Textiles by Sveinbjörg-Being forced to rethink your whole profession and output is no simple task. In the case of life-long artist Sveinbjörg Hallgrímsdóttir, the change was born out of the nation's financial strife. "The collapse of the Icelandic economy forced us to think about how to be more commercial, more marketable, around the globe," claimed the designer. For Hallgrímsdóttir, the answer was to transfer her painted motifs and wood block prints to textiles and other home accessories. The international outlook forced on many local designers also reached Hallgrímsdóttir’s manufacturing. All her textiles are produced and distributed from Sweden, but her own store is still located in the northern Icelandic town of Akureyri with a population of just under 18,000. Photo by: Tiffany Orvet