Art & Sprituality - Victoria's Way Indian Sculpture Park

"Victoria's Way Indian Sculpture Park is home to over 14 amazing sculptures. The unusual spiritual visions of an Irishman were created in stone by craftsmen in Mahabalipuram, India, and now populate this park in County Wicklow, Ireland. Covering 22 acres, the park includes a series of dancing figures of Ganesh, Shiva, and other Hindu deities. It also includes more bizarre sculptures of a skeletal Buddha-like figure, an enormous disembodied finger, and a sculpture called "The Split Man" which shows a figure ripping itself in two, representing "the mental state of the dysfunctional human." Intended to represent the spiritual progression to enlightenment, the astounding collection of statues took a total of 20 years to complete."

"It was in 1989 when Victor Langheld first envisaged a strange and wonderful sculpture park. Sculptures which symbolized the stages of the journey from un-wholeness to wholeness, to awakening, enlightenment, fulfilment and the happiness that is the reward for complete fulfilment. Langheld had previously travelled throughout India for over 30 years on a quest to uncover and understand the drivers of life and death. In Mahabalipuram, near Madras in southern India, Langheld discovered 3 artisans who were willing to carve his visions into black granite or where not possible, create models which could then be cast in bronze"

I personally have very little knowledge about Hindu beliefs, but it has always been of interest to me. When I came across these images of the Victoria's Way sculptures, not only did I find them to be spritiual, but very haunting and disturbing, these two images specifically which depict very skeletal like figures. Langheld's vision seems to have been a very spiritual one, taking on board what he had learnt from his travels in India, and perhaps his very own moral's of life and death. I would really love to experience this spiritual journey for myself, and see these amazing sculptures in the flesh! Bec, take me back to your country, lets have an adventure!

http://www.victoriasway.eu/