Monumental Animal Sculptures Take Over Stockholm’s Historic Landscape
Artist: Davide Rivalta
Exhibition Period: April 2026 – August 2027
Second Opening: August 29th 2026 – Hagaparken & Norra Djurgården
Organizer: Italian Cultural Institute in Stockholm, Italian Embassy in Stockholm, C.M. Lerici Foundation.
Partners: The Royal Palace, The Royal Parks, City of Stockholm.
Map of the statues: https://maps.app.goo.gl/mmq62T978EWFvFaR7
The Italian Cultural Institute Presents Davide Rivalta in a Large-Scale Outdoor Project
The Italian Cultural Institute in Stockholm, in collaboration with the Italian Embassy in Stockholm and the C.M. Lerici Foundation, and with the support of the Royal Palace, the Royal Parks and the City of Stockholm, presents a major outdoor exhibition by the Italian sculptor Davide Rivalta from April 2026 to August 2027. The project comprises thirteen monumental animal sculptures installed in some of Stockholm’s most symbolic and historically significant locations – between the Royal Palace and the Parliament at Mynttorget, as well as in Hagaparken and on Norra Djurgården.
The first part of the project was inaugurated on April 21st 2026 through the unveiling of a lion statue on Mynttorget. During this phase another 5 animal sculptures are temporarily placed in the courtyard of the Italian Cultural Institute in Stockholm (Gärdesgatan 14).
In late August 2026, the second and more extensive phase of the project will open in the Royal Parks, with an additional eight sculptures travelling from Italy, for a total of thirteen artworks that will be installed throughout Hagaparken and Norra Djurgården.
The exhibition will remain open to the public until August 2027.
Nature Reclaims the City
Davide Rivalta is internationally renowned for his monumental, naturalistic sculptures of wild animals – lions, wolves, rhinoceroses, buffaloes and horses – installed directly in public spaces without pedestals. Through this gesture, a subtle shift occurs: the animals appear as if they have temporarily reclaimed the urban environment.
Rivalta works using the traditional lost-wax (cire perdue) casting technique and noble materials, engaging in dialogue with the classical sculptural tradition. At the same time, his practice is distinctly contemporary in its exploration of the relationship between humans, nature and power within public space. The sculptures are based on photographic studies of real animals and are rendered without idealization – each individual emerges with its own presence and distinct character.
His works have previously been exhibited in, among other cities, Rome, Dublin, Oslo, Florence, Antibes, Riyadh, Venice, as well as in leading institutions in Italy and internationally.
A Long-Term Contribution to Stockholm’s Public Realm
Through this project, the Italian Cultural Institute aims to actively contribute to Stockholm’s contemporary art scene. In the encounter between the monumental animals and historically charged sites, new perspectives emerge on nature, power and coexistence.
The ambition is to make art accessible within the shared public realm and, through its presence, to promote dialogue and exchange across cultural and geographical boundaries – as part of the broader commitment to fostering an open, modern and tolerant society.
Public Programme and Activations
The exhibition is free of charge and open to the public. Special activations and public programmes are planned during the entire exhibition period, with the ambition of welcoming schools and new audiences.
Coming events
Second Opening: August 29th 2026 – Hagaparken & Norra Djurgården
Previous events
Preview: April 18th 2026 – Kulturnatt Stockholm, Mynttorget
Official Inauguration: April 21st 2026 – Stockholm Art Week, Mynttorget
Artist talk: April 21st 2026 – Stockholm Art Week, Italian Cultural Institute
Davide Rivalta lives in Bologna, where he was born in 1974. His artistic career was launched when we won the competition for an artwork for permanent display in the courtyard of the Tribunale di Ravenna in 1998. His preferred techniques are sculpture, drawing, and painting.
Rivalta has permanent works in Ravenna, San Martino in Rio (Reggio Emilia), Neuchâtel, Florence, Rome, Mougins, and Dublin. He has exhibited in many Italian and foreign museums and institutional spaces, including GAM, Bologna, 2005; MAN, Nuoro 2005; MARCA, Catanzaro, 2008; Galleria Comunale d’Arte Contemporanea, Monfalcone (Gorizia), 2008 and 2009; Galleria Civica di Modena, 2010; MAMBO, Bologna, 2010; Galleria Civica di Trento, 2014; Fondazione Lanfranco Baldi, Pelago (Florence), 2005 and 2010; Kunstlerhaus Palais Thurn und Taxis, Bregenz, 2006; Strozzina, Florence 2009; Villa Romana, Florence 2011; Museo della basilica di Santa Maria delle Grazie, San Giovanni Valdarno (Arezzo), 2015; Palazzo Te, Mantua, 2016; National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art of Rome, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2023; Forte di Belvedere, Florence 2019; Brescia castle, 2023; and the Dublin castle, 2023.
In 2010 he participated in the first Aichi Triennale, (Arts and Cities) in Nagoya and, in 2019, in the 22nd Milan Triennale. In 2017, he began placing his artworks in urban settings: first in Antibes, then in Neuchâtel and Gstaad, in 2018 and in Mougins in 2020.
In 2019, two of his Lions were put in permanent display in the Quirinale Palace in Rome, which led to exhibitions in the Presidential Estate in Castel Porziano; in Palazzo Borromeo, seat of the Italian Embassy to the Holy See in Rome; in Villa Firenze, seat of the Italian Embassy to the United States in Washington, DC; in Lucan House, ex-seat of the Italian Embassy in Dublin, now Parco Italia; Villa Taverna, residence of the ambassador for the United States in Rome; in the Italian Embassy to Norway and the Oscarshall Palace; at the Italian Embassy in Riyadh and and the Al-Nafal Park in the Diplomatic Quarter.
Many scholars and critics have written about his work, including Pier Luigi Tazzi, Cristiana Collu, Angelika Stepken, Marinella Paderni, Alessandro Sarri, Renata Cristina Mazzantini, Davide Ferri, Guido Molinari, Saretto Cincinelli, Leonardo Caffo, Mary Heffernan and Kieran Owens.
