National Museum and Norske Folkemuseum

By Samantha St. Pierre, Social Work

We are at the halfway point of our trip and today we got a treat of sleeping in a little bit. We met for 9am to have some breakfast and then we got ready for our museum adventures. The group meals have been a nice addition to the busy activities everyday. We are getting chances to connect and learning that we have a lot more in common than we realized. 

Our group at Breakfast

Our first stop of the day was the National Museum in Oslo. It was completed in June of 2022, but the history of the museum itself dates back to 1856. The first museum we were at today is the largest museum in Scandinavia! It spans over 54 000 square metres and has enough space for 100 000 different works of art within. As we met our tour guide, Kachun Lay, he told us he would be jumping through time with the artwork he selected for us. The works he showcased would not be in a chronological tour, but were selected in order to connect us to Norway’s history and the nature within it through the eyes of the artists featured in the museum. The start of the tour brought us to a display near the entrance. Pictured below you can see a wall of 400 reindeer skulls with holes in them. The skulls are also bleached in different shades and arranged to depict the Sámi People’s flag. This work comes from Sámi artist Máret Ánne Sara. She created this piece in support of her brother who was forced to slaughter his herd of reindeer from over 200 down to just 75. Her brother decided to sue the Norwegian state and the UN even said that what the state did violated his human rights. The case is still ongoing.

Pile o’Sapmi by Máret Ánne Sara

Continuing on our tour, we went through the Forces of Nature room, the True to Tradition room, the land art room, and finished in a room of political and protest artwork. We learned of the different ways artists would use nature as the muse for their artwork. We came across a painting called Dying Primeval Forest by August Cappelen. For those who do not know, a primeval forest is one untouched by humans. We learned that only 1.7% of forests in all of Norway are primeval. There is an awakening happening, but there are still heavy industrial powers making it difficult to leave nature as it is and appreciating what is within it, rather than what we can gain from it financially. 

Dying Primeval Forest by August Cappelen

Following the National Museum, we made our way to the Norske Folkemuseum. We grabbed some food and split up into smaller groups to see what we could find and learn. There were so many beautiful traditional buildings to see and we even got to see some animals! On my walk through the museum the group I was with came across a DNT cabin from the 1800’s. We also got to see the beautiful Gol Stave Church from the 1880s pictured below. We again found ourselves connecting with nature and learning about the rich history that Norway has to offer. 

Gol Stave Church

After a long day of learning and walking we went back to a very foggy Breivoll for the night. At dinner we all shared our pits and peaks of the day. This trip is filled with so many amazing things to experience and it can be tiring at points. I have noticed now more than ever that nature really does recharge you and brings you what you need. I cannot wait to see what the rest of this trip brings to us!

Foggy View of the Farm

For more photos and content, follow us on Instagram: @tilenorway2024-2025. 

#NipissingU #GlobalskillsCA #nu.artsci #nusutalks #nusu #NipissingU.alum 

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