Non-Violence (sculpture)

Non-Violence
The Knotted Gun
ArtistCarl Fredrik Reuterswärd
Completion date
1984
TypeSculpture

Non-Violence, also known as The Knotted Gun, is a bronze sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd of an oversized Colt Python .357 Magnum revolver with its barrel tied in a knot. It is located at the United Nations headquarters in New York City.

History

Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd made this sculpture after the murder of John Lennon, with whom Reuterswärd was acquainted.[1] When learning of the murder he stayed up all night to work on the piece, inspired by the idea of making a knot on the firearm the murderer Mark David Chapman had used.[2] He had previously done pieces of knotted pencils, such as Medium’s Memory in Kristianstad in 1977.[3] During 1980-1981 Reuterswärd did one prototype of a life size firearm in plaster and one in bronze.[4] These are now kept in the collection of Museum of Sketches for Public Art in Lund.

The oversized public version of the piece was planned for John Lennon’s memorial Strawberry Fields in Central Park.[4] This sculpture was made 1984,[5] but when the memorial was opened in 1985 Reuterswärd opted not to have it placed there, citing fears it would be stolen.[2] In 1988, the Luxembourg government bought and donated it to the United Nations. The sculpture was moved right outside of the headquarters of the UN.[6][7] Here it was interpreted not only a memorial for John Lennon, but as a symbol against violence and war anywhere in the world.

Following the unveiling of the original sculpture, Reuterswärd did a range of replicas of Non Violence for places around the world, numbering about 30 sculptures. About half of these are in Sweden.

Aside from the public pieces, Reuterswärd made plenty of variations of the sculpture in smaller or life sized scale. In 2012 he donated a collection of pieces like this to the city museum in Landskrona.[8]

Since 1993, the sculpture has been the symbol of The Non-Violence Project (NVPF), a nonprofit organization that promotes social change through violence-prevention education programs. In 2011, Ringo Starr unveiled his own brightly colored version of The Knotted Gun that he created.[9] Later, more colour versions were made by Paul McCartney, Yoko Ono and other celebrities.[10]

For the 30th anniversary of the sculpture, the NVPF and the art dealer Hansen Fine Art launched a foot-long version of the sculpture sold online.[11] The United Nations Postal Administration issued three stamps depicting the sculpture.[12] In 2019, the NVPF worked with the Dalai Lama to make 150 small-scale Non-Violence sculptures from melted confiscated firearms (Humanium Metal), including one copy signed by the Dalai Lama and auctioned at Sotheby's.[13]

Locations

There are currently more than 30 copies of the sculpture around the world. They are located in places such as :

N°CountryPhotoCityLocationSince
1 SwedenMalmöBagers plats1992[5]
2StockholmSergelgatan1995[5]
3GothenburgKungsportsavenyen1997[5]
4GothenburgGöteborgs Högre Samskola Stampgatan
5GothenburgGöteborgs Högre Samskola Föreningsgatan
6BoråsAnna Lindh park
7LundThe Museum of Sketches2005[5]
8Täby, Stockholm CountyTäby Centrum station1998[5]
9Fittja, Stockholm CountyFittja metro station1998[5]
10StockholmStockholm School of Economics1998[5]
11StockholmSven-Harry's Art Museum1998[5]
12StockholmÅkeshov metro station1998[5]
13HalmstadBrogatan2014[14]
14HalmstadAJ Produkter Headquarter. Transportvägen[15]
15TällbergGreen Hotel. Ovabacksgattu 17[15]
16LandskronaKasernplan
17 USA (original piece)New York CityHeadquarters of the United Nations1988
18 LuxembourgKirchbergParc Central
19 ChinaBeijingChaoyang Park
20Nanjing1865 Creative Park
21 GermanyBerlinFederal Chancellery
22 Marl Creiler Platz 1999
23 FranceCaenMémorial de Caen2005[16]
24  SwitzerlandLausanneOlympic Museum1997[16]
26 South AfricaCape TownVictoria & Alfred Waterfront
26 MexicoNaucalpanMexipuerto Shopping Mall at Cuatro Caminos metro station
27Mexico City683 Calle Ferrocarril de Cuarnavaca, Polanco
28 IndiaChennaiPerambur, ICF
29 GeorgiaRukhiSenaki - Leselidze Highway
30 LebanonBeirutSeafront[17]2018
31 United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)BelfastGirdwood Community Hub
Gift from the Olsson family[18]		2019
32 ÅlandMariehamnSjälvstyrelseparken, Mariehamn. Gift from Anders Wiklöf2022

See also

References

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  1. ↑ Fredrik, Carl (2000). Closed for holidays : memoarer. Stockholm: Natur och kultur. p. 156. ISBN 9127080579.
  2. 1 2 Fredrik, Carl (2000). Closed for holidays : memoarer. Stockholm: Natur och kultur. p. 157. ISBN 9127080579.
  3. ↑ Fredrik, Carl (2005). Non-Violence och andra offentliga verk. Lund: Skissernas museum. p. 20. ISBN 9178560624.
  4. 1 2 Fredrik, Carl (2005). Non-Violence och andra offentliga verk. Lund: Skissernas museum. p. 29. ISBN 9178560624.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Fredrik, Carl (2005). Non-Violence och andra offentliga verk. Lund: Skissernas museum. p. 121. ISBN 9178560624.
  6. ↑ "Presentation page on the site of the Permanent Mission of Luxembourg to the United nations" (in French). Archived from the original on January 29, 2019. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
  7. ↑ Martin Chilton, Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd, sculptor of knotted revolver peace symbol, dies, Telegraph.co.uk, 4 May 2016
  8. ↑ Millroth, Thomas. "Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd – Non Violence samlingen". Landskrona Stad. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  9. ↑ Adam Sherwin, And then there were four: Ringo picks up his paintbrush, Independent.co.uk, 9 December 2011
  10. ↑ "Ambassadörer". Non Violence Project. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  11. ↑ Anna Harstedt, Celebrating the iconic Knotted Gun sculpture at the United Nations in NYC, 30 years later Archived 2019-04-08 at the Wayback Machine, Metro.us, 4 October 2018
  12. ↑ Denise McCarty, U.N.'s new Knotted Gun stamp designs, Linns.com, 25 September 2018
  13. ↑ Ben Paynter, They’re recreating this classic anti-gun-violence sculpture with metal from melted-down guns, Fastcompany.com, 10 January 2019
  14. ↑ "Konstverk i Halmstad". www.halmstad.se (in Swedish). Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  15. 1 2 A blog entry dedicated to the firearm with the knot on the barrel, Travelblog.org, 31 July 2011
  16. 1 2 Reuterswärd, Carl Fredrik (2005). Non-Violence och andra offentliga verk. Lund: Skissernas museum. p. 121. ISBN 9178560624. {{cite book}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
  17. ↑ "Knotted Gun Sculpture Unveiled in Beirut". Voice of America. October 2, 2018. Archived from the original on January 13, 2020.
  18. ↑ John Donohoe, The Knotted Gun, symbol of peace, erected in Belfast, Maethchronicle.ie, 16 September 2019

40°45′03″N 73°58′04″W / 40.75083°N 73.96778°W / 40.75083; -73.96778

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