modern mosaics

generations (slægter følger) by carl-henning pedersen, 1987

after the flood (efter syndfloden) by carl-henning pedersen, 1985

the cup of life (livets kalk) by carl-henning pedersen, 1986

the acension of elijah (elias' himmelfart) by carl-henning pedersen, 1985

jacob's dream (jakobs drøm) by carl-henning pedersen, 1987

mosaics by danish artist carl-henning pedersen adorn the cathedral in ribe, one of the oldest towns in the country. it's a very pretty place, idyllic little winding cobblestone streets and the cathedral in the center. i love the atmosphere of churches - the hush, the way people whisper, how often they are over-dimensioned, especially if they're called a cathedral. it is a bit surprising to me that carl-henning pedersen was contracted to do such mosaics for the church, and i don't know if there was controversy at the time. i see it as only being able to happen in more open, less correct times (were the mid 80s really like that?). i love the irreverence of the mosaics and the way that i can't really see much religious imagery in them at all. i think it fits perfectly with the danish lack of religiosity  despite their love of spring holidays and having a state church. these mosaics provoke me to think far more than some fresco of an overly-adult-looking baby jesus on mary's lap. i say bring on modernity. especially in religion.

who are the people in your neighborhood?

when i first saw this sculpture/art installation, i thought my fever had come back, but sure enough, there, by the side of the road on the edge of our little town of 3500, there is in fact a giant wooden penis sculpture sticking up out of a car. the way the tree stump sticks out of the bottom of the car (will be featuring this again, don't worry), it looks like the tree was growing there and they lowered the car down on it (would like to have seen that). husband and i can't remember if there was in fact a tree stump there before. and today, i heard that it was moved from another town, where they were asked to remove it. but our little town prides itself on featuring lots of sculpture. you know, to rest your eyes on and make you think.

what this makes me think is that the danes have a helluva sense of humor and we may not be as back of beyond as it initially appears. it's quite a statement, don't you think?  a statement on masculinity and automobiles and even on recycling. it might have had even more punch had they used, say, a ferrari, but hey, they were likely working on a budget here.

i do wonder if they can drive it from place to place....