Non-Violence (sculpture)


Non-Violence, also known as The Knotted Gun, is a bronze sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd of an oversized Colt Python.357 Magnum revolver with its muzzle tied in a knot.

History

made this sculpture after the murder of John Lennon. One copy was originally located at the Strawberry Fields memorial in Central Park. In 1988, Luxembourg donated it to the United Nations, and the sculpture was moved right outside of the headquarters of the UN.
Since 1993, the sculpture has been the symbol of The Non-Violence Project, a nonprofit organization that promotes social change through violence-prevention education programs.
In 2011, Ringo Starr unveiled his own brightly colored version of The Knotted Gun that he created.
For the 30th anniversary of the sculpture, the NVPF and the art dealer Hansen Fine Art launched a foot-long version of the sculpture sold online. The United Nations Postal Administration issued three stamps depicting the sculpture. In 2019, the NVPF worked with the Dalai Lama to make 150 small-scale Non-Violence sculptures from melted confiscated guns, including one copy signed by the Dalai Lama and auctioned at Sotheby's.

Description

Non-Violence, or The Knotted Gun, is a bronze sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd of an oversized Colt Python.357 Magnum revolver with its muzzle tied in a knot. According to Kofi Annan, "it has enriched the consciousness of humanity with a powerful symbol that encapsulates, in a few simple curves, the greatest prayer of man; that which asks not for victory, but for peace."»
The Museum of Sketches for Public Art in Lund holds a sketch of the firearm on which Reuterswärd noted that his grief at the murders of Lennon and Bob Crane inspired him to design this artwork.

Locations

There are currently 31 copies of the sculpture around the world. They are located in strategic places such as :
N°CountryPhotoCityLocationSince
1MalmöBagers plats 1985
2StockholmSergelgatan
3GothenburgKungsportsavenyen
4GothenburgGöteborgs Högre Samskola Stampgatan
5GothenburgGöteborgs Högre Samskola Föreningsgatan
6BoråsAnna Lindh park
7LundThe Museum of Sketches
8Täby, Stockholm CountyTäby Centrum station
9Fittja, Stockholm CountyFittja metro station
10StockholmÅkeshov metro station
11HalmstadBrogatan
12HalmstadAJ Produkter Headquarter. Transportvägen
13TällbergGreen Hotel. Ovabacksgattu 17
14LandskronaKasernplan
15 New York CityHeadquarters of the United Nations1988
16 KirchbergParc Central
17BeijingChaoyang Park
18Nanjing1865 Creative Park
19BerlinFederal Chancellery
20CaenMémorial de Caen
21LausanneOlympic Museum
22Cape TownVictoria & Alfred Waterfront
23Mexico CityMexipuerto Shopping Mall at Quatro Caminos Naucalpan
24Mexico City683 Calle Ferrocarril de Cuarnavaca Polanco
25ChennaiPerambur, ICF
26RukhiSenaki - Leselidze Highway
27BeirutSeafront2018
28BelfastGirdwood Community Hub
Gift from the Olsson family		2019