The US artist Joseph Kosuth has created a work of public art that refers to the silver mining history of Kongsberg, a town 80km south west of the Norwegian capital, Oslo. A Monument of Mines was unveiled in November in the atrium of Krona, a cultural centre. Kosuth’s work consists of 136 neon lights with the names of all the silver mines that existed in the area and the year they closed down. “It has always been important that we have to remember our history. In that sense doing such a work is a public service,” Kosuth says. The artist also has a show at Oslo-based Galleri Brandstrup (until 20 December). The gallery’s owner, Kim Brandstrup, says Kosuth’s work is the most important in a public space in Norway since Picasso’s monumental concrete murals in Oslo’s government quarter.
