‘The Swedish Melancholy’

At first sight, “The Swedish Melancholy,” a sculpture made by the artist Marie-Louise Ekman, just looks like a rusty old sculpture that has been long forgotten. But for anyone paying attention, it’s obvious that the rust is a part of the piece. Take a closer look at the statue, and you’ll notice tears trickling down the cheeks of a man troubled by melancholy.

The iron statue weighs 1,300 pounds (600 kilograms) and is exposed to rain, snow, wind, cold, and heat. It was originally made for the Swedish pavilion at the World Exhibition in Seville in 1992. It then went on display at a regional museum in the city of Linköping, which later purchased the artwork for its permanent collection.