Dalsgaard, Christen (1824-1907) - 1853 A Fisherman's Bedroom

            Christen Dalsgaard was a Danish painter, a late student of Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg. The son of the estate owner, Christen Dalsgaard was born at Krabbesholm Manor near Skive in Jutland. He showed early signs of artistic talent, and received training as a craft painter. In spring 1841 Niels Rademacher, a visiting landscape painter, encouraged the young artist and convinced his parents of their son’s talent. Later that year he traveled to Copenhagen and began his art studies at the Royal Danish Academy of Art in October 1841. In December 1841 he began private studies with painter Martinus Rørbye. These last until 1847.

In 1843 he began his studies at the Academy’s freehand drawing school, and the following year at the Academy’s plaster school. Home during the summer and holidays he busied himself by filling sketchbooks with studies of the local landscape, costumes and way of life. These formed a lifelong basis for his art. He also began collecting local folk costumes, another lifelong interest. In 1844 Dalsgaard cames under the influence of Niels Lauritz Høyen, art historian, who held a famous lecture “On the conditions for a Scandinavian national art’s development”. Høyen called for artists to search for subject matter in the folk life of their country instead of searching for themes in other lands, such as Italy (which was at that time considered a requirement for an artist’s training). Dalsgaard was a loyal follower of Højen’s artistic ideals, and forwent the customary journey to Italy, choosing rather to concentrate on themes closer to home. In March 1846 he began at the Academy’s model school under professors Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, J. L. Lund og Martinus Rørbye. He had his exhibition debut at Charlottenborg in 1847, and continued showing there every year with few exceptions.

An artistic career flourishes. In 1855 he painted his first altarpiece at the church in his hometown of Skive. He goes on to paint a number of other altarpieces in the years to come. Dalsgaard's Mormoner på besøg hos en tømrer på landet (Mormons visit a country carpenter), 1856 He has his big breakthrough in 1856 with the painting "Mormons visit a country carpenter". The painting, created only 6 years after the missionary’s arrival in Denmark, is set in the shadowed interior of a provincial cottage. A group of people are gathered around a table, listening to a missionary’s message. Light filters in through a small window and an open door. It is a study of contemporary daily life, carefully depicting the interior and costumes of the people in detail. The painting was donated to the Danish National Gallery in 1871.

He married Hansine Marie Hansen on 21 August 1857. The newlyweds purchased a house in Frederiksberg. Their circle of social acquaintances included Constantin Hansen, Niels Lauritz Høyen, Wilhelm Marstrand, P.C. Skovgaard, Vilhelm Kyhn, Godtfred Rump, Frederik Vermehren and Julius Exner. He received the Academy’s Neuhausen's prize (Neuhausens præmie) in both 1859 and 1861. He began teaching drawing at Sorø Academy in 1862. He was selected to become and became a member of the Academy of Art in 1872. He exhibited at the World Exhibition in Paris for the first time in 1878. He painted his famous painting "I wonder when he will come home" in 1879. This painting is typical of his style. The picture features a young woman standing in an open doorway looking off to one side. One foot is on the doorframe, and one foot is on the ground outside. The interior is dark and shadowed. The outside is a sunlit agrarian landscape. The title of the painting refers to her inner dialogue.

In 1890 he finished the first of 21 small Bible pictures, a project which he continued to work on for the next ten years. He was named a professor at the Academy of Art in 1892, and quit his position at Sorø Academy. Christen Dalsgaard, like his contemporaries Julius Exner and Frederik Vermehren, painted primarily genre paintings, national romantic folk scenes rooted in the grasslands of Jutland. He paid great attention to details– folk costumes, manners and habits of the people, architecture and landscape. He was a storyteller. His artistic works, as well as those of his contemporaries helped open the way for more realistic paintings in the late 1800’s. A collection of his work can be found at the Skive Art Museum. Other paintings can be found, among other museums at the National Museum of Art.
Taken on: August 3, 2012
Tags:
christen dalsgaard
dalsgaard
19th century
danish
1853
1850s
a fisherman's bedroom
interior
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Sets appears in: • Scandanavian Art Pre-1900
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