Susanna Arwin and her “aunties”
About the artist
Susanna Arwin is a Swedish painter and sculptor. Susanna grew up in Växjö and is educated at Beckman's School of Design in Stockholm, at the art school in Florence, Italy and at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Since her debut, she has had many solo and group exhibitions in Sweden and abroad. Susanna is represented in public environments throughout the country and has received several awards, among other LO's Culture Prize.
The Swedish Auntie
The art project ‘The Swedish Auntie’ was initiated in 1995. Susanna Arwin says that:
"For me, being an 'auntie' has nothing to do with external attributes. It is a state where inner qualities such as equanimity, modesty, candor, civil courage, feet on the ground and simplicity are the basis. You could say if you are a true auntie, you are so ordinary that you are, in fact, exceptional ... ".
With the Handbag as a Weapon
Susanna Arwin’s most famous work is the sculpture ‘With the handbag as weapon’. An iconic photograph from 1985 of a woman swinging her handbag at neo-Nazi inspired Susanna to create the sculpture. Along with Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd's sculpture ‘Non-Violence’ which depicts a revolver with a knot on the barrel, Susanna’s sculpture belongs to Sweden's most noticed works of art in modern times.
Where: the castle’s Stone Hall, the North Stable and the Court Yard
Open: all days May 23 - September 26
11 am to 5 pm
Or according to preliminay booking. See more information about our opening hours.
Halland’s Museum of Cultural History is lending With the Handbag as a Weapon to Bosjökloster for the summer. The statue will be placed in the Court Yard with her message of civil courage.