Mural by Picasso and Carl Nesjar will be demolished

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Despite being controversial, the building with Picasso and Norwegian icon Carl Nesjar’s mural will be demolished

In Norway, news broke out that a building that houses artworks by Pablo Picasso and Carl Nesjar will be demolished. This is due to the damage that the property suffered after a bomb attack on July 22, 2011.

Additionally, the building is known to house a ministry in central Oslo which, for safety reasons, will be demolished. The decision was taken yesterday by the Norwegian Government despite the request by the provincial governor of Oslo that they reconsider the initiative.

The piece “Block Y” -as they call the compound- was completed in 1969. Consequently, in 2014 the order to demolish it unleashed the dissatisfaction of culture defenders. Thus the process was postponed. And it was not until yesterday that the initiative took momentum again.

Therefore, the event is regrettable, as Norwegian artist Carl Nesjar’s artwork dressed its architecture. An example is the mural Los Pescadores y la Gavitota where Nesjar collaborated with the Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso.

However, this past February 13, three organizations and associations declared they wished to bring the State to justice. Nevertheless, the Executive power denied the request arguing the financial implications of a new deferral and the need to move forward with reconstruction.

Lastly, we will have to see where all this ends because last Wednesday a petition was created against the destruction that gathered some 28,000 signatures. Stay tuned to see what goes on in the coming days.

This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)