Calle Örnemark

His material became inseparable from his subject matter. The grain, knots, and weathered surfaces of reclaimed wood suited figures of mythological weight: giants, chieftains, creatures from folklore. His first major public work, Jätten Vist, was installed in 1969 beside the E4 highway at Huskvarna, standing over 11 metres tall. According to local legend, the giant Vist created the island of Visingsö for his wife. The sculpture made Örnemark visible far beyond the local art world.

Through the 1970s and 1980s, he pushed his ambitions to an extreme. At Riddersberg manor south of Jönköping, he erected two large outdoor works: Bounty, a ship-like mobile construction, and Indiska reptricket - a 103-metre-tall wooden tower referencing the Indian rope trick illusion. At the time of its construction it was considered the tallest sculpture in the world, drawing visitors from across Sweden. The tower stood at Riddersberg until it was dismantled in February 2002.

Beyond sculpture, Örnemark was a painter and, unusually for a visual artist, a recording musician. In 1985 he released a vinyl album, "The Ballad of Glooscap," featuring his own poetry and music. He lived and worked in Gränna for most of his adult life, maintaining a second studio on the island of Visingsö. He received a medal from Jönköping municipality at the city's 700th anniversary, honoured alongside Agnetha Fältskog. He died on 4 August 2015.

At Auctionet, 21 works by Örnemark have appeared at auction, covering sculptures, paintings, and bronze work. The majority are wood sculptures - log-stock figures such as Hövding (Chief) and Tomte - appearing at regional Swedish houses including Gomér & Andersson Jönköping, RA Auktionsverket Norrköping, and Karlstad Hammarö Auktionsverk. The top sale in our records was a wooden sculpture that achieved 5,500 EUR, while his bronze Jätten Vist reached 4,200 SEK.