Ekeberg sculpture park, Oslo

[ardcarp]

Set on a hill, not far from Oslo's new opera house, there are stunning views over the Oslo Fjord. It was the site of a restaurant which fell on hard times. A wealthy Norwegian bought the whole place, opened it free to the public and scattered modern (and often surprising) sculptures around. Accessibility was his intention, and it is lovely to see families with kids wandering up to and touching the exhibits, sometimes amused, sometimes puzzled...and occasionally shocked.

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2013/oct/01/ekeberg-park-sculpture-garden-in-pictures#/?picture=418451810&index=3

The owner has a notion to create a cable car from near the Opera House up to Ekeberg. That would be a feat of engineering indeed.

'Eke berg' means oak hill.

[jayne lee wilson]

Lovely viewing, thanks... I liked Texmon Rygh's Mobius Trippel and Tony Cragg's Cast Glances best.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Great story, lovely photos - many thanks, ardy.


(Could somebody with better French than I have; isn't Nue sans draperie a tautology?)

[ardcarp]

Oui, mais...... (Gallic shrug).

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Oui, mais...... (Gallic shrug).

[Gordon]

Yes, an interesting place with such a variety of exhibits, well worth as visit or two. Oslo has another park with scultures of course and that is also well worth seeing:

http://vigelandscupturepark.blogspot.co.uk/

not quite as avant garde perhaps as Ekeberg but the solidity of the grey granite ones is impressive. I had reason to vist Oslo regularly in the late 80s and used to go out to the park to see these things, endlessly fascinating and need to be seen in the flesh as it were.

[ardcarp]

the solidity of the grey granite ones is impressive.

Y-e-e-e-s. One could substitute the word 'oppressive' ! Norway was proud of Vigeland in the same way it was of Grieg, I suppose. At one time his somewhat monolithic array at Frognerpark was the main tourist attraction, along with the Vikings Ships and the Folk Museum.

A certain member of my family calls them 'the Nazi statues' because they can be seen as idealising a Nordic, worthy, conformist soiciety.

I see them as rather lumpen. I first encountered them aged 16 when I was slightly embarrassed by nudes, at least in the company of my parents. I secretly hoped the real thing might be more sexy!

One or two dotted around might be OK (in the same way one comes across a Moore or a Hepworth) but the blitzing of one location with one sculptor's work seems a bit OTT.

[Gordon]

Y-e-e-e-s. One could substitute the word 'oppressive' ! Norway was proud of Vigeland in the same way it was of Grieg, I suppose. At one time his somewhat monolithic array at Frognerpark was the main tourist attraction, along with the Vikings Ships and the Folk Museum.

A certain member of my family calls them 'the Nazi statues' because they can be seen as idealising a Nordic, worthy, conformist soiciety.

I see them as rather lumpen. I first encountered them aged 16 when I was slightly embarrassed by nudes, at least in the company of my parents. I secretly hoped the real thing might be more sexy!

One or two dotted around might be OK (in the same way one comes across a Moore or a Hepworth) but the blitzing of one location with one sculptor's work seems a bit OTT.

Well, to each his own I suppose. I don't see the lumpen-ness at all!! As to the Nazi connection...??? I agree that their similarity is perhaps too much in close proximity and they are certainly a foil to the wider variety of the Ekeberg ones which you could see as anarchic, non-conformist and rebellious!! In fact some of the Ekeberg ones leave me utterly cold.

[ardcarp]

I must leap in and say there is no 'Nazi connection' whatsoever. That's just an off-the-wall view of one of my Scandinavian rellies.