The Best of Public Art in Malmo

Unveiled in 2006, this 5.8 meter-high (19-foot) lamp was created with the idea of giving passers-by the opportunity to sit, relax, and de-stress. It tours the various squares in Malmö throughout the year, but always returns to Lilla Torg on December 15th, where it remains throughout the holiday season. It also talks – but we won’t tell you what it says.

The nineteen bronze shoes lining Davidshallsbron represent artists from different eras and professions, and the title Way To Go refers to the red carpet as a symbol of entrance into and a highlight of the artistic life. The shoes each point to a place that was important to the artist, or where they had a career high.

The Seved neighborhood doesn’t have the best reputation in Malmö and has long been in need of a facelift. Enter one Danielle Wendin, who contacted the owner of the building at the corner of Sofiagatan and Rasmusgatan, and offered a new solution to his renovations. The entire façade of the building is painted with graffiti, with each side being unique. Word on the street is, the owner has three more buildings and is open to similar suggestions.

Artist Eva Hild wanted to create something that was organic and that contrasted against the squareness of the buildings in the area. Softness, movement, and the transmission of light were important, and the result was Rubato – Free Flow, the three-ton, six meter-high (19-feet), white cast aluminum, curved sculpture found at Malmö Live.

As you leave Stortorget along Södergatanm you’ll come across the Optimistic Orchestra, the cubist representation of a musical marching band. It was created in 1985 by Yngve Lundell, who said it was a tribute to ‘two positively disobedient people,’ Lech Wales and Martin Luther King.

Pegasus Med Sitt Hov (Pegasus and His Court) is found outside Jägersro Centre, Malmö’s fourth largest shopping mall, next to Jägersro Horse Racing Track. The collective sculpture by Aline Magnusson represents seven horses galloping at full speed, with a winged Pegasus in the lead.

Also known as Non-Violence, the bronze sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd depicts an oversized .357 Magnum with a knotted barrel and the muzzle pointing upwards. Reuterswärd created the work in honor of his friend John Lennon, after Lennon was murdered. The one in Malmö is one of 16 copies of the sculpture scattered around the world.

Le Fruit Rouge, the red fruit, can be found in the playground at Pildammsparken. Artist Axel Nordell wanted to make a child-friendly sculpture and 38 years ago he did just that. On any day, in any weather, you will find children scrambling all over this charming sculpture, shouting with joy.

Use this map to discover the best public art in Malmö.