A 14.3 KM LONG ROAD UNDERNEATH THE SEA

To drive into a tunnel is all about driving into a non-familiar world, which many people find to be claustrophobic. To cope with the long tunnel drive, they need some metaphorical mental breaks. Viel Bjerkeset Andersen compares driving through a tunnel to how large marine mammals prepare dives. They, too, regularly have to pop up and down to breathe. For the Ryfylke Tunnel, the Norwegian artist sculpted two huge “whale-shaped breathing rooms”, lit by indirect LED light – an intangible presence of endless blue. Everyone driving through the tunnel sees a luminous bubble appearing; they then suddenly find themselves driving over a bridge into a room filled with an endlessness of crispy blue light, giving them a feeling of loosening up – of breathing. This art project is an important element of the traffic safety systems inside the tunnel. Viel Bjerkeset Andersen is an independent artist and part of the Norconsult project team for both the Ryfast and the Rogfast projects. She initiated this art project, known as “Behind the Breath”; the concept, design and visuals were developed in 2012 while on-site construction work started in spring 2017. The project was actually completed in 2019. “Behind the Breath” – An art concept by Viel Bjerkeset Andersen