Jens Galschiøt was born in Frederikssund in 1954. He trained as a blacksmith (certified in 1978) while developing his self-taught practice as a silversmith and sculptor in parallel. As influences, he cites a variety of sources, ranging from conceptual, performance and happenings, through symbolism, to art nouveau and even street art. In 1973, he settled in Odense where, in 1985, he opened 10 000 m2 space called Gallery Galschiøt that is split into sections, comprising a bronze foundry, a workshop, a gallery and a sculpture garden, exhibiting works from the artist.
His art, in all its forms, deals with, illustrates, and provokes fundamental questions relating to human values, rights, the environment and the hypocrisy with which some of these have been addressed by various governments, institutions or organisations. In this fight against fundamental injustices, most of his sculptures are self-financed.
His most representative series of works is perhaps the Pillar of Shame, installed in various locations across the world. The original version was conceived and installed in Hong Kong in 1997, in homage to the Tiananmen victims during the 1989 protests and ensuing incidents. The sculpture is an eight-metre high pillar comprised of twisted bodies. Galschiøt’s condemnation of human rights violations in the region did not end there, as in 2008, during the Olympic Games in Beijing, the pillar was painted orange by Chinese democracy activists as part of the international ‘The Colour Orange’ initiative (launched by the Danish artist himself), which sought to highlight rights violations in the context of the games, their preparation and beyond.
A second iteration of the Pillar was installed in Zócalo, in Mexico City, in 1999. This version, placed for 48 hours in front of the Parliament, denounced the treatment of indigenous populations in the region. The Pillar was later moved to a site at the entrance to the village of Acteal in Chiapas, where 45 unarmed indigenous people were killed by a paramilitary group on 22 December 1997, and the artwork was welcomed by a large crowd.
The third Pillar was planted in front of the Brazilian Parliament in Brasília to commemorate the 19 landless peasants who were killed by the military police in the northern state of Pará on 17 April 1996. The artistic initiative received a lot of pushback from political spheres, the media and local population, but was installed nonetheless.
Galschiøt’s craftsmanship is also recognised in the field of award ceremonies where his designs are used as prizes for annual awards, such as the Kolding Theatre ‘Showbiz’ Prize; the Hans Christian Andersen Prize; the Fernando Prize; and The Solar Catcher, among others.
