Travel Norway: Ekeberg Sculpture Park is Oslo’s New Tourist Attraction
Travel Norway: Ekeberg Sculpture Park is Oslo’s New Tourist Attraction
Travel Norway: Ekeberg Sculpture Park is Oslo’s New Tourist Attraction
WAVEJourney’s first visit to Oslo (Norway’s capital) in 2012 only whetted our appetite to return and explore much more. Now there will be a new tourist attraction to add to our already long list of things to do when we again visit Oslo. On September 26, 2013, Oslo’s brand new sculpture park will open to the public and give the city a solid artistic boost.
Thanks to a private donation from business man Christian Ringnes, Oslo will now be home to one of the finest sculpture parks in Scandinavia. The park has a total cost of approximately US$50 million and includes 30 notable works of art already in place for the opening.
A thematic concept for the park – “homage to woman” was proposed by Christian Ringnes, and it was also decided to give the park an identity by establishing “feminine-inspired in all its diversity” as the overall concept. The art advisory committee has emphasized that sculptures and installations should be positioned in this culture-rich area with respect for both cultural heritage and the natural environment.
During the past three years, Ekeberg has been visited by a host of internationally renowned artists such as James Turrell, Jenny Holzer, Dan Graham, Tony Oursler and Marina Abramovic. These artists have drawn inspiration from Ekeberg’s history (Edvard Munch found his inspiration for his “Scream” here) and natural surroundings and created a series of unique works that will not only give vitality to the area but also contribute to internationalizing the Norwegian art scene.
The sculpture park’s artistic spectrum – from classical masters such as Rodin and Maillol, via Salvador Dali’s surrealistic pieces, to modern and contemporary forms of creative expressionism by Lynn Chadwick, Tony Cragg, Sarha Sze, Matt Johnson and Louise Bourgeois – makes it a unique and fascinating place to visit.
Ekeberg Park will grow dynamically in the years to come through addition of more sculptures and installations (the park has space for up to 80 unique works of art).
If You Go:
