Mogens Møller

I Mogens Møllers univers mødes yderpolerne. Med det ene ben i den klassiske kunsttradition og det andet i den moderne minimalisme, sammenblander han det helt minimale og abstrakte med det figurative, fortællende og barokke. Skulpturen To Tener, der har stået i parken siden 2009, er et godt eksempel. De to betonfigurer har taget form efter en ’tene’ (en spidsformet spole som det spundne garn vikles om, når man spinder på en spinderok eller spindemaskine), men fremstår samtidig som abstrakte og rene former. Dette greb er karakteristisk for kunstneren, hvis skulpturer står skarpt i rene, forenklede og genkendelig former. Foruden tenen er timeglasset, klokken og krukken eksempler på andre brugsgenstande, hvis form har inspireret kunstneren. Sidstnævnte bl.a. i Tidskrukker opsat ved kunstmuseet i Aalborg i 1982, skulpturgruppen Zodiac (ni store bronzekrukker, som visualiserer solsystemets ni planeter), som Mogens Møller skabte til Axels Torv i København i 1991, og den store gyldne krukke, som siden 1990 har stået ved Gudenåen og med tiden er blevet et vartegn for Randers.

Om kunstneren
Mogens Møller blev uddannet på Det Kgl. Danske Kunstakademi 1962-68 og var professor samme sted fra 1989-1998. I perioden 1999-2001 formand for Statens Kunstfond. Siden 1975 og frem til sin død var Mogens Møller medlem af Den Frie Udstilling. Mogens Møllers værker er repræsenteret på en lang række danske museer, heriblandt Statens Museum for Kunst, KUNSTEN Museum of Modern Art Aalborg, Museum Jorn og HEART – Herning Museum of Contemporary Art. Gennem karrieren er Mogens Møller blevet hædret med flere priser og legater, bl.a. Carl Nielsen og Anne Marie Carl-Nielsens Legat, Eckersberg Medaillen og Thorvaldsen Medaillen.

Two Spindles / To Tener – Mogens Møller

In Mogens Møller’s universe, contradictory opposites meet. With one foot in classical art tradition and the other in modern minimalism, he mixes minimalism and abstraction with figuration, narrative and Baroque. The sculpture To Tener, which has been in the park since 2009, is a good example. ‘Tene’ is the Danish word for distaff or spindle. The two concrete fingers are spindle-shaped, but are also abstract and pure in their form. This approach is a hallmark of the artist, whose sculptures feature pure, simplified and recognisable shapes. In addition to the spindle, the hourglass, bell and jar are other utility objects, whose shape had inspired the artist. The latter, for example, feature in Tidskrukker (Time Jars) at (the then) Nordjyllands Kunstmuseum Aalborg (1982), the sculpture group Zodiac (nine large bronze jars depicting the nine planets of the solar system), created for Axeltorv in Copenhagen (1991), and the large golden jar, which since 1990 has stood on the banks of the Gudenå river, where it has become a Randers landmark.

About the artist
Mogens Møller studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts from 1962 to 1068 and was a professor there from 1989 to 1998. From 1999 to 2001 he was Chairman of the Danish Arts Foundation. From 1975 until his death, Mogens Møller was a member of Den Frie Centre of Contemporary Art. Mogens Møller’s works are represented in numerous Danish museums, including the National Gallery of Denmark, KUNSTEN Museum of Modern Art Aalborg, Museum Jorn and HEART – Herning Museum of Contemporary Art. Throughout his career, Mogens Møller was honoured with several awards and grants: for example, Carl Nielsen og Anne Marie Carl-Nielsens Legat, the Eckersberg Medal and the Thorvaldsen Medal.