SAARINEN, Eliel
(b. 1873, Rantasalmi, d. 1950, Bloomfield Hills)

Central Railway Station: pair of statues

1909 (design)
Stone, height c. 400 cm
Kaivokatu 1, Helsinki

The picture shows one of the two pairs of statues holding the spherical lamps, lit at night-time, on either side of the main entrance.

Saarinen's decor is here sparing and abstract. The "bears" and "frogs" of his youth have disappeared in favour of a preference for stylized human figures, which, incorporated into the vertical structure, fuse with the actual building.




© Web Gallery of Art, created by Emil Krén and Daniel Marx.