Carl and Olga Milles - Millesgården (1908-1955)

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Millesgården Sculpture Park - Stockholm, Sweeden

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Carl Milles, Icarus at Millesgarden

Carl and Olga Milles together designed and constructed Millesgarden, a sculpture garden on the property of their home in Stockholm. Carl Milles was a classically trained sculptor, learning the trade as an apprentice in Aguste Rodin's studio in Paris. 

The Millesgarden was meant to be a place for him to display his sculptures. But, the garden itself is a craftwork. Each stone was individually laid by him and his family. And, as the garden grew in size and scope it became an environment; itself a work of art. In the Millesgarden is a small stone chapel where Carl and Olga are buried. 


 

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Carl Milles (1875-1955)

Pantheon at Millesgarden, Stockholm

Carl Milles first learned woodworking and cabinetmaking as an apprentice in Stockholm as a teenager. While a cabinetmaker he took evening classes  in wood sculpting and carving. As a young man he moved to Paris and studied art while working in Aguste Rodin's studio.  It is there where he learned the advanced casting techniques that he used to create his signature figural bronze statues.

He later became an artist in residence at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan. The bulk of his well known work was created while he was with Cranbrook. He is most well known for his fountains, muses, and figures of mythical beings and legends.

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Millesgården

Creature at Millesgarden

Millesgarden features several fountains in which figures of romantic and Greek gods seem to flit and play. Fountains make a good base for such figural forms; the water serves as a separation and an a metaphor for heaven. His gods and goddesses dance upon the abstract material of reflections.

This is a very modern point-of-view. His figures are 'there and then'. They inhabit a world unlike our own. They are either placed high on pedestals or surrounded by water. Milles' sculptures are not intended to be interacted with on an equal standing with mortal humans; it is rather for us to witness their free spirited silhouettes which cause us to dream. They exist to inspire us, not to commiserate with us.

The setting of Millesgarden is difficult to beat. It is on the side of a high stone cliff, with Stockholm harbor beyond. To travel out to Millesgarden you have to take a subway to the end of a line and then transfer to a trolley, disembark, and climb the cliff. The journey out to Millesgarden is fun for sightseers. Millesgarden includes a museum, a house tour, and of course the sculpture garden.It is a full day event to visit Millesgarden.

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Video

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