Bror Hjorth
Encyclopedia
Bror Hjorth was a Swedish
artist
. Hjorth was one of Sweden’s best-known sculptors
and painter
s, and was professor of art at the Royal University College of Fine Arts
in Stockholm
from 1949 to 1959. On completion of his studies, he lived in Uppsala
, where he built his studio home in Kåbo
, now the Bror Hjorths Hus
museum. He was awarded the Sergel Prize in 1955.
and a month studying under G. Hallström. He took a break from his studies from 1915 to 1919 due to illness, before enrolling at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen
for a year and a half, followed by four years studying sculpture in Paris
under Antoine Bourdelle
.
Highlights of his extensive work include:
One indication of Hjorth's significance as an artist is that the Swedish Post Office has on three occasions (including the 100th anniversary of his birth in 1995) issued postage stamps featuring his work.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
. Hjorth was one of Sweden’s best-known sculptors
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
and painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s, and was professor of art at the Royal University College of Fine Arts
Royal University College of Fine Arts
The Royal Institute of Art is an institution in Stockholm, Sweden for higher education in art, founded in 1735. The school was part of the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts, until 1978 when it was made independent. It is under the supervision of the Ministry of Education.-External links:*...
in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
from 1949 to 1959. On completion of his studies, he lived in Uppsala
Uppsala
- Economy :Today Uppsala is well established in medical research and recognized for its leading position in biotechnology.*Abbott Medical Optics *GE Healthcare*Pfizer *Phadia, an offshoot of Pharmacia*Fresenius*Q-Med...
, where he built his studio home in Kåbo
Kabo
Kabo is a town in the northern Central African Republic, lying north west of Kaga Bandoro. It is a market town and the border post for Chad....
, now the Bror Hjorths Hus
Bror Hjorths Hus
Bror Hjorths Hus, is a museum of the artist Bror Hjorth , located in Uppsala, Sweden. The museum has a large collection of Hjorth's work. The house which was built in 1943 was for 25 years the home and studio of Bror Hjorth. It became a museum in 1978....
museum. He was awarded the Sergel Prize in 1955.
Training
In 1915, Hjorth spent a month studying under Caleb AlthinCaleb Althin
Althin Caleb, was a Swedish painter, illustrator and art teacher.Althin studied at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts in Stockholm 1885-1894, with the exception of some years abroad studying decorative painting...
and a month studying under G. Hallström. He took a break from his studies from 1915 to 1919 due to illness, before enrolling at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
for a year and a half, followed by four years studying sculpture in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
under Antoine Bourdelle
Antoine Bourdelle
Antoine Bourdelle , originally Émile Antoine Bourdelle, was an influential and prolific French sculptor, painter, and teacher.-Career:...
.
Style, background and works
Hjorth is known for his figures, which are often roughly carved in wood and decorated using only a few bright colours. He also painted a number of landscapes and studio interiors. He grew up among farmers and woodlanders in Dalboda, where he came into contact with local styles of music which came to have a great influence on his work. He showed promising artistic tendencies from an early age - his schoolbooks were decorated with sketches, but this did not prevent him from completing his studies - and his artistic skills continued to flourish in later life. His Kärlek (Love) sculptures, which he completed in the 1930s, were highly controversial and widely misunderstood.Highlights of his extensive work include:
- Kubistisk flicka (Cubist Girl), sculpture, 1921
- Visdomens Brunn (The Fount of Wisdom), sculpture, 1933
- Begravningen (The Burial), painting, 1925
One indication of Hjorth's significance as an artist is that the Swedish Post Office has on three occasions (including the 100th anniversary of his birth in 1995) issued postage stamps featuring his work.
Public works
- AltarpieceAltarpieceAn altarpiece is a picture or relief representing a religious subject and suspended in a frame behind the altar of a church. The altarpiece is often made up of two or more separate panels created using a technique known as panel painting. It is then called a diptych, triptych or polyptych for two,...
s at Salabacke ChurchSalabacke ChurchSalabacke Church is a church in Uppsala. The church is unusual, being made from wood. Bror Hjorth designed the altarpieces.-External links:* * *...
, UppsalaUppsala- Economy :Today Uppsala is well established in medical research and recognized for its leading position in biotechnology.*Abbott Medical Optics *GE Healthcare*Pfizer *Phadia, an offshoot of Pharmacia*Fresenius*Q-Med...
and Jukkasjärvi Church - ReliefReliefRelief is a sculptural technique. The term relief is from the Latin verb levo, to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is thus to give the impression that the sculpted material has been raised above the background plane...
s at SkogskyrkogårdenSkogskyrkogårdenSkogskyrkogården is a cemetery located in the Enskededalen district south of central Stockholm, Sweden...
in StockholmStockholmStockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
and in BoråsBoråsBorås is a locality and the seat of Borås Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 63,441 inhabitants in 2005.- Geography :Borås is located at the point of two crossing railways, among them the railway between Gothenburg and Kalmar, and is often considered the Swedish city gaining the... - Work at the Workers' Educational Association in Stockholm
- Works at the theatre and municipal buildings in NorrköpingNorrköpingNorrköping is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County. The city has a population of 87,247 inhabitants in 2010, out of a municipal total of 130,050, making it Sweden's tenth largest city and eighth largest...
- Näckens polska,sculpture and fountain outside Uppsala central railway station.
- Statue of Anders LjungqvistAnders LjungqvistAnders Ljungqvist , also known as "Gås-Anders" , was a Swedish fiddler from Björklinge in Uppland. Gås-Anders got his derogatory nickname as a child when he had to work as a goose herder at a mansion house in Gamla Uppsala...
(Gås-Anders) next to the church in BjörklingeBjörklingeBjörklinge is a locality situated in Uppsala Municipality, Uppsala County, Sweden with 3,186 inhabitants in 2005. The name, written as Birklinge, was used for the parish as early as 1314, and Viking graves have been found in the area....
Galleries where works can be seen
- Swedish National MuseumSwedish National Museum of Fine Arts-External links:*...
, StockholmStockholmStockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area... - The Moderna museetModerna MuseetModerna museet, the Museum of Modern Art, Stockholm, Sweden, is a state museum located on the island of Skeppsholmen in central Stockholm, that was first opened in 1958. Its first manager was Pontus Hultén...
museum of modern art, Stockholm - Göteborg Museum of Art, GothenburgGothenburgGothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
- Malmö Museum of Art, MalmöMalmöMalmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
- WaldemarsuddeWaldemarsuddePrins Eugens Waldemarsudde , the scenic former home of the Swedish Prince Eugen, is a museum located on Djurgården in central Stockholm. The name is derived from a historical name of the island Djurgården, Valmundsö The painter prince discovered the place in 1892, when he rented a house there for...
, Stockholm - Norwegian National Gallery, OsloOsloOslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
- National Museum of Fine Art, CopenhagenCopenhagenCopenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...