The Swedish gloom

in Swedish

A man is standing in the rain with his hands in his pockets, crying softly. Walk close to this sculpture and you will see a few gentle drops finding their way out of his eyes and continuing, with the help of gravity, down his cheeks to disappear into the neckline.

The water circulates. It is against the law of gravity and part of the artwork. But when it rains like today, the inner reservoir fills. First water, then tears.

This sculpture is made by Marie-Louise Ekman and is called Det svenska tungsinnet (The Swedish gloom). The sculpture is located in Malmö. In Altonaparken which is a stone's throw east of the shopping mall Hansacompagniet in the city center.

He has left the night shift in the mine. Dawn has closed its eyes.
The mouth is turned inwards.

His favorite jacket hangs loosely over his shoulders. He looks at the fire station across the channel and thinks, all the calm is only temporary. Can you look sad from behind?

The sculpture is made of bronze and is called Det Svenska Tungsinnet is made Marie-Louise Ekman. It was first exhibited in the Swedish pavilion at the 1992 World Expo in Seville, Spain. According to Malmö's Art Guide, the sculpture depicts a gently weeping man, who has borrowed features from Gösta Ekman. The sculpture has built-in heat so that it can cry regardless of the season.

In 2004, a film↗ was made about the difficulties of finding a place in Malmö for this sculpture. The film is called I have cried a lot in Limhamn. Outraged Limhamn residents protested and demanded that the sculpture be moved. The resistance lead to the sculpture finding a better place and the opponents' outrage becomes more inexplicable every year. In a few years, you may think that their anger in the film was staged.

The sculpture is located in Altonaparken, just over 100 meters from Hansacompagniet..

Go and see it, create your own opinion of the sculpture, and its mood. You will appreciate it.

References

• About BiBB, a media company and an encyclopedia 4.0
• Marie-Louise Ekman (Wikipedia)
• Map
• Text/photo/web: Johan Schlasberg

Published: 2006.11 Updated: 2025.05.21

Kategorier 25 Kultur 12

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