''The Sun Voyager'' ( is, Sólfar ) is a sculpture by Jón Gunnar Árnason, located next to the

Sæbraut Route 41, known as in Icelandic (), is a highway in southwest Iceland, running along the northern shore of Reykjanes Peninsula from Keflavík Airport to the Capital Region. Previously, much of the road was called () but the name is now given ...

road in Reykjavík,

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

. ''Sun Voyager'' 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.

History

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 ''Sun Voyager'' won the competition, and the

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...

model () was presented to the city for enlargement. The full-sized ''Sun Voyager'' was eventually unveiled on Sæbraut on the birthday of the city of Reykjavík, 18 August 1990. The work is constructed of

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

and stands on a circle of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

slabs surrounded by so-called "town-hall concrete". It was constructed in accordance with Árnason's enlarged full-scale drawing of ''Sun Voyager'' and was overseen by his assistant, the artist Kristin E. Hrafnsson. The engineering of the sculpture was supervised by the technologist Sigurjón Yngvason, in close cooperation with Árnason himself, the construction was carried out by Reynir Hjálmtýsson and his assistant.

Concept

In an interview published in the newspaper ''

Þjóðviljinn :'' Þjóðviljinn was also the name of a magazine published by Skúli Thoroddsen between 1887 and 1915.'' ''Þjóðviljinn'' () was an Icelandic daily newspaper founded on 31 October 1936. It had close ties with the Communist Party of Iceland a ...

'' 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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and other places in the 1980s:Interview with Jón Gunnar Árnason
"Sól, hnífar, skip"
''Þjóðviljinn'', 11 July 1987

Location

There has been some dispute about the eventual location of ''Sun Voyager'' 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 ''Sun Voyager'' 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

stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Ori ...

to Christ the King Cathedral ( is, Landakotskirkja, links=no). Another possibility was that it could be placed by the harbour in the centre of Reykjavík on a specially constructed base. The coastline by Ánanaust nonetheless eventually came to be Árnason's preferred location for the ship. Unfortunately, changes in the town planning for Reykjavík came to rule out this location. In the end, the final decision was taken (with Árnason's consent) that ''Sun Voyager'' 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, ''Sun Voyager'' would be facing north, but felt that that made little difference when it came down to it. ''Sun Voyager'' 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 sky and the mind of the observer become part of the work as a whole. As a result, ''Sun Voyager'' 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 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.

External links

Photo gallery of the Sun Voyager - PhotoHound

Bibliography

*Jón Gunnar Árnason, ''Hugarorka og sólstafir''.

National Gallery of Iceland The National Gallery of Iceland ( is, Listasafn Íslands ) is an art museum in Reykjavík which contains a collection of Icelandic art. The gallery features artwork of famous Icelandic artists and artwork that helps explain the traditional Icelan ...

, 1994. *''SÚM 1965-1972''.

Reykjavik Art Museum Reykjavik Art Museum ( is, Listasafn Reykjavíkur ; founded in 1973) is the largest visual art institution in Iceland. It occupies three locations in Reykjavík; Hafnarhús by the old harbour Kjarvalsstaðir by Klambratún and Ásmundarsafn i ...

, 1989. *''Íslensk list: 16 íslenskir myndlistarmenn''. Hildur, 1981. *''Íslensk listasaga, frá síðari hluta 19. aldar til upphafs 21. aldar''.

and Forlagið, 2011.

References