Frognerparken, is really Vigelandsparken

I love Norway; it's an amazing place, so wild and beautiful. Vigelandsparken is a most amazing space in Oslo; a celebration of human nature, it's tame in a sense, not wild like the woods or the mountains but artwork and expression of culture have arbitrary meanings and I felt excited to finally see Vigelandsparken and explore the artists ideas for myself. One of the most famous sculptures in Vigelandsparken is the Monolith. The column is over 14 metres tall and carved in one single stone. It consists of 121 human figures. There have been many interpretations of the Monolith: Man's resurrection, the struggle for existence, Man's yearning for spiritual spheres, the transcendence of everyday life and cyclic repetition. The artist Gustav Vigeland modelled all his sculptures in full size without any assistance of pupils or other artists. The carving in stone and the casting in bronze were left to a number of talented craftsmen... find out more about the artist here. THE VIGELAND PARK covers an area of 80 acres it includes a great number of Gustav Vigeland's works. Here are 212 sculptures in bronze and granite and several wrought iron gates. Vigeland modelled all his sculptures in full size without any assistance of pupils or other artists. The carving in stone and the casting in bronze were left to a number of talented craftsmen. Vigeland also designed the architectural setting and the layout of the grounds with their far stretching lawns and long straight avenues bordered with maple trees. The construction of the park lasted for a number of years. The area east of the two Frogner ponds had already by the turn of the century been opened to the public. The area west of the ponds was in 1924 given to Vigeland for the construction of the Fountain, the Monolith and the many granite groups at the Monolith plateau. Around 1930 the sculpture park was enlarged eastwards, into the older Frogner Park, to include a new bridge decorated with sculptures and a unique main entrance in granite and wrought iron. Vigeland did not live to see the completed park. The majority of the sculptures and the architectural elements was not installed until about 1950. The municipality of Oslo was the main contributor to the realisation of the Vigeland Park. However, a number of private persons and companies gave generous financial support, so that the capital of Norway could get a park to which there is no equal in the whole world. It was hard to find a favorite - some were overstated and a friend of Hege's who we met at the park spoke of animal and human figures mixed together which were not on display at the park - he felt it was due to the conservative nature of Norwegians at the time and felt that the artist had compromised with very few animal structures to appease the public.