Astrup Fearnley Museet in Oslo acquires the sculpture "Urmodern"
Uppdaterat: 28 aug.
Astrup Fearnley Museet has acquired Britta Marakatt-Labba's large sculpture Urmodern (“The Primordial Mother”), bronze and granite, 224 × 112 × 102 cm, 2024.
Urmodern is rooted in Sámi mythology, in which every stone, plant, and body of water carries its own spirit. In this worldview, goddesses create and protect the cosmos, highlighting the central role of women in Sámi cosmology. The sculpture embodies this primal force through a granite base that supports the goddess’s head in bronze—a union of earth, matter, and spiritual presence—where Urmodern emerges as a representation of female creative powers.
The work was installed on the High Line in New York in April 2025, commissioned by curator Cecilia Alemani, who also curated the main exhibition The Milk of Dreams at the 2022 Venice Biennale, in which Britta Marakatt-Labba participated. The installation in New York has now concluded, and the work has been acquired by the Astrup Fearnley Museet in Oslo.
Founded in 1993, the Astrup Fearnley Museet is one of the leading museums of contemporary art in the Nordic region and manages an extensive international collection. The museum continuously presents exhibitions featuring both works from its collection and new productions by artists from around the world.
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