Eken vid bänken

"The Oak by the Bench" is the fifth bench in the City of Benches project. It was created by artist Lone Larsen and donated by the Björn Inganäs family.

**Nature's own bench

The bench consists of a stone block in red river valley quartzite with an oak tree planted next to it and is named "The Oak by the Bench".

"I imagine that the oak tree dies first, so it comes first in the name. Although the oak may be 1,000 years old, the stone in the bench is even more ancient and will remain constant even when the oak dies. When I saw the open space with all the green and the big magnificent oaks in the back, the movement and sound of the dark glittering watercourse. Then we were home. I built the red Älvdal quartzite into the site."

Execution

The bench is carved from Älvdal quartzite, which is shimmering red, veined and extremely hard. The bench is 120 x 200 cm, with a height of about 45 cm and weighs around 3.5 tons. The bench stands in an east-west direction and at the western end is a Swedish-grown oak planted, about 4 meters high.

The oak and the bench are surrounded by five rows of paving stones, also in Älvdal quartzite. The stones tie the bench and oak together and create a unity.

Read more about the artist Lone Larsen on her website

Donor

The bench is donated by the Björn Inganäs family.

"Several generations of our family have thrived, worked and developed here in Värnamo. One of the family's great interests is art. Therefore, it was an easy decision to want to donate a bench to the City of Benches! When we saw Lone Larsen's bench in Wanås Sculpture Park, it felt natural to ask Lone. The oak at the bench can be there for ages. You will eventually be shadowed by the oak when you sit there and rest or have coffee with the family. Our wish is that today's children and families will enjoy and benefit from the bench, but also tomorrow's and all future families."