardo is captured by the conspirators and subjected to the ultimate punishment: being tickled at the pillory until he loses his sanity. In a brilliant twist, he begins to believe he is a goat, switching to an all-grass diet and delivering his final aria while nibbling on a tuft of hay. Amelia devastated, turns to her trusty bag of gummies for solace, but her guilt drives her to therapy, where she meets another gummy addict. Their bond blossoms into a new kind of love, and they go on to find a support group for candy enthusiasts.
The reimagined opera is a whirlwind of humour and spectacle, but it also retains the emotional intensity of Verdi's original. The grand choruses, dramatic orchestration, and the candy-fueled finale combine to create one of the most emotionally charged yet hilariously absurd conclusions in operatic history.
Move over, Andrew Lloyd Webber—your ‘Cats’ may have had its claws, but this parody has fangs, feathers, and many gummy bears.
Our collaboration with the National Association of Dentists has dramatically contributed to the production's success. The play cleverly highlights the risks of excessive candy consumption in an educational way, and the association has been given free advertising space in the foyer. In return, all dental patients are encouraged to witness how the characters in the play, who are addicted to candy, are tormented, serving as a cautionary tale about the dangers of overindulgence,” Frida finishes and puts a red gummy bear in her mouth.
5 200 kr
Jörgen Thornberg
Malmö
Lite om bilder och mig. Translation in English at the end.
Jag är en nyfiken person som ser allt i bilder, även det jag fäster i ord, gärna tillsammans för bakom alla mina bilder finns en berättelse. Till vissa bilder hör en kortare eller längre novell som följer med bilden.
Bilder berättar historier. Jag omges av naturlig skönhet, intressanta människor och historia var jag än går. Jag använder min kamera för att dokumentera världen och blanda det jag ser med vad jag känner för att fånga den dolda magin.
Mina bilder berättar mina historier. Genom mina bilder, tryck och berättelser. Jag bjuder in dig att ta del av dessa berättelser, in i ditt liv och hem och dela min mycket personliga syn på vår värld. Mer än vad ögat ser. Jag tänker i bilder, drömmer och skriver och pratar om dem; följaktligen måste jag också skapa bilder. De blir vad jag ser, inte nödvändigtvis begränsade till verkligheten. Det finns en bild runt varje hörn. Jag hoppas att du kommer att se vad jag såg och gilla det.
Jag är också en skrivande person och till många bilder hör en kortare eller längre essay. Den följer med tavlan, tryckt på fint papper och med en personlig hälsning från mig.
Flertalet bilder startar sin resa i min kamera. Enkelt förklarat beskriver jag bilden jag ser i mitt inre, upplevd eller fantiserad. Bilden uppstår inom mig redan innan jag fått okularet till ögat. På bråkdelen av ett ögonblick ser jag vad jag vill ha och vad som kan göras med bilden. Här skall jag stoppa in en giraff, stålmannen, Titanic eller vad det är min fantasi finner ut. Ännu märkligare är att jag kommer ihåg minnesbilden långt efteråt när det blir tid att skapa verket. Om jag lyckas eller inte, är upp till betraktaren, oftast präglat av en stråk av svart humor – meningen är att man skall bli underhållen. Mina bilder blir ofta en snackis där de hänger.
Jag föredrar bilder som förmedlar ett budskap i flera lager. Vid första anblicken fylld av feel-good, en vacker utsikt, fint väder, solen skiner, blommor på ängen eller vattnet som ligger förrädiskt spegelblankt. I en sådan bild kan jag gömma min egentliga berättelse, mitt förakt för förtryckare och våldsverkare, rasister och fördomsfulla människor - ett gärna återkommande motiv mer eller mindre dolt i det vackra motivet. Jag försöker förena dem i ett gemensamt narrativ.
Bild och formgivning har löpt som en röd tråd genom livet. Fotokonst känns som en värdig final som jag gärna delar med mig.
Min genre är vid som framgår av mina bilder, temat en blandning av pop- och gatukonst i kollage som kan bestå av hundratals lager. Vissa bilder kan ta veckor, andra någon dag innan det är dags att överlämna resultatet till printverkstaden. Fine Art Prints är digitala fotocollage. I dessa kollage sker rivandet, klippandet, pusslandet, målandet, ritandet och sprayningen digitalt. Det jag monterar in kan vara hundratals år gamla bilder som jag omsorgsfullt frilägger så att de ser ut att vara en del av tavlan men också bilder skapade av mig själv efter min egen fantasi. Därefter besöks printstudion och för vissa bilder numrera en limiterad upplaga (oftast 7 exemplar) och signera för hand. Vissa bilder kan köpas i olika format. Det är bara att fråga efter vilka. Gillar man en bild som är 70x100 men inte har plats på väggen, går den kanske att få i 50x70 cm istället. Frågan är fri.
Metoden Giclée eller Fine Art Print som det också kallas är det moderna sättet för framställning av grafisk konst. Villkoret för denna typ av utskrifter är att en högkvalitativ storformatskrivare används med åldersbeständigt färgpigment och konstnärspapper eller i förekommande fall på duk. Pappret som används möter de krav på livslängd som ställs av museer och gallerier. Normalt säljer jag mina bilder oinramade så att den nya ägaren själv kan bestämma hur de skall se ut, med eller utan passepartout färg på ram, med eller utan glas etc..
