BA - The Club - Five outdoor artworks worth travelling for

Oslo: Dilemma by Elmgreen & Dragset

From Scandinavian duo Elmgreen & Dragset, this metaphorical sculpture suspends a small, apprehensive boy on the edge of a decision. Designed as an analogy for the plunge into adulthood, Dilemma towers over a panoramic view of Oslo from the wooded grounds of Ekebergparken – a world-leading contemporary sculpture park home to works from Salvador Dalí to Pierre-Auguste Renoir.
Dream add-on: The tiger statue outside Oslo Central Station, a gift to the city on its 1,000-year anniversary and a reflection of the city’s affectionate nickname, Tigerstaden (the Tiger City).

Take me to Oslo

Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon

Phoenix: Her Secret Is Patience by Janet Echelman

Drawing inspiration from the formlessness of cumulus clouds and fossil curvature, Janet Echelman’s illuminated sculpture, Her Secret is Patience (a quote from American essayist, Ralph Waldo Emerson) can be found lighting up downtown Phoenix from 38 feet off the ground. An amalgamation of polyester twine netting and galvanized steel, the webbed structure gently dances on warm Arizonian nights, changing colours with the seasons.
Dream add-on: John Waddell’s celebratory human figures, melded from bronze, in front of Phoenix’s Herberger Theatre.

Take me to Phoenix

Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon

France: Crouching Spider by Louise Bourgeois

Hidden in the provincial landscape of wine estate Château La Coste near Marseille, Crouching Spider is one of Louise Bourgeois’ infamous arachnid artworks. Bourgeois’ fascination with the frailty and ferocity of spiders has been inspiring her sculptural work since the 1980s, with corresponding creations having starred in the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and London’s Tate Modern.
Dream add-on: Journey down the château’s art and architecture walk to see such works such as Hiroshi Sugimoto’s Mathematical Model 012 and Small Crinkly by Alexander Calder.

Take me to Marseille

Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon

Edinburgh: There Will Be No Miracles Here by Nathan Coley

This artist made a name for himself with troubling, thought-provoking proverbs, illuminated with uncomfortable unavoidability in Scotland’s public spaces. Glasgow-born Coley’s There Will Be No Miracles Here is stationed six-metres high outside the National Galleries of Scotland in Edinburgh. The questions it raises – Where is ‘here’? Is the artist denying divine intervention? – infuse the space with philosophical meaning in classic Coley style.
Dream add-on: Jupiter Artland, an entrancing sculpture park in West Lothian, just 25 minutes from the centre of Edinburgh.

Take me to Edinburgh

Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon

Finland: Tree Mountain by Agnes Denes

Agnes Dene’s monumental project – 11,000 trees planted by 11,000 individuals from around the world – stands 125 feet high in the wilds of Pinsiö in Finland’s south east. This man-made mountain took a total of 14 years from design to completion, and signifies a unique alliance between people and nature. Those who planted the trees received custodian certificates, something to be passed from generation to generation.
Dream add-on: The eerie magic of Finland’s Veijo Rönkkönen Sculpture Garden, a collection of nearly 500 concrete figures by artist and recluse Veijo Rönkkönen, an hour’s drive from Savonlinna Airport.

Take me to Finland

Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon