Knud Bergslien
Encyclopedia
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
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...
, art teacher and master artist. In his art, he frequently portrayed the lives of the Norwegian people, their history and heroes of the past. Bergslien is most associated with his historical paintings, especially Skiing Birchlegs Crossing the Mountain with the Royal Child.
Background
Knud Larsen Bergslien was born in VossVoss
is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Voss. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen....
, in Hordaland
Hordaland
is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark and Rogaland. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population. The county administration is located in Bergen...
, Norway. His parents were Lars Bergeson Bergslien and Kirsten Knutsdotter Gjelle. Knud Bergslien was the brother of sculptor Brynjulf Bergslien
Brynjulf Bergslien
Brynjulf Larsen Bergslien was a noted Norwegian sculptor.-Background:Bergslien was born in Voss in Hordaland county, Norway. He was a son of Lars Bergeson Bergslien and Kirsten Knutsdotter Gjelle. He was a brother of noted painter and master artist Knud Bergslien...
and uncle of painter and sculptor Nils Bergslien
Nils Bergslien
Nils Nilsen Bergslien was a Norwegian illustrator, painter and sculptor. Nils Berglien was a romantic artist, he was inspired both from legends, fairy tales, the history of Norway and the west Norwegian mountain landscape....
. Monuments honoring the three famous Bergslien artists now exist in Bergslien park located in Voss
Voss
is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Voss. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen....
, Hordaland
Hordaland
is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark and Rogaland. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population. The county administration is located in Bergen...
.
Career
Knud Bergslien enlisted the army when he was 18 years old, but his unusual gift for drawing was soon noticed. After having been a student at the artist Hans Reusch's school of drawing in Bergen, he continued his studies abroad. Bergslien studied in Antwerpen from 1844 to 1852, in ParisParis
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...
from 1850 to 1851 and Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
from 1855 to 1869. He belonged to the Düsseldorf school of painting and was closely associated with follow artists Hans Fredrik Gude and Adolf Tidemand.
Norwegian artist Johan Fredrik Eckersberg
Johan Fredrik Eckersberg
Johan Fredrik Eckersberg was a Norwegian painter most noted for his landscapes. Eckersberg was a prominent figure in the transition from Romanticism to Realism in 18th century Norwegian art, both as an artistic painter and a teacher at his own art school in Oslo.-Background:Johan Fredrik...
had established an art school on Lille Grensen in Christiania (now Oslo
Oslo
Oslo 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...
) in 1859. After his death in 1870, the school would be continued by Knud Bergslien together with Morten Müller
Morten Müller
Morten Müller was a Norwegian landscape painter.-Biography:Morten Müller was born by the Christianiafjord at Holmestrand, in Vestfold County, Norway. Morten Müller began his art studies with Adolph Tidemand and Hans Gude in Düsseldorf, Germany, from 1847 to 1848...
. Knud Bergslien served as the director of what became the Bergslien School of Painting (Bergsliens Malerskole). A whole generation of Norwegian painters became his students, among them Harriet Backer
Harriet Backer
Harriet Backer was a Norwegian painter who achieved recognition in her own time and was a pioneer among female artists both in the Nordic countries and in Europe generally...
and Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, printmaker and an important forerunner of expressionist art. His best-known composition, The Scream, is part of a series The Frieze of Life, in which Munch explored the themes of love, fear, death, melancholia, and anxiety.- Childhood :Edvard Munch...
. Some of his students emigrated to America including the Norwegian-American artists, Lars Jonson Haukaness
Lars Jonson Haukaness
Lars Jonson Haukaness was a Norwegian born American-Canadian impressionist painter and art instructor who was particularly noted for his landscapes.-Background:...
, Carl L. Boeckmann
Carl L. Boeckmann
Carl Ludwig Boeckmann was a Norwegian-American artist best known as a portrait painter.-Biography:Boeckmann was born in Oslo, Norway, the youngest of five children. In 1883, he began to study at Knud Bergslien's school of painting...
and Herbjørn Gausta
Herbjørn Gausta
Herbjørn Gausta also Herbjorn Gausta was an American artist who is best known for his landscapes, portraits and scenes from rural settings...
.
Today, Bergslien is most associated with his historical paintings, especially Skiing Birchlegs Crossing the Mountain with the Royal Child (Norwegian: Birkebeinerne på Ski over Fjeldet med Kongsbarnet). His depiction of Birkebeiner
Birkebeiner
The Birkebein Party or Birkebeinar was the name for a rebellious party in Norway, formed in 1174 around the pretender to the Norwegian throne, Eystein Meyla...
skiers carrying Prince Haakon to safety during the winter of 1206 has become a national Norwegian icon. The prince grew up to be King Haakon IV whose reign marked the end of the period known as the Civil war era in Norway
Civil war era in Norway
The Civil war era of Norwegian history is a term used for the period in the history of Norway between 1130 and 1240. During this time, a series of civil wars were fought between rival kings and pretenders to the throne of Norway. The reasons for the wars is one of the most debated topics in...
