Nr. 18: Ung mann bøyer seg ned mot ung sittende kvinne

Nr. 18: Ung mann bøyer seg ned mot ung sittende kvinne is a statue by Gustav Vigeland in Frogner Park, Oslo, Norway. A young man bends towards a seated young woman. Their nude, naturalistic bodies use posture and movement to suggest human connection without words or elaborate surroundings. The surrounding installation combines bronze, granite, and wrought iron.

Vigeland created the installation across several decades, filling it with sculptures of human bodies and relationships. The park reached completion in the mid-twentieth century. He also planned the central axis, bridges, gates, and wrought-iron fences, linking figures into a sequence. That sequence suggests human life from childhood to old age. At the installation’s highest point, the granite Monolith rises beside surrounding groups of carved granite figures.

Small clay models preceded the larger plaster forms. Craftsmen finished them in stone or bronze. People can walk among the figures and see expressions, gestures, and interactions at close range. Here, a bent body meets a seated one.