August 2022

In the little Icelandic village of Isafjordur, we visited Hversdagssafn: Museum of Everyday Life.

I found it poetic and unique. One wall features a collection of shoes donated by locals. Beside each pair are headphones for you to listen as people describe what those shoes meant to them and the memories attached to them.

Another wall has books glued to it. In each book you find a donated photo along with a brief story about memories connected to it.

There’s a little theater, too, which plays three short films. One explains how it feels when a winter storm approaches town. Another shares cassette tape recordings a local Icelandic woman made of everyday conversations and moments with her family.

The last film was about the Northern Lights and how locals felt about them before and after they became a popular tourist draw. Some spoke of the Aurora with reverence, while others barely noticed them.

In a separate room, various items are sealed in jars. Visitors are encouraged to unscrew the lids and take a sniff. Laminated cards reveal poems and memories about each odor that locals shared. Items to smell include crayons, seaweed, dried fish, a wind dried pillowcase, and more.

It’s a small museum, but it made a big impression on me. Having personal items donated by residents, and hearing their memories in their own words creates a very unique and immersive connection to the town.

I wish more places had museums like this!

Here’s how Hversdagssafn: Museum of Everyday Life describes itself:
“Our main purpose is investigating the mundane and the common, finding the poetry that comes forward when no one is looking.
We are a collection of local voices,
memories and story fragments - nostalgic, humorous and thought provoking -
curated in various interactive ways.
It's local, as it gives a glimpse to people's life in the Westfjords, and it's universal since it touches on the things we all share.”Read more