Son Takes a Beating, Vigeland Sculpture Park, Oslo

Posted by dj.tigersprout (New York City, United States) on 10 April 2009 in Art & Design and Portfolio.

not all the sculptures are about comfort and love... Gustav Vigeland wanted to illuminate all manners of being human and in relationships. here a son gets a beating from his father -- and what at first was a bit shocking to me, now is a bit more real -- and the attention to the emotional portent and the expressions of this sculpture are quite divine (if i may be allowed to stretch the definition of the word in that way) :P

cheers!!

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Comments (25)

JamesC from portland, United States

What a powerful image.

10 Apr 2009 5:36am

Calusarus from St Sorlin en Valloire, France

it is the 1st time I see a statue like this one. Thank you to share this find with us…

10 Apr 2009 5:39am

kerfendal from Paris, France

i like the angle you choose in this composition

10 Apr 2009 6:00am

Kylie Greenan from Richmond, Australia

Wow, great caputre and very thought provoking DJ, hope all is well in NYC!

10 Apr 2009 6:41am

Paco Díaz from Palma de Mallorca, Spain

I like the rich variety of feelings reflected by all these sculptures.
This one is so realistic that defy all political correctness ;)

10 Apr 2009 9:24am

@Paco Díaz: cheers Paco! i agree -- but even though it still kind of shocks me, for some reason this is one of my faves!! :)

grouser from Ludlow, United Kingdom

One way of keeping warm I guess
Nicely composed

10 Apr 2009 9:47am

António Pires from Lisbon, Portugal

You captured very well the expressions and the sense of movement.

10 Apr 2009 10:36am

Seb! from Gard, France

Oh, no... aïe ! ouch !
Cool compo ;-)

10 Apr 2009 11:20am

beanow from Warsaw, Poland

Wow! Provocative work... Excellent capture.

10 Apr 2009 1:09pm

john4jack from Corvallis, Oregon, United States

This sculpture is extraordinary.

10 Apr 2009 1:10pm

peter from new york, United States

i'm digging these sculptures jaycee! and yes my housemate said she met you! well i'm back from vaca now so drinks are definitely in order. i'm pretty busy catching up with work this week(end) but maybe sometime next week?

10 Apr 2009 2:06pm

@peter: thanks mate and yes this week sounds perfect!!! :)

Alun Lambert from cheshire, United Kingdom

great image

10 Apr 2009 4:54pm

Steve Rice from Olympia, United States

A super image.

10 Apr 2009 5:50pm

Denis from the edge of my blackhole, Palau

I am urprised how in Norway such a statue is still possible. I think that, as in France, they put you in jail for beating your children. Thank you for his tstimony.

10 Apr 2009 6:40pm

ishm from dubai, United Arab Emirates

Great shot!! I'm enjoying every bit of it!! Keep posting your great shots mate. Cheers!

11 Apr 2009 3:59am

John Maslowski from Dallas, PA, United States

Another amazing image of these fascinating sculptures. Excellent shot, great angle and composition.

11 Apr 2009 4:07am

@John Maslowski: thanks John!!!

Magda from Vancouver, Canada

Great angle. Very powerful image.

12 Apr 2009 6:36am

saeed from ahwaz, Iran

very artistic... really beautifully composed... well captured... i like it

12 Apr 2009 7:07am

@saeed: cheers Saeed!!

grant from kansas city, United States

this one is difficult to see, but powerful. well done.

12 Apr 2009 11:14pm

@grant: thanks Grant -- yeah the sky was light but many of the sculptures depending on where they were situated could be quite dimly lit. this extraordinary winter light almost brought them to life!! :)

Ivar from Indianapolis, United States

I remember seeing these while walking around in the park... more nudity than most americans usually see :)
Great shot.

13 Apr 2009 2:22am

@Ivar: cheers Ivar and yes! wish we americans were entrusted with a bit more faith to handle common nudity... :P

Karthik from Chennai, India

Put me off at first, but definitely does bring out the emotions

13 Apr 2009 4:51am

Andrew Gould from Sydney, Australia

After marvelling at the sculpture and your framing of it, my attention was drawn to the way you've lined it up so effectively with the background elements. The exposure has been handled very skillfully, too.

13 Apr 2009 10:54am

@Andrew Gould: thanks mate!! how are you? been ages - we still need our gmail video chat! :)

JJ from Jersey City, United States

The beating in itself is shocking, but it is part of life for some children and hence I think it is good it is covered in this park, and perhaps it will help save some children from being beaten

13 Apr 2009 11:26am

Twelvebit from Victoria, United States

It's interesting to think about how something like this would be interpreted by another culture visiting this planet after we are long gone.

5 May 2009 3:55pm

San G. from Encino, California, United States

Experiencing this image, from this angle, you invite me to consider what it feels like to be the even younger child in this family. Watching, from my shorter perspective, with my own thoughts and feelings, perhaps helpless. What will happen next? Vigeland lets us feel so many feelings that are present in the human experience. Many we will never endure ourselves personally.

Funny how our comments primarily reflect the perspective of the child. In a "gestalt" we consider all perspectives ... What of the father's uncontrolled anger? I hope most of us don't have to experience that either.

21 May 2009 6:53am

@San G.: beautifully put Sandy -- thank you! the experience walking among these statues is unforgettable! it is certainly a highlight of my 'art' life.

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