Arbetets monument - En analys av det samtida minnesmonumentets form och funktion

Abstract

This study consists of an analysis of the artwork Monument to Work in Gothenburg by the artist Alexandra Pirici, a project by The Public Art Agency in Sweden. The study aims to understand Monument to Work on the basis of conventional perspectives of the genres monument as well as counter-monuments. Through a collection of different interpretations, the artwork can be categorized as different types of art and the narrative context shows different possible interpretations of the artwork. The study shows that even as an unconventional monument or a counter-monument, it can be argued that Monument to Work re-establishes the idea and function of conventional monuments, since it contributes to a collective understanding and memorialisation of Swedens industrial history, and that Monument to Work should not be considered a politically neutral artwork since it is a part of the public artworks of Gothenburg city, as well as other cities in the future.