Nordic kings find their place at the Hilton

WITH the majestic sounds of the Oslo Philharmonic still echoing, another major attraction from Norway has arrived in Hongkong. On display at the Hilton Hotel's Peak Room till tomorrow is the Snorre Suite collection comprising 19 multi-coloured lino-cut prints by internationally acclaimed Norwegian artist Jarle Rosseland. Historians as well as art lovers should find this exhibition fascinating, for Rosseland's series is based on Snorre Sturlason's chronicles about the Nordic kings in the Viking Age. Born in Iceland in 1179, the scholarly Sturlason enjoyed not only wealth and power but, like England's Geoffrey Chaucer, excelled in the art of story-telling through verse which has remained fresh through the centuries. He was also a remarkable visionary as he proved in his first saga in the chronicle which he opened with the word heimskringia, meaning ''the orb of the world'' - written, of course, at a time when even the learned men of Europe were firmly convinced the earth was flat. Only a single page of Sturlason's original manuscript remains, in the possession of the Royal Library of Stockholm - the rest was destroyed by fire in Copenhagen in the 1700s - but his vision is reflected in Rosseland's exquisite tribute. Born in Bergen, Norway, in 1952, the artist is represented in his country's most important permanent collections, as well as in museums and public collections in the United States, Canada, Sweden, France and Thailand. WHEN the world's second most famous wall came crashing down, making Checkpoint Charlie and an entire genre of popular literature redundant, history was written instantly. In the aftermath, Berlin's artists - so long divided by far more than concrete, barbed wire and bullets - have struggled to come to terms with reunification and the changes it has brought. Their perceptions can be seen in Berlin Art Scene: A Double Mentality, showing at the Museum of Art, Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront, till April 14. Jointly sponsored by the Urban Council and the Goethe Institut, the exhibition comprises 30 works ranging from paintings and prints to installations. Notes coordinator Dr Michael Haerdter: ''It is something of a snapshot of a historical situation which demonstrates how specific social influences manifest themselves in different ways.'' ANTON Cetin is a naturalised Canadian and proud of it. He also ''fiercely guards his roots'' says Gallery 7 - which explains Cetin's insistence on calling his birthplace Croatia. Specifically, it was Bojana, near Zagreb and it was at Zagreb's School of Applied Arts and Academy of Fine Arts that 56-year-old Cetin learned his craft before moving to Paris in 1966. For two years, he occupied himself with book covers and illustrations for major publishers, then migrated to Canada with his family. A serious car accident in 1972 resulted in lengthy recuperation for Cetin. It was during that time that the figure of Eve entered his work, supplanting images drawn from his many other influences - among them early Egyptian art, Mayan figures, African totems and Byzantine painting. A gifted etcher, lithographer and printmaker as well as a painter, Anton Cetin has exhibited worldwide and is listed in several major directories including Who's Who In American Art. His exhibition Individual Expression will continue at Gallery 7, No 1 Glenealy, till February 27. TRAN Luu Hau, famed for his still life studies and depictions of rural life, was trained in Moscow in the 1960s and went on to teach at the Hanoi College of Fine Arts for over 20 years. He is one of four painters whose work is currently being showcased by Plum Blossoms Gallery, Exchange Square, in Cross Section: Contemporary Vietnamese Painting. Exhibiting with Tran are Nguyen Quan who has also made his reputation in Hanoi as an art historian and critic, Ho Ch Minh City's Nguyen Than who works in oil on canvas, and Dang Xuan Hoa - a former student of Tran - whose oils and mixed media works on paper ''are alive with colour and traditional Vietnamese motifs.'' Cross Section continues until March 8. Also available for viewing are works by other Vietnamese artists displayed in an earlier exhibition, Uncorked Soul. ''XIAO Yi is a sculptor with a tough act to follow,'' notes the release from Alisan Fine Arts, Prince's Building. As a former student of Ju Ming, one of China's foremost sculptors, 36-year-old Xiao certainly does have plenty to live up to - and is succeeding. ''Some of his best work ever,'' Alisan says of his recent wood pieces. Showing along with them until February 28 are the paintings of Shan-Shan Sheng who at 35, is regarded as one of Taiwan's most important figures in abstract expressionism. A contemporary Chinese talent can also be seen at the Trigram Gallery, Hongkong Hotel, Kowloon: Hu Shou-rong who is showing 50 recent paintings from today till March 9. WINDING up the week's offerings - and the 1993 Hongkong Arts Festival - is From Llasa showing till tomorrow in the foyer of the Cultural Centre. Presented as an introduction to the Tibetan Song and Dance Troupe, the exhibition stands on its own merits, offering fascinating insights to the Roof of the World. Exhibits include thang-kas (hanging scrolls), masks and costumes worn in dance and opera performances, and traditional musical instruments such as the unique six-string sgra-snyan and the brass gangling, which in ancient times, used to be made of a woman's shin bone.