Blog

Vigeland park sculptures and its meaning

Vigeland Park in Oslo, Norway, home to a distinctive set of sculptures by the artist Gustav Vigeland. The park comprises more than 200 sculptures, mostly in bronze, granite and wrought iron, and all focus on the human condition, connection and energisation of life. A theme in the park is the human condition, which is represented by various characters from children to old age. The statues speak of all manner of emotions, from elation and romance to anxiety and grief, intimations of human relationships. The “Monolith”, for instance, is a giant towering building that represents the connection of the world with other people, with men scaling over each other, as a symbol of survival and the motivation towards harmony. 

There’s also the love affair with family and community in Vigeland’s work. Almost every sculpture depicts the private lives of parents and children or lovers, and is about love, family and time. This emphasis on the family tells us something about the significance of human experience in Vigeland’s sculptures. Also, Vigeland’s works veer away from what we have usually thought of as the “human figure”, and they often feature individuals in edgy positions or with large features, as though expressive and animated. This mode invites the audience to connect to the sculptures on a deeper level and ask themselves questions about their lives and relationships. In total, Vigeland Park is a piece of art but also a place to think about the human condition – it is an enormous cultural achievement in Norway. 

Who is Gustav Vigeland?

Gustav Vigeland, a visionary Norwegian sculptor, has left a rich legacy in the art world with his profound and thought-provoking creations. His body of work, spanning decades, is renowned for its remarkable symbolism.

Vigeland believed that symbolism had the power to transcend language and cultural barriers, a reaching the core of human emotion.

As a young lad of nineteen, Gustav Vigeland left a small provincial town for Oslo in 1915 to become a great sculptor. In the capital, he was to meet the then-famous sculptor and mystic Brynjulf Bergslien. It was thanks to his mentor that the young Gustav became interested in philosophy and Judeo-Christian mysticism. Gradually, images of lizards and dragons – symbols of human sin and the demonic spirit – began to appear in the works of the promising young artist. But Gustav Vigeland‘s greatest focus was on human nature, which he saw as far more complex and powerful than all the diabolical forces put together.