Unveiled 2002

“Blue Tulip”
by Edgar Ballo

Sculpture, blue tulip

Blue Tulip by Edgar Ballo was unveiled in 1993. Photo: Einar Aslaksen.

Blue Tulip

  • Unveiled 2002
  • Materials Two types of local marble: the green originating from Bindalen, the blue from Velfjorden in Brønnøy
  • Dimensions 210 cm
  • Artist Edgar Ballo
  • Where Show on map

Blue Tulip is composed of two types of marble from the south of Nordland county in Norway; the blue that makes up the flower is from Velfjord and the green that makes up the leaves and stems are from Bindalen.

The contrast between the sculpture’s organic form and the dead, massive material gives Blue Tulip an intriguing dimension. The flower seems to have burst its way out of the earth, but the hard and unchanging marble ensures that the tulip’s petals remain closed.

In the spring of 1993, Ballo made several drawings of the black and white tulips in the flowerbed outside his house in Vega in Nordland. During the summer of the same year, he visited a museum in Eidsborg in Western Telemark. Here he saw Djuvestoga, the house of the so-called Djuve King. The famous rose painter Olav Torjusson decorated the interior here in 1799 and he had used a very special shade of blue that made a strong impression on Ballo. This shade of blue, in addition to his springtime tulip studies, became the starting point for the sculpture you see at Kistefos as well as a series of three paintings.

Kistefos EA Edgar Ballo Blue Tulip 15610

Detail by Blå Tulipan by Edgar Ballo. Photo: Einar Aslaksen.

Kistefos EA Edgar Ballo Blue Tulip 15618

Blue Tulip by Edgar Ballo was unveiled in 1993. Photo: Einar Aslaksen.