Örlygur Kristfinnsson was born in Siglufjörður in 1949. He studied at the College of Art and Crafts 1969-73, started with paintings but later moved on to watercolors. Kristfinnsson was director at The Herring Era Museum for 25 years. He has also restored numerous old houses and is the author of books on life during the herring era.

Kristfinnsson‘s exhibition is a tribute to the great auk, which appears there as a symbol for countless endangered species, big and small.

The great auk was common in the North Atlantic, a flightless, easy prey. When Europeans settled in North America some brutal slaughtering of the bird was committed. The last great auks were killed in Eldey, June 3rd, 1844, for the benefit of some tradespeople and collectors of natural history specimens. Icelanders have, ever since, felt remorse over this. The extinction of the bird brought on a discussion and actions to protect vulnerable species of birds and therefore the great auk can be considered exemplary for early conservation of nature.