Ambrosia Tønnesen (28 January 1859 – 21 January 1948) was a Norwegian sculptor. She is regarded as the first professional female sculptor in Norway, and is best known for her many portraits, including

statue A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or Casting (metalworking), cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to ...

s, busts, and

relief Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...

Personal life and education

Tønnesen was born in

Ålesund Ålesund () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The town is the administrative centre of Ålesund Municipality. The centre of the town of Ålesund lies on the islands of Hessa, Aspøya, Ålesund, Asp� ...

, a daughter of

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

master Abraham Tønnesen (1818–1868) and Thomine Jonasen. She worked as a schoolteacher in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

for some years, while also studying drawing, modeling, and painting. In 1885 she travelled to Copenhagen where she studied with painter Bertha Wegmann and sculptor Stephan Sinding. She then studied with sculptor Albert Wolff in Berlin, and further with

René de Saint-Marceaux Charles René de Paul de Saint-Marceaux (23 September 1845 – 23 April 1915) was a French sculptor. Biography He was born in Reims on 23 September 1845 to Alexandre Jean de Paul de Saint-Marceaux, a member of a noble family, and Emélie Isabell ...

in Paris. Ambrosia met her partner, Mary Banks, in 1888 and the two women lived together for 30 years in Paris, and Bergen, Norway.

Career

Among Tønnesen's early sculptures are ''Våren'' (1885), ''Sneklokken'' (1887; a young girl), ''Den onde Hjørdis'' (1890), and ''Den korsfestede Kristus'' ("The Crucified Christ"; marble sculpture in

Årstad Church Årstad Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Bergen Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the Årstad neighborhood in the city of Bergen. It is the church for the Årstad parish which is part of the Bergens ...

, 1890). She made a large number of portraits (

s, busts, and

s), and is regarded as the first female Norwegian sculptor who made her living from her art. Her portraits include statues of

Ole Bull Ole Bornemann Bull (; 5 February 181017 August 1880) was a Norwegian virtuoso violinist and composer. According to Robert Schumann, he was on a level with Niccolò Paganini for the speed and clarity of his playing. Biography Background Bull was ...

Johan Christian Dahl Johan Christian Claussen Dahl (24 February 178814 October 1857), often known as or , was a Danish- Norwegian artist who is considered the first great romantic painter in Norway, the founder of the "golden age" of Norwegian painting. He is often ...

, and Camilla Collett; reliefs of

Dorothe Engelbretsdatter Dorothe Engelbretsdatter (16 January 163419 February 1716) was a Norwegian author. She principally wrote hymns and poems which were strongly religious. She has been described as Norway's first recognized female author as well as Norway's first ...

and

Petter Dass Petter Pettersen Dass (c. 1647 – 17 August 1707) was a Lutheran priest and the foremost Norwegian poet of his generation, writing both baroque hymns and topographical poetry. Biography Dass was born on the island of Dønna in what was the ...

; and busts of

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...

(marble, 1902), Ole Irgens (bronze, 1906),

Amalie Skram Amalie Skram (22 August 1846 – 15 March 1905) was a Norwegian author and feminist who gave voice to a woman's point of view with her naturalist writing. In Norway, she is frequently considered the most important female writer of the Modern B ...

(marble, 1916, at Bergen Kunstmuseum), Gina Krog (bronze, 1919), Claus Fasting, bronze, 1924),

Christian Michelsen Peter Christian Hersleb Kjerschow Michelsen (15 March 1857– 29 June 1925), better known as Christian Michelsen, was a Norwegian shipping magnate and statesman. He was the first prime minister of independent Norway from 1905 to 1907. Michelse ...

(bronze, 1924), Henrik Angell (bronze, 1924), Wollert Konow (bronze, 1925), and (bronze, 1942). Tønnesen was decorated with the French order Officier d'Académie.

Death

She died in Fana (now Bergen) on 21 January 1948, aged 88.

Literature

* * Jorunn Veiteberg (2009) ''Ambrosia Tønnesen. Stenhugger i det Fine''Turid Larsen (23 October 2009
En ugift kvinne med suksess
''Dagsavisen''. Retrieved from Webarchive

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tonnesen, Ambrosia 1859 births 1948 deaths 19th-century Norwegian sculptors 19th-century Norwegian women artists 20th-century Norwegian sculptors Lesbian sculptors Norwegian LGBTQ artists People from Ålesund Officiers of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques 20th-century Norwegian women sculptors