Per Ung | 1933-2013

He was schooled in the conservative sculptural tradition but gradually distanced himself from formal and substantive traditionalism. He received his sculptor education under the influential of Per Palle Storm (1910–1994) at the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts from 1952-55. He became a student of Anthony Caro (1924–2013) at St. Martin's School of Art in London in 1960.

His influence from an early Gustav Vigeland is clear showing the same dramatic expressions as for Jean Babtiste Carpeaux and August Rodin. The main difference between Per Ung an Vigeland is that where Vigeland turns the body into a stage of human drama, Ung turns the body into a shelter for human consciousness after the drama.

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Ung made a number of public portrait statues and monuments, most of them on private assignments. His first large public commission was the statue of actress Johanne Dybwad (bronze. 1959), located on Johanne Dybwads plass outside the National Theatre in Oslo. His monument of figure skater Sonja Henie ( (bronze. 1985) is located at Frogner stadion. His statue of Nobel Prize laureate Fridtjof Nansen (bronze. 1993) is placed outside the Fram building at Bygdøy. A monument of the composer Johan Halvorsen (bronze. 2002) is placed outside the National Theatre in Oslo.

Ung was member and served as chairman of the Norwegian Association of Sculptors (Norsk Billedhuggerforening), was a member of the Young Artists Society (Unge Kunstneres Samfund) and served on the Board of Supervisors of Kunstnernes Hus in Oslo from 1967-69. He was granted the A. C. Houens legat in 1953, Conrad Mohrs legat in 1958 and 1964, Moltzaus legat in 1957 and Lorch-Schives legat in 1960. He received the Ingeborg og Per Palle Storms ærespris in 1995. In 2007, he was appointed Knight 1st Class in the Order of St. Olav.

Several monumental scupltures can be seen in Ekebergsparken in Oslo.

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