Published 24 September 2024 at 18.38
Domestic. Last Friday, a pink stone block, as big as a three-story house, was placed on the Västlänken railway bridge at Olskroken in Gothenburg. The cost of the artistic decoration of the Västlänken has exceeded the budget by as much as 118 percent, the Taxpayers write.
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In 2016, the budget for the decoration amounted to SEK 32 million, but according to the Swedish Waste Ombudsman, the costs in September 2024 have reached SEK 70 million.
Among the most discussed works is the pink stone block, called bLINK, which has now been placed on the railway bridge at Olskroken. This work of art has so far cost SEK 25.9 million, and the installation is not yet fully completed.
Was this worth 26 million?
“Last Friday, a pink stone block, as big as a three-storey house, was placed on the Västlänkens railway bridge at the Olskroken in Gothenburg,” the State Art Council said in social media; but forgot to tell you what it cost.
Regardless of what you think of government art… pic.twitter.com/tUqIfVlAAd
— The Waste Ombudsman (@sloseriombud) September 24, 2024
The project Rainbow Snake stands out with its project cost of SEK 32.2 million. Other works, such as Tongue & Groove and artwork at Korsvägen, amounting to SEK 5.9 and 6 million respectively.
“Tongue & Groove” consists of furniture and stones around Centralen station in Gothenburg and, according to the artist, should make us “understand migration and immigration on a deep level”.
The pink giant stone has sparked reactions on social media, where many question whether the costs of the works of art are justifiable when Sweden has one of the world's highest tax burdens.
At the same time is the budget for the Västlänken itself, which is now delayed and is expected to cost SEK 26 billion and be completed in 2030, also significantly exceeded.