The Stockholm metro is sometimes called the longest art gallery in the world – but a new exhibit by Liv Strömquist is not to all commuters’ liking

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The Swedish capital’s metro, or tunnelbana, has been described as the world’s longest gallery, with art permanently on display at 90 of the 100 stations along the 68-mile tunnel system. The decades-old permanent works grapple with issues from women’s rights to inclusivity and deforestation.

But a provocative new exhibit has proved particularly controversial among commuters, sparking debate about the role of public art – and whether the wait for the train is the right time for breaking taboos.

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Graphic artist Liv Strömquist’s series of enlarged felt-pen sketches have been on display at Slussen station for the past five weeks. The Night Garden shows cartoon birds, cats, trees, naked men – and women with unshaven legs and visible menstrual blood.

One image, of an ice skater in repose with a red stain on her leotard, is captioned: “It’s Alright (I’m Only Bleeding)”.



Strömquist, the author of six books, is known for her satirical and feminist perspective. She has said the series was inspired by the “pastoral idyll” genre, and sought to convey a sense of tranquility to stressed-out commuters.

Idag sätts mina bilder "The Night Garden" upp på Slussens T-banestation, som en del av SL:s "Konstväxlingar" - kommer vara guidad vernissage på torsd den 28 nästa vecka, mer info kommer! Tack @kimwandersson för foto!! A post shared by Liv Strömquist (@leifstromquist) on Sep 20, 2017 at 7:05am PDT

But her work – black and white but for a burst of red – has split opinion among commuters. SR.se, the Swedish national broadcaster, reported the art had been called “disgusting” on social media.

“It’s not fun explaining to a four-year-old about the red between the legs,” it quoted one tweeter as complaining.

Much of the criticism of Strömquist’s work on Twitter centred on its appropriateness for the setting. “Lovely! Now Stockholmers can enjoy menstruation even in the subway!” wrote one user.

“It is not enough to get [your period] once a month,” tweeted another. “Now you will be reminded every time you jump on the subway.”

One meme unfavourably compared it to Moscow’s underground train stations.

Strömquist told the broadcaster she was used to her work causing controversy, and felt The Night Garden had provoked healthy and necessary discussion of a taboo subject. “It’s weird that it’s deemed so provocative, as it’s something that we see all the time,” she told the SVT television station. “I have a hard time to understand that.”

Tova (@ptitpainsuedois) Konst av Liv Strömquist i Slussens t-bana. ❤ pic.twitter.com/uNeGsRnwyh

Janet Carr, a South African-born language specialist and translator based in Stockholm, wrote on her blog that, while she had mixed feelings about Strömquist’s cartoons, “I am glad that there is an openness today about bodily functions such as menstruation … to help people navigate their changing bodies and things that sometimes go wrong when you have your period.

“On the other hand, however, I am not sure that enormous pictures like this are what I want to be faced with on my daily commute.”

Carr told Guardian Cities that while she herself was not made uncomfortable by Strömquist’s work, many others might be. “Hundreds of thousands of people from all cultures and countries, including tourists, pass through that station every day and have no choice as to whether they want to see the art or not.”

Over 1m trips are counted on Stockholm’s metro every day.

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Martina Viklund, a spokeswoman for the Stockholm transport company SL, confirmed to Guardian Cities that formal complaints had been received about Strömquist’s images, but said SL stood by the decision to exhibit them.

The works are chosen by a committee comprised of SL employees, art consultants and artists. “We do not wish for the work to be offensive in any way,” said Viklund. “But with that being said, we do not have a certain policy regarding different expressions of the naked human body.

“Art is a form of tradition were the human body has always been a subject for interpretation. By showing art of Liv Strömquist, we wanted to celebrate the human body in all of its shapes and forms.”

Stockholm is currently celebrating 60 years of metro artwork since the first installation, at the central T-Centralen station in 1957, which followed a public competition. Strömquist’s work and that of three other artists – Kolbeinn Karlsson, Monica Höll and Roger Hansson – will be on display in four stations until next August.

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