Elof Christian Risebye (3 April 1892 – 11 July 1961) was a Danish painter. He became known as the "painter of grief" (''sorgens maler'') for his paintings of coffins and corpses in the 1930s.

Biography

Born in the

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...

district of Copenhagen, from 1905 to 1913 he lived in the United States, studying at the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

(1910–12). On returning to Denmark, he attended the school of painting at

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi - Billedkunst Skolerne) has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Dani ...

as a student of

Viggo Johansen Viggo Johansen (3 January 1851 – 18 December 1935) was a Danish painter and active member of the group of Skagen Painters who met every summer in the north of Jutland. He was one of Denmark's most prominent painters in the 1890s. Early life an ...

and

Julius Paulsen Julius Paulsen (22 October 1860 in Odense – 17 February 1940 in Copenhagen) was a Danish painter. From 1879 to 1882 he studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts where he was later a professor. He had strong connections with several of th ...

. From 1919 to 1921, he studied under

Joakim Skovgaard Joakim Frederik Skovgaard (18 November 1856 – 9 March 1933) was a Danish painter. He is remembered above all for the frescos which decorate Viborg Cathedral. Biography Born in Copenhagen, from an early age he was trained in drawing and paintin ...

at the school of decoration. Riseby decorated several churches with frescos, including Sindal (1921), St Mark's, Copenhagen (1924) and

Gedser Church Gedser Church lies in the town of Gedser on the southern tip of the Danish island of Falster. It is the church of Gedser Parish. Completed in 1915, it was designed by Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint, best known for designing Grundtvig's Church in Copen ...

(1925). In 1925, he helped Skovgaard decorate

Lund Cathedral Lund Cathedral ( sv, Lunds domkyrka) is a cathedral of the Lutheran Church of Sweden in Lund, Scania, Sweden. It is the seat of the Bishop of Lund and the main church of the Diocese of Lund. It was built as the Catholic cathedral of the archiepi ...

with mosaics and, in the 1930s, he contributed to Einar Nielsen's mosaics in the

Royal Danish Theatre The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first ser ...

's new

Stærekassen Stærekassen ( lit. "The Starling Nest Box"), also known as Ny Scene (English: New Stage) is a theatre building annexed to the Royal Danish Theatre on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen, Denmark. It opened in 1931 to serve a dual purpose as an additional ...

building. The series ''7 Billeder malet ved en vens død'' (Seven Pictures Painted on a Friend's Death) painted after his friend, the sculptor Paul Kiærskou, died in 1933 marked a particularly important step in his career. It was the beginning of the gloomy motifs of dead figures and coffins which gave him the name Painter of Grief. The painting ''Ved en kiste'' (At a Coffin, 1934) is notable for the way in which its almost black colouring depicts a man struck with feelings of guilt, showing how his sensitive hands are held over his mouth and one of his eyes. From 1924, Risebye taught at the Academy's decoration school, becoming a professor in 1949. Elof Risebye's works have been widely exhibited over the years both in Denmark and abroad, most recently in

Vejen Kunstmuseum Vejen Art Museum ( da, Vejen Kunstmuseum) is an art gallery in Vejen Municipality in the south of Jutland, Denmark. It specializes in works from the end of the 19th century in styles including Symbolism and Art Nouveau. Created in 1924 to hous ...

in 2009.

Awards

In 1942, Risebye was awarded the

Eckersberg Medal The Eckersberg Medal (originally the ''Akademiets Aarsmedaille'' or Annual Academy Medal) is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. It is named after Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, known as the father of Danish painting. The Ec ...

and, in 1952, the

Thorvaldsen Medal The Thorvaldsen Medal (Danish: Thorvaldsens Medalje, Thorvaldsen Medaillen) is awarded annually with few exceptions to a varying number of recipients by the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and is its highest distinction within the visual arts. It ...

References

Literature

External links

Illustrated list of works by Elof Risebye in Danish museums
{{DEFAULTSORT:Risebye, Elof 1892 births 1961 deaths 20th-century Danish painters Artists from Copenhagen Recipients of the Thorvaldsen Medal Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Academic staff of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts Danish expatriates in the United States