Under många år ställde jag bara ut på nätet, i valda grupper och på min egen Facebooksida - https://www.facebook.com/jorgen.thornberg.9
Jag finns också på en egen hemsida som tyvärr inte alltid är uppdaterad – https://www.jth.life/ Där kan du också läsa en del av de berättelser som följer med bilden.
UTSTÄLLNINGAR
Luftkastellet, oktober 2022
Konst i Lund, november 2022
Luftkastellet, mars 2023
Engleson Galleri Caroli, april 2023
Hydra, Greece June 2023
Engleson Galleri Caroli, oktober 2023
Toppen, Höllviken december 2023
Luftkastellet, mars 2024
Torups Galleri, mars 2024
Venice, May 2024
Luftkastellet, oktober 2024
Konst i Advent, December 2024
Galleri Engleson, Caroli December 2024
Jäger & Jansson Galleri, april 2025
A bit about pictures and me.
I'm a curious person who sees everything in pictures, even what I express in words, often combining them, for behind all my pictures lies a story. These narratives, some as short as a single image and others as long as a novel, are the heart and soul of my work.
Pictures tell stories. Wherever I go, I'm surrounded by natural beauty, exciting people, and history. I use my camera to document the world and blend what I see with what I feel to capture the hidden magic.
My images tell my stories. Through my pictures, prints, and narratives, I invite you to partake in these stories in your life and home and share my deeply personal perspective of our world. More than meets the eye. I think in pictures, dream, write, and talk about them; consequently, I must create images too. They become what I see, not necessarily confined to reality. There's a picture around every corner. I hope you'll see what I saw and enjoy it.
I'm also a writer, and many images come with a shorter or longer essay. It accompanies the painting, printed on fine paper with my personal greeting.
Many pictures start their journey on my camera. Simply put, I describe the image I see in my mind, experienced or imagined. The image arises within me even before I bring the eyepiece to my eye. In a fraction of a moment, I see what I want and what can be done with the picture. Here, I'll insert a giraffe, Superman, the Titanic, or whatever my imagination conjures up. Even stranger is that I remember the mental image long after it's time to create the work. Whether I succeed is up to the observer, often imbued with a streak of black humour – the aim is to entertain. My pictures usually become a talking point wherever they hang.
I prefer pictures that convey a message in multiple layers. At first glance, they're filled with feel-good vibes, a beautiful view, lovely weather, the sun shining, flowers in the meadow, or the water lying deceptively calm. But beneath this surface beauty, I often conceal a deeper story, a narrative that challenges societal norms or explores the human condition. I invite you to delve into these hidden narratives and discover the layers of meaning within my work.
Picture and design have been a thread running through my life. Photographic art feels like a fitting finale, and I'm happy to share it.
My genre is varied, as seen in my pictures; the theme is a blend of pop and street art in collages that can consist of hundreds of layers. Some images can take weeks, others just a day before it's time to hand over the result to the print workshop. Fine Art Prints are digital photo collages. In these collages, tearing, cutting, puzzling, painting, drawing, and spraying happen digitally. What I insert can be images hundreds of years old that I carefully extract so they appear to be part of the painting, but also images created by myself, now also generated from my imagination. Next, visit the print studio and, for certain images, number a limited edition (usually 7 copies) and sign them by hand. Some images may be available in other formats. Just ask which ones. If you like an image that's 70x100 but doesn't have space on the wall, you might be able to get it in 50x70 cm instead. The question is open.
The Giclée method, or Fine Art Print as it's also called, is the modern way of producing graphic art. This method ensures the highest quality and longevity of the artwork, using a high-quality large-format printer with archival pigment inks and artist paper or, in some cases, canvas. The paper used meets the longevity requirements set by museums and galleries. I sell my pictures unframed, allowing the new owner to personalise their artwork, confident in the lasting value and quality of the piece.
For many years, I only exhibited online, in selected groups, and on my Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/jorgen.thornberg.9. I also have my website, which unfortunately is not constantly updated - https://www.jth.life/. You can also read some of the stories accompanying the pictures there.
EXHIBITIONS
Luftkastellet, October 2022
Art in Lund, November 2022
Luftkastellet, March 2023
Engleson Gallery Caroli, April 2023
Hydra, Greece June 2023
Engleson Gallery Caroli, October 2023
Toppen, Höllviken December 2023
Luftkastellet, March 2024
Torup Gallery, March 2024
Venice, May 2024
UTSTÄLLNINGAR
Luftkastellet, oktober 2022
Konst i Lund, november 2022
Luftkastellet, mars 2023
Engleson Galleri Caroli, april 2023
Hydra, Greece June 2023
Engleson Galleri Caroli, oktober 2023
Toppen, Höllviken december 2023
Luftkastellet, mars 2024
Torups Galleri, mars 2024
Venice, May 2024
Luftkastellet, October 2024
Konst i Advent, December 2024
Galleri Engleson, Caroli December 2024
Jäger & Jansson Galleri, April 2025
Utbildning
Autodidakt
Medlem i konstnärsförening
Öppna Sinnen
Med i konstrunda
Konstrundan i Skåne
Utställningar
Luftkastellet, October 2022
Art in Lund, November 2022
Luftkastellet, March 2023
Engleson Gallery Caroli, April 2023
Hydra, Greece June 2023
Engleson Gallery Caroli, October 2023
Toppen, Höllviken December 2023
Luftkastellet, March 2024
Torup Gallery, March 2024
Venice, May 2024