219:, the north, west, south, and east, in order to discover and conquer new, unknown territories. Those who headed east followed the rising sun until they reached the steppes of Mongolia. There they settled down and lived in comfort. Those scribes who accompanied the warriors were expected to document the expedition for the king. Several centuries later, when the documents written by the scribes eventually came to be examined, the people discovered that they had another fatherland in the west. They therefore decided to gather together their belongings and head back west towards the setting sun. We followed the sun for days and years, walking, riding and sailing. We enriched our experience and our determination grew in strength as our journey progressed, and we recorded everything that we saw and experienced. I remember endless pine forests, mountains and waterfalls, lakes, islands, rivers and seas before we eventually reached the ocean. We then constructed huge ships and sailed on westwards towards the setting sun.
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has the unique quality of being able to carry each and every observer to wherever his/her mind takes him/her. Few of Árnason's works have a simple, obvious interpretation. As he stated himself, all works of art should convey a message that transcends the work itself. It is the observer who bears the
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was built in accordance with the artist's hand-drawn full-scale plan. Its irregular form with the ever-flowing lines and poetic movement which are a distinctive feature of so many of his works make it seem as if the ship is floating on air. It reaches out into space in such a way that the sea, the
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eventual responsibility for interpreting the works in his/her own way, thus becoming a participant in the overall creation of the work. Árnason's works frequently make such demands on the observers, giving them the opportunity to discover new truths as a result of their experience.
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Environmental Art Action in
Bockholm, Finland. There I experienced a sense of the history of the origins of Icelanders, something which is also related in the present exhibition at the Nordic House in Reykjavík.
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to be situated in the west part of
Reykjavík, for obvious reasons. Árnason's original idea had been for the ship to be placed on Landakot hill, the prow facing the centre of Reykjavík and the
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on Sæbraut in
Reykjavík. Some people have complained that the ship does not face west, towards the setting Sun in accordance with the concept behind it. The original intention had been for
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on 11 June 1987, Árnason described the genesis of the work as being part of the
Scandinavian art project Experimental Environment, which conducted various artistic experiments in Iceland,
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In 1986, the district association of the west part of the city funded a competition for a new outdoor sculpture to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the city of
Reykjavík. Árnason's
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model (42.5 cm × 88 cm × 36 cm, 16.7 in × 34.6 in × 14.2 in) was presented to the city for enlargement. The full-sized
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should be located on Sæbraut on a small headland (which the artist jokingly called Jónsnes: Jón's
Peninsula). Árnason was well aware that when bolted to its platform,
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is described as a dreamboat, or an ode to the Sun. The artist intended it to convey the promise of undiscovered territory, a dream of hope, progress and freedom.
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As you know, there have been speculations that the
Icelanders as a race originated in Mongolia. I have discovered the history of their
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The coastline by Ánanaust nonetheless eventually came to be Árnason's preferred location for the ship. Unfortunately, changes in the
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slabs surrounded by so-called "town-hall concrete". It was constructed in accordance with Árnason's enlarged full-scale drawing of
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In May 1985, a group of artists, members of the
Scandinavian art project Experimental Environment, gathered to take part in the
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for
Reykjavík came to rule out this location. In the end, the final decision was taken (with Árnason's consent) that
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As a result of this vivid experience of my participation in this expedition while on the island of
Bockholm in the
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9 m × 7 m × 18 m (29.5 ft × 22.9 ft × 59 ft)
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I had an uncanny feeling that I had been on this island before, when travelling on my way from
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was eventually unveiled on Sæbraut on the birthday of the city of Reykjavík, 18 August 1990.
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would be facing north, but felt that that made little difference when it came down to it.
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sky and the mind of the observer become part of the work as a whole. As a result,
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There has been some dispute about the eventual location of
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and other followers, on an exploratory expedition to the
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172:In an interview published in the newspaper
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366:Interview with Jón Gunnar Árnason.
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162:Kristin E. Hrafnsson
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349:and Forlagið, 2011.
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175:Þjóðviljinn
158:Sun Voyager
143:Sun Voyager
135:Sun Voyager
123:Sun Voyager
33:(1931–1989)
417:Categories
354:References
189:Saari-Vala
60:Dimensions
139:aluminium
115:Reykjavík
94:Icelandic
76:Reykjavík
286:See also
231:Location
198:Mongolia
113:road in
68:Location
333:, 1989.
323:, 1994.
213:scribes
180:Denmark
168:Concept
154:granite
129:History
119:Iceland
111:Sæbraut
80:Iceland
72:Sæbraut
54:granite
98:Sólfar
46:Medium
27:Artist
245:stern
41:1990
38:Year
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