Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo - The National Museum in Oslo - art, architecture, design - long planned and much debated - spans a wide range

Admin
12 hours ago
6 min read

When the new National Museum opened on June 11, 2022 after a long construction process, many were happy, but also some were disappointed. The building is located behind the old Vestbanes Station at Aker Brygge in Oslo. It has a modern architecture with many straight lines and large surfaces without ornamentation. This post presents the building, the discussions and some of the artworks.

Skultur og malerier i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

The National Museum was established in 2003 when the four museums, the Museum of Architecture, the Museum of Industrial Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art and the National Gallery with National Exhibitions, were merged. All four museums had long wanted larger premises, and architectural competitions had been held in both 1972 and 1995 to see if it would be possible to expand the premises at Tullinløkka. Since this had not been successful, it was decided in 2003 that the museums would be moved to a new building with a larger total exhibition area than the four museums had had until now.

Maleri av en brudeferd i liten båt i fjord i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Adolf Tidemand - *Brudeferd i Hardanger -* 1848 - one of the iconic works in the collection

After several years of studies and discussions, the Government decided in 2008 that the building would be built on the site of the disused Vestbanen (train line). Following an architectural competition and preliminary design, construction began in 2013 with a cost of NOK 6 billion. The building was to be completed in 2019, but the opening was postponed to 2022 due to the pandemic and delays in the construction project. The new National Museum was given an exhibition area of 13,000 square meters spread over three floors and 90 rooms. This has made it possible to exhibit 6,500 of the museum's collections of 400,000 objects, or 1.6 percent.

Skulptur av Athene mellom grekere og trojanere i kamp i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — *Athens between Greeks and Trojans in battle* - ca. 500 BC - plaster reconstruction by Bertel Thorvaldsen - purchased in 1881

The new building received both praise and criticism when it was opened. Those responsible for the building emphasized that the building was functional, that fine and expensive materials of high quality had been chosen, that it was nice inside, and above all that there was more space to display art. Critics claimed that the building was compact and boring, that it looked like a big brick, and that it did not fit into the surrounding environment. The museum was also criticized for having given too little space to the collection of older paintings and too much space to modern art and to the museum's other purposes.

Architecture is subjective. The series of images below show the building so that you can form your own opinion about what you think. An interesting detail when you are inside the building is that in some places you can see sculptures through windows to the outside.

Baksiden av Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — The back of the building with the offices. The building seems dominant due to its size, but not towering. It is a relatively low building.

Fasade med eføy som ligner et tre på Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Fremsiden av Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — The front facing Aker Brygge

Inngangspartiet til Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — The entrance area next to the preserved station building for the West Line "Vestbanen"

Korridor med statue utenfor vindu i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Corridor with window at the end where a sculpture is displayed on the roof outside

Statue av kvinne utenfor vindu i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Trapp i marmor med vegg i skifer i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Detail from the inside

Utsikt til Oslo rådhus fra takterrassen i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — View from the roof terrace at the National Museum. Rainy weather is a great opportunity to visit a museum, but the view will be even better in better weather.

Akershus festning sett fra Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Stor og romslig kafé i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — There is a shop, library and café in the museum

This is a large museum. It is actually the largest art museum in the Nordic countries, and therefore it takes a long time to go through all the halls. But it is necessary to go through everything before you form an opinion. If you start at the bottom and work your way up, it is easy for a while to understand the criticism that a lot of space has been given to other than traditional painting. But when you eventually get to the large section for traditional painting, some of the basis for the criticism disappears. There is a lot of space for this too.

Utstilling av bruksgjenstander og videoskjerm i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Exhibition about food on the first floor

Utstilling av design i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Nordic design related to food production

If you have lived in the Oslo area for a few decades, remember the National Gallery from the time at Tullinløkka and expect the new National Museum to be a National Gallery XL, you will be disappointed. However, if you consider that the National Museum consists of four museums that have been merged, you can open your eyes to other qualities of the museum. As a tourist, you will appreciate the great variety. Here there is such a wide range of expressions and forms of presentation that it never gets boring to walk around the many rooms. You will also enjoy the light and the lighting and the feeling of quality. The pictures below show some of the diversity of artistic expression and the quality of the exhibition rooms. There is room to give large installations room to breathe - and intimacy to artworks that benefit from it.

