Fine art museums Norway

Gustav Vigeland (1869-1943) was a Norwegian sculptor known for his immense contribution to Oslo's artistic life. He was the creator of Frogner Park, or Parc Vigeland, where many of his sculptures are displayed. He remains a unique sculptor, and an eminent symbol of Norwegian art on the international scene. Vigeland Park is one of the country's most visited attractions, welcoming almost a million visitors a year. In summer, it's not uncommon to see city dwellers sunbathing in their bathing suits on one of the many lawns, wireless headphones in their ears. Since 1924, Vigeland Park has been collecting and exhibiting the granite and wrought-iron works of the Norwegian artist whose name it bears. 214 of the 650 statues and drawings the artist created for the park are on display today, and they are among Oslo's strongest symbols. It is the world's largest sculpture park dedicated to a single artist. The park is considered Vigeland's life's work: in fact, he devoted almost 20 years of his life to its creation! It's a must-see place that reflects the Norwegian philosophy of giving nature pride of place. The park is the result of a dispute between Vigeland and the city of Oslo: Vigeland was evicted from his home in 1921, but relocated by the city to the building that is now the Vigeland Museum. In exchange for his new premises, home and studio, he promised to donate all his works to the City of Oslo. These massive sculptures come in all sizes, according to several main themes: death, daily life, men and women, children. It's also a very pleasant, clean place to stroll, whatever the season. Local residents go jogging here. Among the most famous statues are the Angry Boy(Sinnataggen) and the Monolith(Monolitten), which dominates the park at a height of 17 metres, and the imposing bronze fountain which, with its 20 statues, represents the circle of life, the Wheel of Life(Livshjulet). The first section to be opened to the public, in 1940, was the famous bridge: 100 metres long and 15 metres wide, with almost 60 statues on display. A fun walk for the whole family, to feel a little at home in the middle of the city! All year round.

With a total surface area of 54,600^m2, the new national gallery will, from June 2022, house around 5,000 works, from classical paintings to modern art, architecture to contemporary art, design and objects from Antiquity to the present day. The^2nd floor is devoted to the visual arts from the ^15th century to the present day. Temporary exhibitions in the Light Hall, a 2,400^m2 space that will host artists not already exhibited in the museum. In this hall, a 7 m-high ceiling is provided for special installations, and the outer walls are made of a marble panel between two glass panels to give a particular and lasting effect. The museum's exhibits include Gustav Vigeland's bas-relief Helvetet(Hell), which shows Rodin's influence, P.-N. Arbo's romantic-kitsch paintings Åsgårdsreien (The Knights of the Apocalypse), the Romantic period (1820-1870) with J.-C. Dahl's Stalheim Landscape , more beautiful than life itself. Dahl's larger-than-life Stalheim landscape, the accuracy of which you can verify by following the route from Bergen to Flåm. Portrait painter Adolphe Tidemand and landscape artist Hans Gude sometimes combined their talents to paint landscapes with figures. Curiously avant-garde for his time, Peder Balke's dark, sepia-toned northern seascapes narrowly missed out on a fresco commission at the Château de Versailles. Erik Werenskiold's Peasant Burial is painted in the realist tradition of the 1880s. The neo-romanticism of the 1890s in the astonishing Vinternatt i Rondane, Winter Night in Rondane, which took Harald Solberg some fifteen years to complete in these icy mountains. In an impressionist mood, Kitty Kielland's Sommernatt fra Jaeren, Summer Night at Jaeren, expresses the exceptional light of this part of the south coast. And above all, a room devoted to some twenty paintings by Edvard Munch, including The Scream, Madonna and The Sick Child.

Take your time to visit this superb new gigantic museum (architects Kleihues + Schuwerk), and return several times rather than saturate! Also outdoor restaurant, café, wifi, events and workshops for all ages. Magnificent views over Oslo from the terrace at the top of this museum. A winning bet for the city of Oslo, which now boasts the largest art museum in Scandinavia. It's also an opportunity to see works that have never been shown before, due to lack of space.

KODE is the union of four art museums, all on the same campus, which present one of the best overviews of Nordic art in all of Scandinavia.

KODE 1 is the former Design Museum (located at Nordahl Bruns gate 9). The building houses the most important collection of Buddhist marble sculptures in Northern Europe. The permanent exhibition, "Man and Objects", tells the story of design and applied arts through 5 centuries.

KODE 2 hosts the annual temporary exhibitions, as well as the permanent collections of contemporary art.

KODE 3 houses the Rasmus Meyer collection, including several works by Edvard Munch, twenty large oil paintings, including Melancholy, Evening on Karl Johan, Jealousy and The Three Ages of Women, as well as works by the great Norwegian masters of the 18th and 19th centuries. The Romantic period is well represented by J.-C. Dahl with The Birch in the Storm and The Monastery of Lyse. We see Tidemand and Gude, the former with The Bad News and the latter with his High Mountain Landscape. Christian Krogh's stark realism shines through in The Struggle for Survival, while Kitty Kielland's magical light is captured in her Jaeren Landscape.

KODE 4 is devoted to 20th-century art, including Harald Solberg's numerous sketches of the Rondane Mountains. Also worth seeing are the Klee, Picasso, Miro, and the KunstLab, an art laboratory for children.

In this studio, which the city of Oslo built for the artist, one can see the techniques that Gustav Vigeland (1869-1943) used to realize his crazy dream. Among the molds and other objects in the extensive collection is a plaster cast of a statue of the Viking Egil Skallagrimsson challenging his king with a nidstang (impaled horse's head). The work, a bronze statue, is located in Mandal, the artist's hometown on the southern coast of Norway.

Inaugurated in 1988, this museum of Northern Norwegian art is dedicated to exhibiting works related to the culture of the Far North. These include romantic landscapes by Dahl, Tidemand and Gude and, of course, seascapes by Peder Balke. It also exhibits international artists on a variety of themes, from the political to the purely artistic, from social to ideological. The museum has a café and a store dedicated to Saami art.

Tomba Emanuele is the name that Emanuel Vigeland, brother of the sculptor Gustav, gave to the building. He had decided to build a museum and then wanted to make it his mausoleum. When he died, the windows were walled up and his ashes were placed inside. The vaulted room without light that contains the Vita fresco is amazing. No daylight filters through this remarkable odyssey of existence, from birth to death, where erotic scenes and naked bodies follow one another to compose a piece that shocked contemporaries. This work of a lifetime, which covers more than 800 square meters, is impressive.

Located on the heights of the city, Ekeberg Park is a harmonious blend of nature, art and history. Only a few minutes from downtown, the park is vast and ideal for strolls. Venture into the park to discover the many sculptures scattered along the paths and take a detour to the place that inspired Le Cri, Edvard Munch's famous painting. Ekebergparken is also known for its breathtaking views of Oslo and its fjord. It's the perfect place to enjoy a sunset with hot chocolate in hand!