Sweden has a lot to offer. Some things are a bit weird. This is one of them. Did you know that the worlds largest picasso sculpture is in Sweden. In Kristinehamn to be exact.

Worlds largest Picasso sculpture

The sculpture is a woman’s head, but not any woman. This is the head of Pablo Picasso’s wife Jacqueline. It is a 15 meter high sculpture at Vålö Bay (Vålösund) near Vänern, 7 kilometers outside of Kristinehamn in Sweden.

This is the first concrete sculpture by Pablo Picasso on a large scale, and the largest in the world. It consists of concrete pillars with a 1,65 meters in diameter. On the pillars there are two wings with a span of 6 x 4 meter. Each of the wings weighs around 8 000 kilograms. On the platform you can see Jacquelines face in profile. The sculpture is carved by sandblasting and was revealed Midsummer 1965.

How did the world’s largest Picasso Sculpture end up in Kristinehamn?

It all began on a dusty road in France. In the late 1950s  Kristinehamn- artist Bengt Olson met the Norwegian painter, sculptor and photographer Carl Nesjar.  He had started experimenting with a new concrete material. Pablo Picasso, who was fascinated by the artistic possibilities of concrete, was teamed with Nesjar and was now in full swing to make a series of sculptures and paintings called “les dames des Mougins” with his wife Jacqueline as a recurring theme. Bengt Olson realized that this was a unique opportunity. He went home and managed to convince the local politicians in Kristinehamn to strike. The idea of placing the sculpture in Kristinehamn was sold in to Picasso through photographs and folk music to provide the right atmosphere.
Picasso said “Oui” and the work began. Pablo Picasso followed Carl Nesjars work through film sets, but never came himself to see his work in reality.

This is a large sculpture.

It looks different from different angles.

This is a must see attraction in Kristinehamn, Värmland.

Swedens largest lake, Vänern is seen by the sculpture.

What do we think of the sculpture?

In all honesty. It is pretty cool. It is almost that ugly that it becomes great. We love the fact that the sculpture looks different in all the angles. You see different things depending on where you are standing! This is a must while in Kristinehamn.
And coolest of all? This is one of Swedens world records!
Address: 160 Vålösundsvägen, Kristinehamn 681 52, Sweden.