Peer Gynt Sculpture Competition:

Petter Hepsø confirms Norwegian figurative art

The jury has chosen five sculptors, each winning one scene in the second round of the international sculpture competition announced in 2004. In this round 77 artists from 18 countries have rivaled to win the possibility to erect their statue in the suite. Hepsø, best known for his sculpture ”Frosken” (The Frog) exhibited at the Norwegian National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design is the only Norwegian winner. Sharing this honor with him are Piotr Grzegorek og Kinga Smaczna, both from Poland, Eamonn O’Doherty from Ireland, and Anna Passakas and Radoslav Kudlinski, from Canada. Creating the”Peer Gynt Suite” at Løren The winning sculptures will be put up around the new city district at Løren that is gradually taking shape. The grand opening is scheduled for 30 August in the Ibsen centenary year, 2006. The first sculptures to be unveiled are “The devil in a nut” by Enzo Cucchi (Italy), “The meeting between Solvejg, Peer and the Button Moulder” by Jan Kolasinski (Poland), “Solvejg at the newly built hut” by Wolf Bröll (Germany), “The deceit|Running away with the bride” by Jim Dine (USA), and “Peer and Anitra in the desert” by Elena Engelsen/Per Ung (Norway). When completed, the collection will form a unique sculptural presentation of the Peer Gynt story. For more information please visit http://peergynt.selvaag.no or contact: Beate Bustin Gardiner, +47 48 00 50 81