Mennesker ser på kunst på veggene med stor sirkulær installasjon på gulvet i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Stort rom med grønt gulv og en stor installasjon i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Installasjon med grønn duk og reflekterende kuler på gulvet

Installasjon på gulvet med vindu til byen utenfor i bakkant på Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Rom med røde vegger og religiøse kunstmotiver i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Room for religious icons and artwork

Dukker med moteklær i moter i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Mannequins with fashion clothes

Vegg fylt med plakater i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Exhibition of poster art

Billedvev på vegg med antikke møbler ved siden av i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Room for exhibition of tapestries

Mange tynne figurer av mennesker på stativ i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo

Stor sort skulptur i rom med skulpturer i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Amenhotep III - Granite sculpture from Egypt from about 1388-1351 BC - reproduction in plaster purchased in 1907 in the room for sculptures

Skulptur i marmor av kvinne som bærer et lik i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Stephan Sinding - *Barbarkvinne sleper sin sønns lik bort fra slagmarken - A Barbarian Woman carries her slain son away from the Battle field* - 1889 - marble

Oljemaleri av ung mann i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — *Klodvik* - Odd Nerdrum - 1975 - oil on canvas

Fotografisk kunst av kvinne som ligner mann i kjole i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Lill-Ann Klepstow-Lusty - photograph from the series Female - 1960. The image is exhibited in a separate room for photographic art.

Fotografi av to kvinner på benk i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Thera Mjaaland - photograph - 1955 - *Thera and Pitt. Oslo, July 1995*. The picture is exhibited in a separate room for photographic art.

As with all large museums, it is a good idea to plan your visit. When you buy your ticket, take a brochure with you and spend a few minutes picking out the parts of the museum that interest you most. The numbering of the rooms can be confusing, and if you just start somewhere and think you will see everything by walking from one end of the building to the other, you may miss a lot. A good tip is to follow the numbering of the rooms carefully. The pictures below show some of the iconic paintings on display.

Maleri av gutt med stav som beundrer slott i gull i deet fjerne i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Theodor Kittelsen - from Soria Moria slott - *Langt, langt borte så han noe lyse og glitre - Far, far away Soria Moria Palace shimmered like gold* - oil on canvas - 1900

Maleri av et troll som kommer opp av vann i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Theodor Kittelsen - *Vasstrollet - The Sea Monster* - oil on canvas - 1881

Maleri av stilisert kvinne i rom med firkanter i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Per Krohg - *Akt - Nude* - oil on canvas - 1919

Maleri av høye politimenn i uniform som kaster ut familie i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Bendik Riis - *Utkastelsen - The Eviction* - oil on canvas - 1954

Maleri av fire kunstnere i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Charlotte Wankel - 1936 - *Fire kunstnere - Four Artists* - oil on canvas

Bilde av kvinne med liten rød blomst i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Zdenka Rusova - *Rød form - Red Form* - oil on canvas - 1991

Maleri av sebra med menneske i i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Bjørn Carlsen - *Søkende i død sebra - Searching in Dead Zebra* - oil on canvas - 1981/1982

Maleri av tjern med vannliljer i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Kitty Kielland - *Sommernatt - Summer Night* - 1886 - oil on canvas - Kitty Kielland was one of the Fleskum painters who stayed at Fleskum farm for a summer and painted motifs from Dælivann.

Maleri av personer rundt grav i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Erik Werenskiold - *En bondebegravelse - Peasant Burial* - oil on canvas - 1883/1885

Maleri av gammel mann med skjedd og to une peiker i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Amalie Lindegren - *De foreldreløse - The Orphans* - oil on canvas - 1853

Maleri av krokete trær i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — August Cappelen - *Skogstjern i nedre Telemark - Tarn in Telemark* - oil on canvas - 1852

Bilde av mennesker i robåt med ild i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Hans Gude and Adolph Tidemand - *Lystring på Krøderen - Spear Fishing on Lake Krøderen* - oil on canvas - 1851

Bilde av fjell i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Hans Gude - *Fra Balestrand - From Balestrand by the Sognefjord* - oil on canvas - 1848

Maleri av elv og fjell i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Thomas Fearnley - *Labrofossen ved Kongsberg - The Labro Falls at Kongsberg* - oil on canvas - 1837

Prinsesse på hvit bjørn i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Theodor Kittelsen - *Kvitebjørn kong Valemon - White Bear King Valemon* - oil on canvas- 1912

Maleri av mennesker som danser i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Edvard Munch - *Livets dans - The Dance of Life* - oil on canvas -1899/1900

Maleri av tre kvinner på bro i Nasjonalmuseet i Oslo — Edvard Much - *Pikene på broen - The Girls on the Bridge* - oil on canvas - 1901

The building has three floors. On the first floor you will find design and crafts from ancient times to the present day. On the second floor you will find Norwegian and international painting, sculpture and architecture. On the third floor you will find changing exhibitions. There you can also go out onto a large roof terrace when the weather permits in the summer months. The pictures below show some of the modern art on display.