Remembering July 22nd 2011

Four years ago today a huge bomb went off outside the Norwegian government's cluster of buildings in central Oslo, killing several people – just part of a horrific day that culminated with the shooting of dozens of young people on an island not far from the capital. It was a day that shocked Norway and left deep scars on all of Norwegian life, affecting everyone in some way. Tragic as the island massacre was, it was the bomb in the centre of town that affected me personally the most, because I used to live only a couple of hundred yards from where the explosion occured, and from my kitchen window I could see over to the building that was targeted. I walked past there almost daily. Fortunately, I was not there that fateful day; but I so easily could have been. I saw the damage afterwards. It was enormous – In the street where I used to live and the surrounding area, there was glass from hundreds of shattered windows, and there was a sense of numbed shock hanging in the air the morning after. It lasted a long time. I have visited the area many times afterwards; it affects me profoundly each time. Now, four years have passed, and though much damage has been repaired, the whole government area is undergoing a very long-winded process of rejuvenation, with dramatic reconstruction work transforming buildings – in some cases rebuilding them completely. I took this picture some months ago, looking up at the main government building after it had been completely gutted and hung with a provisional covering (the current covering creates an illusion of windows similar to the original facade). I took the photograph from approximately the spot where the van filled with explosives was parked. It is a expression of feelings and thoughts that seems to demand a simple but striking image. The determined trace-line of the plane high above expresses (for me at least) moving forward, away from painful memories. Location: Oslo, Norway