SAVE THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF NORWAY

SAVE THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF NORWAY ( NASJONALGALLERIET)

The Norwegian government has decided to bring together the National Gallery, the Museum for Contemporary Art and the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design in a new edifice to be built on the vacant lot at Oslo’s Vestbane. As a consequence of this decision the National Gallery will cease to exist in its present institutional form and premises.The National Gallery is Norway’s first and largest museum for art and as such is inseparably linked to Norway’s short history as an independent nation. The National Gallery, as both a building and an institution, is established in people’s consciousness as a cultural and historical reference point. In our opinion the government’s decision shows a lack of both historical and cultural understanding.According to the present plan, the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design will also suffer the same fate.It has recently been pointed out that the building area available at Vestbane is in fact of insufficient size to satisfy the future demands of the three combined institutions.The signatories of this appeal urge the Norwegian Parliament to consider a “shared solution”:Preserving, extending and profiling the National Gallery as the framework for older art at Tullinløkka.Reviewing the location of the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design.Creating a new building for the relocation of the Museum of Contemporary Art.The National Gallery’s national and historical importance as an institution will thereby be preserved and consolidated, and Oslo will gain another new cultural attraction at Vestbane.


Erik Collett, Kristian Vårvik, Fredrik A.S.Torp, Victor Lind, Ina Blom, Jon Dobloug, Frans Widerber, Nico Widerberg