'Fauna' - sculpture by Swedish artist Tilda Lovell (2010)
This sculpture first appeared in Borås in connection with a sculpture festival in 2010, and was then standing outside the Art Museum. Since then, it has been moved a couple times (at least), to suddenly appear in a different place - in my humble opinion, making it a bit extra spooky...
I just encountered it again today, near the river - and couldn't recall if I've seen it in that exact spot before or not...
It's not one of my favourite sculptures, and I've never understood its context. But going back to the 2010 sculpture festival brochure now, I learned (or perhaps re-learned?) that it was inspired by a detail in the triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights by the Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch, from way back around 1490-1510.
I soon gave up on trying to locate it in the triptyk (I haven't got a screen large enough)* - but there is a detail picture included in Wikipedia where it is included, next to a giraffe:
I'm still not sure if I find that really helpful; but at least now I know that the creature didn't just appear from nowhere in the brain of a Swedish sculptor in 2010.
Whether back in 1490 it appeared from Nowhere for Hieronymus, I dare not say.
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* PS - Just after I pressed PUBLISH, I suddenly recognised the white giraffe + the two-legged dog in the triptyk. They are in the upper third of the narrow triptyk panel to the left.
I see them! But not before you told me where to look! The dog is creepy to me. He looks very sad, starved, no front legs, and like he is dying. And the triptych looks like an all-out orgy!
ReplyDeleteGinny, I get much the same feelings myself...
DeleteHieronymus Bosch must have been smoking something, or eating an omelette with magic mushrooms when he was coming up with many of the creatures and scenes we see in his paintings. I am not fond of the sculpture, either, but it certainly is a work of art, and learning a bit about its background is interesting.
ReplyDeleteMeike, your first comment made me laugh. The painting does seem strangely psychedelic for being so old. From the Wiki article I get the impression that very little is known about the artist's personal life, so who knows.
DeleteI think the sculpture is creepy and so are those paintings when you study them long enough, at a quick glance they are just colourful mayhem.
ReplyDeleteRiver, without knowing who painted it, I would have taken it for a much modern piece of art. And I agree about "creepy"...
DeleteFreaky dog, freak Bosch painting, and I did find it after I got to the end with your help. Hieronymus was one handsome dude. ha ha ha. laughing now at the comment above that says Bosch must have been smoking something. I agree. not all art if to my taste but I can always see their talent, they are born with it. creepy is a good word for sculpture and painting.
ReplyDeleteSandra, it's not to my taste either, and if had been a modern piece of art I wouldn't have given it much thought. But because it's 500+ years old, I can't help wondering where on earth he got all those curious shapes from.The painting illustrates a sort of "from paradise to hell" story, but even the paradise part doesn't look very paradisical to me.
DeleteA quietly uncanny encounter, knowing its roots in The Garden of Earthly Delights only deepens the mystery, as if the creature has been wandering between centuries just to unsettle you again.
ReplyDeleteNow you just made it even creepier, Ro! ;-)
DeleteI like the sculpture and was pleased to find the little creature in the triptych, thanks to your guidance. I shall have to find out more about Hieronymus Bosch. I like the little I've seen of his work. It reminds me of Brueghel.
ReplyDeleteJanice, I in turn now had look up Brueghel... Found a very long Wiki article but it does seem like he was influenced by Bosch, especially in some of his works.
DeleteI LOVE medieval art. They look so weird from the artist's point of view that it's like looking into another world.
ReplyDeleteAmy, that's certainly true, at least in this case! ;)
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