Sculpture Unveiled at Syttende Mai Festival
By Bob Gutsche Jr. of the Tribune staff
SPRING GROVE, MN--
Returning to his hometown from Littleton, Colo. was emotional enough, but seeing his sculpture unveiled brought tears to Craig Bergsgaard's eyes.
Saturday was a day he had waited for most of his life- the first time his artwork will sit in public view for the world to see.
Bergsgaard's bronze sculpture "Quest" was dedicated to the small town of 1,600 people during Spring Grove's annual Syttende Mai event.
Residents raised $45,000 in donations for the six-foot, 700-pound sculpture of a Viking holding a shield and sword; a prize the town believes is worth the cost.
"This is a vehicle to honor all of the sacrifices made by the people of Norway and all European ancestors who came here so that we could live a better life," said Greg Wennes, one of the coordinators who commissioned the sculpture.
"When I first looked at the pictures of a smaller version of this, I knew this was not some kind of hometown artwork," Wennes said. "I knew this artwork was at a different level".
Wennes, a local business owner, said a few years ago he traveled to Norway and stood on the farm of his ancestors.
"I looked around and wondered what it was like to leave there and then come to this country when it was still a kind of wilderness," he said. "I know that was some kind of sacrifice. That is what this whole thing is about".
He said Syttende Mai, an event now in its 20th year, complete with parade, arts and crafts show and Norwegian food stand, was the perfect place to unveil such a treasure.
"Seeing the crowd here to see this is pretty overwhelming," Bergsgaard said, before the unveiling. "With this sculpture here, it will allow the people to have some ownership in it".