.
Bergslien was honored by the Oscar II
Oscar II
Oscar II may refer to:*Oscar II of Sweden , who ruled Sweden and Norway.*Oscar class submarine, used by the Russian Navy.*Oscar II, Steamship used by Henry Ford for his peace expedition in 1915....
, King of Sweden and Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
with the Order of Vasa
Order of Vasa
The Royal Order of Vasa was a Swedish Royal order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III of Sweden...
, an esteemed order of Knighthood, for his 1875 painting titled The Crowning of King Oscar II in the Nidaros Cathedral (Norwegian: Kong Oscar II's kroning i Nidarosdomen). Bergslien’s work is represented the National Gallery of Norway
National Gallery of Norway
The National Gallery of Norway is a gallery in Oslo, Norway. Since 2003 it is administratively a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design.-History:...
.
Bergslien Art School students
- Andreas BlochAndreas BlochAndreas Bloch was a Norwegian painter, illustrator and costume designer.-Personal life:Andreas Schroeter Schelver Bloch was born on the Hellerud farm in in Skedsmo, in Akershus county, Norway, as the son of Jens Peter Blankenborg Bloch and Anne Julie Margrethe Schroeter. He was married in 1890...
- Carl L. BoeckmannCarl L. BoeckmannCarl Ludwig Boeckmann was a Norwegian-American artist best known as a portrait painter.-Biography:Boeckmann was born in Oslo, Norway, the youngest of five children. In 1883, he began to study at Knud Bergslien's school of painting...
- Hans DahlHans DahlHans Dahl was a Norwegian painter. Hans Dahl was famous for his paintings of Norwegian fjords and surrounding landscapes.-Background:...
- Halfdan EgediusHalfdan EgediusHalfdan Egedius was a Norwegian painter and illustrator.-Biography:Halfdan Johnsen Egedius was born in Drammen in Buskerud county and grew up in Christiania. His interest in painting and illustration began at the age of 5 and he showed exceptional artistic abilities early...
- Herbjørn GaustaHerbjørn GaustaHerbjørn Gausta also Herbjorn Gausta was an American artist who is best known for his landscapes, portraits and scenes from rural settings...
- Andrea GramAndrea GramGrete Ingeborg Johanne Andrea Gram was a Norwegian painter.She was born in Ask in Norderhov as a daughter of Johan Georg Boll Gram . She was a sister of Jens Gram, granddaughter of Jens Jensen Gram, first cousin of Gregers Winther Wulfsberg Gram and aunt of Johan Fredrik Gram and Mads Gram...
- Nils HansteenNils HansteenNils Severin Lynge Hansteen was a Norwegian painter.Nils Hansteen was born in Mo i Rana, in the county of Nordland, Norway. He attended the painting school of Knud Bergslien from 1873 and Peder Thurmann Cappelen . He later studied under Hans Gude in Karlsruhe from 1876 to 1877...
- Lars Jonson HaukanessLars Jonson HaukanessLars Jonson Haukaness was a Norwegian born American-Canadian impressionist painter and art instructor who was particularly noted for his landscapes.-Background:...
- Kristen HolbøKristen HolbøKristen Holbø was a Norwegian painter and illustrator, most noted for his landscapes.-Biography:...
- Morten MüllerMorten MüllerMorten Müller was a Norwegian landscape painter.-Biography:Morten Müller was born by the Christianiafjord at Holmestrand, in Vestfold County, Norway. Morten Müller began his art studies with Adolph Tidemand and Hans Gude in Düsseldorf, Germany, from 1847 to 1848...
- Gerhard MuntheGerhard Munthe (painter)Gerhard Peter Frantz Munthe was a Norwegian painter and illustrator.-Background:Munthe was born in Elverum to physician Christopher Pavels Munthe and his wife Christine Margrethe Pavels Aabel . He was a brother of historian Hartvig Andreas Munthe, writer Margrethe Munthe and military officer...
- Lars OsaLars OsaLars Osa was a Norwegian artist. He also worked with church decoration and restoration and was a noted fiddle player.-Biography:...
- Eyolf SootEyolf SootEyolf Soot was a Norwegian painter. He was born in Aremark, and was married to actress Inga Bjørnson from 1892 to 1900. Among his teachers were Knud Bergslien, Karl Gussow and Léon Bonnat...
- Gustav WentzelGustav WentzelGustav Wentzel was a Norwegian painter. He was best known for interiors and domestic and rural scenes. His artistic style was associated with Naturalism and noted for accurate observations and attention to detail....
Other sources
- Dagestad, Magnus Dei tre Bergsli-kunstnarane (Classica Antikvariat.1945. Voss)
