Kristallvertikalaccent, Glass-and-steel sculpture in Stockholm, Sweden
Kristallvertikalaccent is a 37.5-metre glass-and-steel obelisk on Sergels torg, designed by Edvin Öhrström and inaugurated in 1974. A steel frame clad in architectural glass from the Lindshammar glassworks carries some 60,000 glass prisms and weighs about 130 tonnes. The work is lit from within, and its light domes let it be seen from the square's lower level.
Edvin Öhrström won the competition to decorate the Sergel Fountain, completed in 1967, with a 37.5-metre steel structure. The 130-tonne work, clad in architectural glass from Lindshammar glassworks, was inaugurated in early spring 1974. Three people worked full-time for about three years on the glass, and the last of them died in summer 2022.
Stockholmers call the obelisk "Pinnen" (the stick), a nickname that sits beside the official title "Kristall, vertikal accent i glas och stål". In 1974 Aftonbladet held a naming competition won by "Riksglaset", but the city kept its own name. The glass was made at Lindshammar glassworks, where three people worked full time for about three years.
The sculpture stands on the Sergels torg square and can also be seen from the square's lower level through the light domes of the Sergel fountain. It is lit from within, and since the 2015–2017 renovation the LED lighting can change colour.
The sculpture is commonly called "Pinnen" (the stick) or "Glasobelisken". A naming contest held by Aftonbladet in October 1974 chose "Riksglaset", but the city instead kept the official title "Kristall, vertikal accent i glas och stål".
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