Gustav Vigeland
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Gustav Vigeland (11 April 1869 – 12 March 1943), born as Adolf Gustav Thorsen, was a Norwegian
sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
. Gustav Vigeland occupies a special position among Norwegian sculptors, both in the power of his creative imagination and in his productivity. He is most associated with the Vigeland installation (''Vigelandsanlegget'') in Frogner Park, Oslo. He was also the designer of the
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
medal.


Early life

Adolf Gustav Thorsen was born to a family of craftsmen, just outside Halse og Harkmark, a former municipality in
Mandal A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative c ...
. His parents were Elesæus Thorsen (1835–1886), a cabinetmaker and Anne Aanensdatter (1835–1907). He had three brothers, of whom
Emanuel Vigeland Emanuel Vigeland (2 December 1875 – 22 December 1948) was a multitalented Norway, Norwegian artist. He is known for a variety of decorations of Scandinavian churches and for ''Tomba Emmanuelle'', his mausoleum at Slemdal in Oslo. His elder ...
(originally Thorsen) became a noted artist. As a youth, he was sent to
Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
where he learned
wood carving Wood carving (or woodcarving) is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculpture, ...
at a local school. However, the sudden death of his father compelled him to move back to Mandal to help his family. Gustav lived for a time with his grandparents on a farm called Mjunebrokka in Vigeland, an old farm in Valle parish, Lindesnes municipality in
Vest-Agder Vest-Agder (; "West Agder") was one of 18 counties (''fylker'') in Norway from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, after it was merged with Aust-Agder to form Agder county. In 2016, there were 182,701 inhabitants, around 3.5% of the total popul ...
county. He returned to Oslo in 1888, this time determined to become a professional sculptor. He came to the attention of sculptor Brynjulf Bergslien, who supported him and gave him practical training. The following year he exhibited his first work, ''Hagar and Ishmael''. In his 20s, he adopted the new family name Vigeland, from the area where he had briefly lived. Vigeland spent the years 1891 to 1896 in several voyages abroad, including
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,
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,
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and
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
. In the French capital he frequented
Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (; ; 12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a u ...
's workshop, while in
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he experimented with ancient and
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artworks. In these years the themes that would later dominate his inspiration - death and the relationship between man and woman - first appeared. He held his first personal exhibitions in Norway in 1894 and 1896, which received notable critical praise.


Early public works

Until 1902 Vigeland was engaged in the restoration of the
Nidaros Cathedral Nidaros Cathedral () is a Church of Norway cathedral located in the city of Trondheim in Trøndelag county. It is built over the burial site of Olav II of Norway, King Olav II ( 995–1030, reigned 1015–1028), who became the patron saint of th ...
in
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...
. The contact with Mediaeval art contributed to another frequent theme in Vigeland's art, the
dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...
as symbol of
sin In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...
but also as a nature force, fighting against man. Back in Oslo, he obtained from the town an abandoned studio in which to work. In 1905 Norway became independent from
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
. Vigeland, considered the most talented Norwegian sculptor, received numerous commissions for statues and busts celebrating renowned compatriots like
Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...
and
Niels Henrik Abel Niels Henrik Abel ( , ; 5 August 1802 – 6 April 1829) was a Norwegian mathematician who made pioneering contributions in a variety of fields. His most famous single result is the first complete proof demonstrating the impossibility of solvin ...
. In 1906 Vigeland proposed a chalk model for a monumental fountain. Initially, the idea of the Oslo municipality was to put the fountain in Eidsvolls plass, the square in front of the Parliament of Norway. His work was generally welcomed, but the location created a dispute: completion of the work was postponed by the dispute. In the meantime Vigeland enlarged the original project, adding several sculpture groups. The high
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
column was added to the design in 1919.


Vigeland installation

Gustav Vigeland is most widely known for the Vigeland installation, a permanent sculpture installation in Frogner Park in Oslo. In 1921 the City of Oslo decided to demolish the house where Vigeland lived and build a
library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...
. After a long dispute, Vigeland was granted a new building from the city where he could work and live; in exchange, he promised to donate to the city all his subsequent works, including sculptures, drawings, engravings and models. Vigeland moved to his new studio on Nobels gate in the borough of Frogner during 1924. His studio was located in the vicinity of Frogner Park, which he had chosen as the definitive location for his fountain. Over the following twenty years, Vigeland was devoted to the project of an open exhibition of his works, which later turned into what is known as Vigeland Sculpture Arrangement (''Vigelandsanlegget'') in Frogner Park. The Vigeland installation features 212 bronze and granite sculptures all designed by Gustav Vigeland. The sculptures culminate in the famous Monolith (''Monolitten''), with its 121 figures struggling to reach the top of the sculpture.


