Magnús Ársæll Árnason (1894-1980) was a painter, sculptor, composer and writer. Magnús’s best-known sculpture is probably the Monument to Sigurbjörn Sveinsson from 1952. Magnús’ busts of poets are also well known and are considered solid and beautiful works. Magnús was the most productive in painting. Most of his pictures are of Icelandic landscapes, as he was a great lover of nature. Magnús was the first to hold an art exhibition in Kópavogur, on November 12, 1960, on the 2nd floor of the Kópavogur Community Center, which was unfurnished at the time. There were 60 paintings and 8 sculptures at the exhibition. Magnús was an influential figure in the various associations of Icelandic visual artists and was the first chairman of the Reykjavík Sculptors Association, which was founded in 1972. In 1983, three years after Magnús’s death, the Barbara and Magnús Á. Árnason Memorial Fund presented Kópavogur a gift with around 300 works of art. Of these, 200 were by Magnús, paintings, sculptures and drawings.
