If you enjoy sculpture, then I would highly recommend Vigeland Park in Oslo. I spent a couple of hours there yesterday and was thoroughly amazed by the shear volume of sculptures. And when I say volume, I mean both size and number. There are on the order of 1000 sculptures throughout the park. They were all produced by one sculptor, Gustav Vigeland, and his army of assistants. Some of the sculptures are 20-30 feet tall. In the center of the park is a sculpture known as “The Monolith” which towers above the park.
On the highest point of the park, on the Monolith Plateau, rise circular stairs towards the Monolith. The figural part, with 121 figures, is 14.12 m and the total height, including the plinth, is 17.3 m high. The Monolith was carved from one single granite block, hence the name (mono: one, litho: stone).
This sculpture was carved in place by 3 men over the course of 3 years based on an exact plaster replica. Pretty incredible. I wish I had pictures to show you. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera with me. “Why?” you ask. Well, a pickpocket managed to get my camera on Saturday. I went out for a little lunch and while I was eating (I think) the guy next to me managed to nip it (I think). I’ve replayed the whole morning in my head and it HAD to be that guy. But I had no way of being absolutely sure. So here’s what I did.
I left the restaurant. Then I went back… and sat… and watched him. After about 10 minutes he got up to leave. As he was leaving, I looked him square in the eye… and he looked me square in the eye. And we just looked at each other as he passed. I wanted him to look away. That’s what a “normal” person would do when a stranger stares at them… right? A normal person would think, “Why is that person staring at me” and look away, right?
This guy did not look away. He stared me down. I’m sure it was only 3 seconds or so, but that’s hours in “eye time”. After enough time had passed that I felt the message was clear, “I know it was you, but I can’t prove it” I looked away. He went into the grocery store and I walked home.
3 Comments
Mean people suck!
Weird. I’m sorry about your camera, that sucks.
You should know, though, that staring is like a Scandanavian pastime? In Denmark and Sweden people stare at each other all the time. Don’t know if you’ve experienced that there or not.
That happens a lot in Germany, too…’specially if you’re not from around there. They have an uncanny knack for making you realize that you’re a stranger in a strange land the further you get into the interior.
And that does suck about your camera. Maybe the idiot will post the photos he nicked and you can track him that way. That’s how it would happen in the movies.
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