Vigeland Museum

Vigeland lived and worked at his studio on Nobels gate until his death in 1943. His ashes are still preserved there in the belfry of the building. According to the agreement with the City of Oslo, the building became the Vigeland Museum (''Vigelandsmuseet''). The site is located immediately south of the Vigeland Sculpture Arrangement. Vigeland's flat on the third floor was preserved as a part of the museum which houses various works by the artist, along with the plaster models of the Vigeland sculptures in Frogner Park.


Legacy

Some art critics considered Vigeland's sculptures to be expressions of
nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
or
fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...
aesthetics, and he has been compared to
Arno Breker Arno Breker (19 July 1900 – 13 February 1991) was a German sculptor who is best known for his public works in Nazi Germany, where he was endorsed by the authorities as the antithesis of degenerate art. He was made official state sculptor, ...
. Writing in
Verdens Gang (), generally known under the abbreviation ''VG'', is a Norway, Norwegian Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper. In 2016, circulation numbers stood at 93,883, declining from a peak circulation of 390,510 in 2002. Nevertheless, ''VG'' is ...
, a newspaper started by former Norwegian resistance members shortly after the German occupation of Norway ended in 1945, Pola Gauguin wrote that the Vigeland installation "reeks of Nazi mentality.” The works in the installation depict individuals variously possessed: In agony and shock; Rapture and torture, from birth to death and beyond. The assessment of Strømodden finds no political themes. During the German occupation, an official request was made for the head of the German administration’s Cultural Department to visit Vigeland’s studio. In his letter of reply, Vigeland stated that he would "gladly” open his studio, and, in addition, he also “confidently dares to let German soldiers with their outstanding discipline walk around between my work”. The pro-Nazi
Quisling regime The Quisling regime, or Quisling government are common names used to refer to the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaboration government led by Vidkun Quisling in German occupation of Norway, German-occupied Norway during th ...
then used this response for propaganda purposes, publishing it, among other places, in a national daily newspaper (
Aftenposten (; ; stylized as in the masthead) is Norway's largest printed newspaper by circulation as well as Norway's newspaper of record. It is based in Oslo. It sold 211,769 daily copies in 2015 (172,029 printed copies according to University of Bergen ...
, 15 April 1944). This has led to accusations of Vigeland being a Nazi sympathiser, but it should be borne in mind that since Vigeland’s studio was funded by the municipality, he was obliged to accept visits at their request, and had done since 1924. Vigeland refused to be present at all such visits, including these. As for including German soldiers, fear by Vigeland of the German military’s propensity for confiscating both buildings and artworks should be considered as a factor. Tone Wikborg, Senior Curator at the Vigeland Museum, Oslo stated that 'Vigeland undoubtedly had a conservative view of art, and could be said to be in line with Nazi or, for that matter, communist attitudes towards modernist non-figurative art. But this does not make him, or the many others who have both before and since held the same opinion, a sympathiser of any specific political system.' ''Posterity'', a 2015 play by Doug Wright, imagined the interaction between Vigeland and
Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...
.


References


Sources

* Gjengset, Gunnar ''Forsteinet liv. En biografisk fortelling om Gustav Vigeland'' (Direkte forlaget. 2000) Norwegian *Hennum, Gerd ''Gustav Vigeland i svart og hvitt'' (Fædrelandsvennen. 1985) . Norwegian *Wikborg, Tone ''Gustav Vigeland - mennesket og kunsten'' (Oslo: Aschehoug, 1983) Norwegian *Wikborg, Tone ''Gustav Vigeland - His Art and Sculpture Park'' (Oslo: Aschehoug, 1985) . *Wikborg, Tone ''Gustav Vigeland. En biografi'' (Gyldendal. 2001) . Norwegian *Stępnik, Małgorzata ''Modernist sculpture parks and their ideological contexts – on the basis of the oeuvres by Gustav Vigeland, Bernhard Hoetger and Einar Jónsson'', „The Polish Journal of Aesthetics”, No 47 (4/2017), pp. 143–169.


External links


Vigeland Museum websiteGustav Vigeland's house in MandalGallery Gustav Vigeland in Lindesnes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vigeland, Gustav 1869 births 1943 deaths People from Vest-Agder People from Mandal, Norway Norwegian sculptors 19th-century Norwegian sculptors 20th-century Norwegian sculptors Artists from Oslo