World Art Utopia

Old Sow Between the Trees — Hannelie Coetzee, Knislinge

A wall of stacked log ends between tall beech trunks in a forest forms the face of a giant wild boar, with a round snout of cut wood near the ground
Artwork FileKnislinge, Sweden

Old Sow Between the Trees

SeenJun 2015

Hannelie Coetzee · wood, metal, oil and tar, 2015 · Wanås Konst sculpture park, Knislinge, Sweden

Photo: as published on Street Art Utopia (When Sculptures Come Alive (8 Photos vol. 4), 28 October 2026; also shown in When Trees Become Art (12 Photos)). Artwork: Hannelie Coetzee.

In the forest at Wanås Konst in southern Sweden, South African artist Hannelie Coetzee stacked tree trunks into a giant portrait of a wild boar. She made it in 2015 for the exhibition Barriers – Contemporary South Africa, and her project page gives it as 7 metres high. Wanås says she was drawn to the boar, back in Sweden after centuries, for the fear and debate it stirs about coexistence. Source Source Source Source Source Checked

Seen Jun 2015. Evidence date: June 2015, when Aftonbladet reviewed it (8 June) and the artist published her project page (25 June). Wanås Konst still lists it in its collection (undated page), which is a listing, not a sighting. We found no newer dated photo. Source Source Source Reported

💡 4 things to know

  1. Made of log endsAftonbladet’s critic described Hannelie Coetzee’s wild boar as made from the cut ends of tree trunks. Source Checked
  2. A Viking-style finishBorås Tidning reported that the surface treatment of the stacked trees was inspired by how the Vikings cared for their ships. Source Checked
  3. A returning animalWanås says Coetzee was drawn to the wild boar, now back in Sweden after an absence of several centuries, because it arouses fear and sparks debate about coexistence. Source Checked
  4. Seven metres tallThe artist lists it as 7 m high, 5 m wide and 10 m deep, made for the 2015 Barriers exhibition at Wanås. Source Reported

📍 Where it is

In the woods of the Wanås Konst sculpture park, Vanås, 289 90 Knislinge, Sweden Source Source Source Checked

Open in Maps

The sculpture stands in the park’s woods and none of the sources gives its exact position, so the button searches for Wanås Konst.

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 201528 Apr

    Wanås press release announces the exhibition

  2. 201513 May

    Borås Tidning preview

  3. 201515 May

    Dagens Nyheter review

  4. 20158 Jun

    Aftonbladet review

  5. 201525 Jun

    Artist’s project page

  6. 2026

    Listed in the Wanås Konst collection (read October 2026)

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

🗞️ In the sources

Borås Tidning13 May 2015

Över alla gränser på Wanås

„I skogen har Hannelie Coetzee samlat ihop en mängd träd av skilda storlekar och byggt ett jätteporträtt av ett vildsvin.”

“In the forest, Hannelie Coetzee has gathered a mass of trees of different sizes and built a giant portrait of a wild boar.”

Read the source →

Dagens Nyheter15 May 2015

Grym sydafrikansk konst intar Wanås slottsskog

„I år fylls den på med verk av sydafrikanska konstnärer, bland annat grymtar ett vildsvin i jätteformat.”

“This year it is filled with works by South African artists; among other things, a giant wild boar grunts.”

Read the source →

Aftonbladet8 June 2015

Dolda budskap i det gröna

„Hannelie Coetzees vildsvin av trädstammarnas ändstumpar …”

“Hannelie Coetzee’s wild boar made from the cut ends of the tree trunks …”

Read the source →

✅ The facts

Artist
Hannelie Coetzee (born 1971, works in Johannesburg) Source Source Checked
Title
Gamla suggan mellan träden (Swedish); Ou sog tussen bome (Afrikaans); Old sow between trees Source Source Source Checked
Materials
Wood, metal, oil and tar, according to Wanås; the artist lists wood, metal and oil Source Source Checked
Size
7 m high × 5 m wide × 10 m deep, according to the artist Source Reported
Exhibition
Barriers – Contemporary South Africa (Barriärer – Samtida Sydafrika), Wanås Konst, 17 May–1 November 2015 Source Source Checked
Thanks to
Wanås Gods AB and KnislingeVerken AB Source Checked
Place
Wanås Konst sculpture park, Knislinge Source Source Checked
Status
In the Wanås Konst collection (undated page); newest dated coverage June 2015 Source Source Reported

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Photo: as published on Street Art Utopia (When Sculptures Come Alive (8 Photos vol. 4), 28 October 2026; also shown in When Trees Become Art (12 Photos)). Artwork: Hannelie Coetzee.

Last checked: 28 October 2026 · How we verify art