Virgil Norberg

1930 - 2013

Very few folk sculptors choose to work in metal, for it is both costly and difficult to handle.  The remarkable cutout sheet metal weathervanes made by Virgil Norberg are almost unique in type and are certainly unique in inspiration.  Virgil E. Norberg was born Jan. 31st, 1930, in Galesburg, IL and spent his early years on a farm in IL.  At age 17 he enlisted in the Navy and became a trained Aviation Electrician.  When he left the Navy he enrolled at the Caterpillar School near Peoria to learn the skills of welding.  "I tried to make a go of it in ornamental iron work."  He worked independently, making columns, railings, and room dividers. He made his first weather vane in 1978 of God breathing life into Adam, which is still one of Virgil's favorites.  "I decided to build a weather vane.  I didn't have anything to do... I was trying to find a way out of the shops, the factories."  Norberg sketches his designs on paper before working up a prototype in plywood or construction paper.  The final pieces are made of steel welded to a horizontal bar and painted with straight-from-the-can enamels of brilliant oranges, greens, blues, and yellows.  His themes, taken from biblical stories, circus performances, and military life, are often commentaries on modern life.  His artistic talents were self-taught.  In 1978 Virgil saw a magazine article about folk life, and on a whim, he sent a photo of one of his weather vanes to Jay Johnson at the American Folk Heritage Gallery in New York City.  Johnson then bought the piece and became Norberg's agent.  Norberg was traditional in his belief, if not in artistic approach.  He was equally traditional in his family life.  Though he worked a full time job, he did his art in the mornings, evenings, and on weekends. ⁶