Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler
Encyclopedia
Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler was a Danish
art school
established in Copenhagen
in 1882 as a protest against the policies of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and to provide an alternative to its educational program. It existed until 1912 and was a central institution of the Modern Breakthrough
in Danish art.
as the central figure, the institution was the basis of what has become known as the Golden Age of Danish Painting. Another major influence at the academy was professor Niels Laurits Høyen who advocated a nationalistic approach to art.
Gradually the legacy from Eckersberg, who died in 1854, and Høyen's demand for nationalistic art became an obstacle deterring the assimilation of new trends from abroad and creating a vacuum in Danish art which lasted until the early 1880s.
Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler was founded in 1882, at the initiative of a group of dissatisfied students from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, as a reaction to the outdated teachings at the Academy. Laurits Tuxen
became the school's first director and Peder Severin Krøyer
one of its teachers.
became the head and under him it developed into an independent department.
While Tuxen og Krøyer's teachings were inspired by Léon Bonnat
's school in Paris
, where they had both been students, Zahrtmann encouraged his students to study classical art. In spite of this, Zahrtmann's school became even more avant garde and innovative, due to his calls for radical experiments and strong use of colours.
Johan Rohde, who had himself attended the school and had been among the original founders, took over after Zahrtmann and led the school until its closure in 1912.
. His students included Peter Hansen
, Fritz Syberg
, Poul S. Christiansen, Johannes Larsen
and Oluf Hartmann; and modern painters Karl Isakson
; Edvard Weie
, Harald Giersing
and Olaf Rude
.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
art school
Art school
Art school is a general term for any educational institution with a primary focus on the visual arts, especially illustration, painting, photography, sculpture, and graphic design. The term applies to institutions with elementary, secondary, post-secondary or undergraduate, or graduate or...
established 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...
in 1882 as a protest against the policies of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and to provide an alternative to its educational program. It existed until 1912 and was a central institution of the Modern Breakthrough
Modern Breakthrough
The Modern Breakthrough is the normal name of the strong movement of naturalism and debating literature of Scandinavia near the end of the 19th century which replaced romanticism....
in Danish art.
Foundation of the new school
From its foundation in 1754, the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts exercised a dominating role in the education of artists in Denmark. During the first half of the 19th century, with Christoffer Wilhelm EckersbergChristoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg
Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg was a Danish painter. He was born in Blåkrog in the Duchy of Schleswig , to Henrik Vilhelm Eckersberg, painter and carpenter, and Ingeborg Nielsdatter...
as the central figure, the institution was the basis of what has become known as the Golden Age of Danish Painting. Another major influence at the academy was professor Niels Laurits Høyen who advocated a nationalistic approach to art.
Gradually the legacy from Eckersberg, who died in 1854, and Høyen's demand for nationalistic art became an obstacle deterring the assimilation of new trends from abroad and creating a vacuum in Danish art which lasted until the early 1880s.
Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler was founded in 1882, at the initiative of a group of dissatisfied students from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, as a reaction to the outdated teachings at the Academy. Laurits Tuxen
Laurits Tuxen
Laurits Tuxen was a Danish painter and sculptor, sculptor, specialising in figure painting. He was also associated with the Skagen Painters...
became the school's first director and Peder Severin Krøyer
Peder Severin Krøyer
Peder Severin Krøyer , known as P.S. Krøyer, was a Norwegian-Danish painter. He is one of the best known and beloved, and undeniably the most colorful of the Skagen Painters, a community of Danish and Nordic artists who lived, gathered or worked in Skagen, Denmark, especially during the final...
one of its teachers.
Zahrtmann's school
In 1884 a preparatory class was added. It was first led by Frans Schwartz but in 1885 Kristian ZahrtmannKristian Zahrtmann
Peder Henrik Kristian Zahrtmann, known as Kristian Zahrtmann, was a Danish painter. He was a part of the Danish artistic generation in the late 19th century, along with Peder Severin Krøyer and Theodor Esbern Philipsen, who broke away from both the strictures of traditional Academicism and the...
became the head and under him it developed into an independent department.
While Tuxen og Krøyer's teachings were inspired by Léon Bonnat
Léon Bonnat
Léon Joseph Florentin Bonnat was a French painter.He was born in Bayonne, but from 1846 to 1853 he lived in Madrid, where his father owned a bookshop. While tending his father's shop, he copied engravings of works by the Old Masters, developing a passion for drawing...
's school 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...
, where they had both been students, Zahrtmann encouraged his students to study classical art. In spite of this, Zahrtmann's school became even more avant garde and innovative, due to his calls for radical experiments and strong use of colours.
Johan Rohde, who had himself attended the school and had been among the original founders, took over after Zahrtmann and led the school until its closure in 1912.
Students
Zahrtmann's school was of central importance to the group of painters who became known as Fynboerne due to their attachment to the island FunenFunen
Funen , with a size of 2,984 km² , is the third-largest island of Denmark following Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy, and the 163rd largest island of the world. Funen is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 454,358 inhabitants . The main city is Odense, connected to the...
. His students included Peter Hansen
Peter Hansen (painter)
Peter Marius Hansen was a Danish painter who became one of the Fynboerne or "Funen Painters" group living and working on the island of Funen.-Biography:...
, Fritz Syberg
Fritz Syberg
Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Syberg, generally known as Fritz Syberg, was a Danish painter and illustrator, one of the reactionary Fynboerne or "Funen Painters" group living and working on the island of Funen.-Biography:Syberg, from a poor background in Fåborg, first served a house...
, Poul S. Christiansen, Johannes Larsen
Johannes Larsen
Johannes Larsen was a Danish nature painter.-Biography:Born in Kerteminde on Funen, Larsen studied art at the Free School in Copenhagen under Kristian Zahrtmann in the 1880s. There he met other painters from Funen, notably Fritz Syberg and Peter Hansen, both from the southern port of Faaborg, and...
and Oluf Hartmann; and modern painters Karl Isakson
Karl Isakson
Karl Oscar Isakson was a Swedish painter who spent much of his professional life in Denmark where he is considered to be one of the fathers of Modernism. He had close associations with the Bornholm school of painters and made many paintings of Christiansø.-Biography:Isakson was brought up in...
; Edvard Weie
Edvard Weie
Viggo Thorvald Edvard Weie was a Danish painter. His style was influenced by journeys to Italy and Paris where he came into contact with French impressionists such as Cézanne....
, Harald Giersing
Harald Giersing
Harald Giersing , a Danish painter, was instrumental in developing the classic modernism movement in Denmark around 1910-1920...
and Olaf Rude
Olaf Rude
Olaf Rude was a Danish painter who was born in Estonia. As a child, he moved with his family to Frejlev on the island of Lolland. He is remembered in particular for his paintings of oak trees at Skejten on Lolland, two of which can be seen at Christiansborg.In 1905, he studied at the Copenhagen...
.