Big Blue Skive is a large-scale construction project that will gather the city around the river and utilize the potential of nature to make Skive a more attractive city.
The donation from Spar Vest Fonden
In 2015, Spar Vest Fonden decided to give the citizens of Skive a gift from the people in the form of a vision for a better and more cohesive city. The vision resulted in BiG’s (Bjarke Ingels Group) large-scale construction project along the river and fjord. The vision aimed to exploit the city’s untapped potential in the form of the river and the fjord. At the same time, it brought the city together by creating a path system that made it possible to cross the river several times, making all parts of the city more accessible. The southern part of the city developed especially after World War II and began as an industrial area. With its location on the other side of the river and river valley, it was very clearly separated from the historic northern part of the city.
Establishment of the path systems
Skive Municipality began realizing the project in 2019 with the establishment of the railway path and the Å-path. The Å trail was inaugurated in 2021 and the different parts of the rail trail were inaugurated as they were completed. This culminated in the official inauguration of Kunsten, Trappen and Banestien in the summer of 2023. Banestien follows the former railway line out to the harbour. Parts of the railway line were already closed in 1962 when Skive Station moved from Viborgvej to Søndergade.
Big Blue Skive’s trail systems criss-cross the river and should “stitch” the city together. That’s why a large part of the trail system is called Syningen.
To finance the project, Skive Municipality applied for DKK 40 million in funding through Spar Vest Fonden to realize the project. Spar Vest Fonden ended up providing DKK 10 million and Skive Municipality found the remaining DKK 30 million itself.
Art on the path
The art on the railway path is created by artist Oskar Koliander and is based on the industrial history of the railroad. He transforms the former railway line into a route for “imagination and nature experiences”. The artwork is called: Disturbances and consists of six artworks: The Wave, The Tower, The Dancers, The Ball, The Museum Ring and The River.
Oskar Koliander himself has a local connection to the Skive area, as his grandfather was born in Breum and was a welder. During the war, he participated in the resistance movement, where he helped blow up railroad tracks.
The sculptures on the trail
The Wave: This sculpture facing the harbor is shaped like a wave moving up from the terrain. Like ‘The River’, this sculpture is not vertically impressive. In its size and location in proximity to buildings, the size is appropriate for this location. The entire course of Banestien starts and stops with two undulating forms that, like the river and the railroad, meander through the city.
The Tower: This sculpture, which used to stand by the harbor, has moved towards the city. It now stands just west of the former radio house, and due north of the existing radio mast. The new location allows the sculpture’s height to act as a landmark for the next sculpture along the harbor road.
The Dancers: This sculpture is the tallest of all, and its location in front of the animal showground makes it a prominent point on your walk. Or as a destination when there is a festival or other events on the square. The name comes from the way the two forms appear to be dancing with each other.
The Ball: This sculpture forms a round shape with two loops that can be climbed through. Its location by all the sports facilities and the former tennis club makes it easy to get ideas about its references, but the inspiration actually comes from a knot.
The first sculpture you encounter on your way from the city center is the work Åen. A winding distortion of the railroad path that, in addition to the direct reference to the river, also alludes to the curved rails and shimmering mirage on the horizon in the summer heat. This work introduces pedestrians to something happening ahead on the track path. As the space between Spar Nord Arena and Children’s Paradise is limited, a sculpture was chosen that does not occupy the space in height.
The museum ring
The final part of Oskar Koliander’s art project Disturbances is the Museum Ring. This part of the project was to create access to the museum’s main entrance from the railway path, but also create a connection between the entrance to the museum and the railway path. The Museum Ring creates a “loop” on the rail trail, in the form of a circle that frames a new square with stairs and stands. The inspiration for the square comes from the ancient amphitheaters that gave city dwellers a place for sports, plays and socializing.
On the ring are two sculptures placed opposite each other. The eastern one is made with two large loops and the western one has the rails lifted up and bent apart. Together they create an open and a closed form, and when walking on the path from west to east, the two sculptures will line up and create overlapping forms. By standing on either side of the ring, they frame the space and the view towards the museum. The wide central staircase creates a visual movement towards the museum and its entrance.