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Walter Magnus Runeberg (29 December 1838 – 23 December 1920) was a Finnish neo-classical sculptor. He was the son of Finnish national epic poet
After periods living and working in Rome and Paris, Runeberg produced many of Helsinki's best-known examples of monumental public art. The largest is the Alexander II Monument in Senate Square, a commission awarded jointly to Runeberg and sculptor Johannes Takanen, then completed by Runeberg after Takanen's death in 1885. The pedestal features several allegorical figures. Notably, the figure representing Law is a version of the ''Suomi-neito'', the 
He is buried in the 
Johan Ludvig Runeberg
Johan Ludvig Runeberg (; 5 February 1804 – 6 May 1877) was a Finnish priest, lyric and epic poet. He wrote exclusively in Swedish. He is considered a national poet of Finland. He is the author of the lyrics to (''Our Land'', '' Maamme'' in F ...
.
Biography
Runeberg was born inPorvoo
Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieva ...
as the eldest son of J. L. Runeberg and his wife, Fredrika Tengström. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts, Helsinki
The Academy of Fine Arts ( fi, Kuvataideakatemia; sv, Bildkonstakademin) in Helsinki, Finland is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and provides the highest university-level theoretical and practical training in the country in fine arts ...
, and with sculptor Carl Eneas Sjöstrand. From 1858 through 1869 he studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi - Billedkunst Skolerne) has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark.
History
The Royal Dan ...
in Copenhagen under Herman Wilhelm Bissen
Herman Wilhelm Bissen (13 October 1798 – 10 March 1868) was a Danish sculptor.
Biography
Bissen was born at Schleswig in the Duchy of Schleswig. He was the son of Christian Gottlieb Wilhelm Bissen (1766-1847), a farmer, and Anna Margreth ...
, acquiring a clear influence from the neoclassical style of Bissen's master Bertel Thorvaldsen
Bertel Thorvaldsen (; 19 November 1770 – 24 March 1844) was a Danish and Icelandic sculptor medalist of international fame, who spent most of his life (1797–1838) in Italy. Thorvaldsen was born in Copenhagen into a working-class Dani ...
. He married Lina Elfving (1841–1916) in 1867. They had six children.
After periods living and working in Rome and Paris, Runeberg produced many of Helsinki's best-known examples of monumental public art. The largest is the Alexander II Monument in Senate Square, a commission awarded jointly to Runeberg and sculptor Johannes Takanen, then completed by Runeberg after Takanen's death in 1885. The pedestal features several allegorical figures. Notably, the figure representing Law is a version of the ''Suomi-neito'', the Finnish maiden
The Maiden of Finland ( fi, Suomi-neito, sv, Finlands mö) is the national personification of Finland.
Personification
She is a barefoot young woman in her mid-twenties with blonde hair, blue eyes, wearing a blue and white national costume ...
, here cloaked in bearskin.
He is buried in the Hietaniemi Cemetery
The Hietaniemi cemetery ( fi, Hietaniemen hautausmaa, sv, Sandudds begravningsplats) is located mainly in the Lapinlahti quarter and partly in the Etu-Töölö district of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. It is the location for Finnish state fu ...
in Helsinki.
Works
Statue of Alexander II
Other notable works
See also
*Art in Finland
Finnish art started to form its individual characteristics in the 19th century, when romantic nationalism began to rise in the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland.
Prehistoric art
Marks of human activity in Finland has found in Wolf Cave, Susiluo ...
*Golden Age of Finnish Art
The Golden Age of Finnish Art coincided with the national awakening of Finland, during the era of the Grand Duchy of Finland under the Russian Empire. It is believed to span an era from the late 19th Century to the early 20th Century, approxima ...
References
20th-century Finnish sculptors 19th-century Finnish sculptors 1838 births 1920 deaths People from Porvoo Burials at Hietaniemi Cemetery {{Finland-sculptor-stub