Famous Norwegian Artists

Norwegian art had had international acclaim during the 19th century. Artists were mostly praised for their landscape paintings. In the mid-19th century Romantic nationalism in Norway flourished. 20th-century Expressionism highlighted notable Norwegian painters, particularly Edvard Munch.

Harriet Backer

Norwegian artist Harriet Backer was a trailblazer for female artists in the Nordic region and other parts of Europe. The artist was also the Senior Matron at the Royal Palace and with eight children little time to devote to art. She studies art at Knud Begslien’s School and became well-known for her intricate interior scenes depicted in brilliant colors. Backer founded an art school in 1892 with the goal of teaching and promoting the art careers of young female painters, Altogether she created more than 180 artworks.

Interior from Vendelsborg by Harriet Backer (1924)

Peder Balke

Norwegian artist Peder Balke created landscapes of northern Norway in a decorative and romantic manner. In 1830, Balke walked all the way through Telemark, Vestfjorddalen, Røldal, a Kinsarvik, and then on to Bergen, then walked back via Vossevangen to Valdres, and over the mountains all the way to Hallingdal. He also visited Germany, Russia, Paris, and London. There are numerous of the artist’s artworks in collections in both Norway and Sweden.

North Cape by Moonlight Peder Balke

Christian Dahl

Norwegian artist Johan Christian Dahl spent most of his artistic life in Dresen, Germany but was born in Bergen. He earned the monkiker “Father of Norwegian Painting”. His expressive and intricate paintings stand out by his exceptional precision particularly the artist’s oil studies of cloud patterns in the sky. He added snow to a summer landscape painting not to illustrate the light and colors of snow, but to utilize snow as a metaphor for death.

Burning Windmill at Stege  Johan Christian Dahl (1856)

Hans Frederick Gude

Norwegian artists Hand Frederick Gude started out creating seascapes. Later on he focused on drawing figures and putting them on canvas. He painted mostly in oils basing the paintings on sketches he made in the field. Gude would subsequently paint in gouache and watercolors in an effort to keep his art new and evolving.

The Old Snow Plow at the Edge of the Forest by Hans Gude (1893)

Theodor Kittelsen

Norwegian artist Theodor Kittelsen was renowned for his depictions of fairy tales and folklore particularly trolls. He also created environmental paintings. He also studied art in Paris and Munich. His emphasis on Norwegian themes, mythology, and fairytales has earned him a high level of respect and recognition in Norway.

White-Bear-King Valemon by Theodor Kittelson

Christian Krohg

Norwegian artist Christian Krohg was influential in the artistic advancement of Norwegian artist Edvard Munch. He was the director of the Oslo State Academy of Art, an author, and considered to be a political and social crusader. Krohg traveled to Skagen, near the northern point of Jutland in Denmark, in 1879, at the suggestion of fellow artist Frits Thaulow, where he joined the group of Norwegian artists who painted mostly in Impressionist style.

Sailing with Reef Sails Christian Krohg 

Edvard Munch

Norwegian artist Edvard Munch is the most well-known Norwegian artist to this day. His upbringing was dominated by death and fear of acquiring a mental disorder which ran in this family. He enrolled in the Royal School of Art and Design and was tutored there by Norwegian artist Christian Krogh. His painting style was influenced by Realism and Impressionism. Visiting in Europe he was influenced by such artists as Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. The Scream is Munch’s most renowned work and one of the world’s most recognizable paintings. It has been generally regarded as portraying modern man’s global angst.

The Artist and his Model Edvard Munch

Odd Nerdrum

Norwegian artist Odd Nerdrum was a provocative modern artist, born in Helsingborg in 1944. During the 1960s, Nerdrum led the Norwegian neo-Romantic movement. Nerdrum’s method of painting relied on traditional methods such as grinding and mixing all of his own color pigments, working on a canvas that was manually stretched instead of pre-stretched canvas, and working from live models, usually himself and, in numerous instances, people from his own family.

Lunatics 2001 Odd Nerdrum

Kjartan Slettermark

Norwegian artist Kjartan Slettemark rose to prominence as one of the most notable modern painters throughout the 1960s in Norway. He created artwork in traditional mediums such as painting and sculptures. The artist was an influential figure on the Norwegian art scene, as well as an innovator in both art activism and performance.

Budeia by Kjartan Slettenmark

Frits Thaulow

Norwegian artist Frits Thaulow was born in Christiania, Norway in 1847. He became one of the most widely renowned artist in the country creating Norwegian landscapes. He was one of the first Norwegian artists to paint Skagen, a town in northwestern Jutland that became famed for its Skagen Artists.

Watermill by Fritz Thalow (1892)

Gustav Viegeland

Norwegian artist Gustav Viegeland studied painting in Copenhagen, Denmark and in Oslo, as well as Paris, France. In Paris he attended the workshop of French artist Auguste Rodin, who had an impact on Vigeland’s early artworks. He was influenced by medieval sculpture around the year 1900, and as a result, adopted a more simplistic and stylized technique. He quickly began work on the project that would consume him for the remainder of his career: an expansive series of gigantic sculptures for an Oslo park. Vigeland created around 200 different sculptural pieces for Frogner Park, including an entrance, fountain, bridge, mosaic labyrinth, circular stairway, and carved-figure stone forest.