Monuments, Statues, Sculpture

Much to my own surprise, I have found a certain joy in photographing monuments and statues. The surprise is mostly because I haven't really had much interest in statues (or most visual art) in general. But it seems I have found a fondness for trying to capture the essence of a statue, and try to bring it to life.

Or, maybe I always loved the statues, photographing them just helped me become aware of it?

To the right the Norse goddess Gefion is carving out the island of Sjælland from Sweden. The impressive Gefion Fountain can be found near Kastellet and Langelinie.

Mod Lyset / Towards the Light

Rudolph Tegner, 1909

While I perhaps wasn't that much into statues, I always liked the works of Rudolph Tegner. His over the top-style of sculpting spoke to me. And as my father most summers rented a small cabin near the Rudolph Tegner Museum, I often visited this magical place - as much for the nature as for the statues.

My favorite, however, was much closer to home - the monument Mod Lyset near Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen. It is in honor of the medical doctor and Nobel Prize winner, Niels Finsen - who discovered how light could be used in treatments, and laid the foundation for radiation therapy.

I think it's simply beautiful. This shoot was, as chance would have it, during the Pride Week in Copenhagen. I don't think the Pride Flag on the Panum Institute is out of place, here.

Find the monument at the corner of Tagensvej/Blegdamsvej.

Anne Marie Carl Nielsen (1863-1945)

After seeing, and photographing, her Havfrue (Mermaid) below, I became an instant fan of this sculptress. The life and expression is fantastic, I think - much more interesting than the mermaid pushed to tourists. The one I photographed is a copy located by The Black Diamond royal library building. So I went to also photograph the monument to her late husband, the composer Carl Nielsen, The Genius of Music or Pipe Playing Pan on Horseback.

Ørstedsparken

I grew up on Østerbro, so Fælledparken was my go to park. After moving to my own home at Frederiksberg, borderline Vesterbro/Inner City, Ørstedsparken became my new sanctum. I've mostly come there for the sun, but it is hard to ignore the plethora of statues.