In Fredrik Raddum’s new exhibition Arme og Ben we experience the Norwegian sculptor's characteristic use of humour, absurdity and social criticism. Raddum's figures often find themselves in situations that seem both familiar and strange, as he distorts reality. Beneath the seemingly playful surface lies a deeper exploration of humanity and the way we form relationships and navigate social structures.

The exhibition title draws on a linguistic difference between Danish and Norwegian. In Danish the figure of speech “to do something with arms and legs” implies putting one’s whole body in motion and giving it one’s all. In Norwegian, however, the expression describes a jumble of bodies, implying a situation more defined by chaos, entanglement and confusion. These two definitions converge in the body both as a tool and limitation, something that moves through the world, but also something that can get entangled in it.

Arme og Ben is about the challenges faced by humans, referring directly to the knots we all figuratively carry either within ourselves or manifested physically in our bodies. Some knots are created by ourselves, whilst others are created by the world we meet or the people encountered through life. Raddum’s sculptures freeze the moment in time, where the knots are laid bare to see. We encounter a man and a woman, each with a knot on their arm or leg. The knots are universal, and symbolise the knots we all carry within.

In the sculpture Tangled couple the relationship between the individual and the community becomes more apparent. Two bodies are so tightly intertwined, that the boundary between them almost disappears. This can be interpreted as a symbol of intimacy and interdependence, but just as easily reads as a symbol of conflict, negotiation or loss of individual control.

The bird recurs in Raddum’s artistic work as a symbol of nature. Stepping into the exhibition as it turns its gaze towards the challenges facing, but also often created by, humankind. In Arme og Ben a bird holds an empty ghost cloth in its beak - a symbol of the “ghosts” humans try to hide. What is revealed when the bird lifts the cloth remains undefined. All that remains is the empty cloth hanging limply from the bird’s beak - disarmed, helpless and harmless.

This balance between the humorous and the unsettling is central to Fredrik Raddum’s artistic practice. In Arme og Ben colour also is making its way back to his sculptures in full force. The figures are painted in vivid, vibrant colours and possess a simple almost cartoon like aesthetic expression.

Behind the knots and entanglements lies a question of how we navigate a world in which we try to find our own paths and inevitably become entangled with one another.