The Funen Painters or ''Fynboerne'' were a loose group of

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

artists who formed an art colony on the island of

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

at the very beginning of the 20th century. They were strongly influenced by

Kristian Zahrtmann Peder Henrik Kristian Zahrtmann, known as Kristian Zahrtmann, (31 March 1843 – 22 June 1917) was a Denmark, Danish Painting, painter. He was a part of the Danish artistic generation in the late 19th century, along with Peder Severin Krøyer and ...

who taught at the Artists Studio School in Copenhagen from 1885 to 1908. Like Zahrtmann, they abandoned the traditions of the

Danish Academy Danish Academy is an independent organisation founded in 1960 by a circle of Danish intellectuals "to promote Danish esprit and language, especially within the field of literature". It has up to 20 members, currently 18, and is based at Rungstedl ...

and ventured into Naturalism and

Realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: *Classical Realism *Literary realism, a move ...

."The Funish Art Colony"
, ''Johannes Larsen Museet''. Retrieved 12 August 2011.

History

The close-knit core members of the group were

Johannes Larsen Johannes Larsen (27 December 1867 – 20 December 1961) was a Danish nature painter. Biography Larsen was born in Kerteminde on Funen, Denmark. He was the son of Jeppe Andreas L. and Vilhelmine Christine Bless. His father was a merchant. Lar ...

(1867–1961) from

Kerteminde Kerteminde (nickname: ''Min Amandas by'', i.e. ''My Amanda's town''), is a town in central Denmark, located in Kerteminde Municipality on the island of Funen. The town has a population of 6,042 (1 January 2022).

in the northeastern corner of Funen and

Fritz Syberg Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Syberg, generally known as Fritz Syberg, (28 July 1862, Fåborg – 20 December 1939, Kerteminde) was a Danish painter and illustrator, one of the or Funen Painters (''Fynboerne'') living and working on the is ...

and Peter Hansen, both from the southern port of

Faaborg Faaborg or Fåborg () is an old port town located on Faaborg Fjord in Faaborg-Midtfyn municipality on the island of Funen in Denmark. By road, Faaborg is located southwest of Odense, west-northwest of Svendborg, and roughly southeast of Midde ...

. Alhed Larsen, Larsen's wife,

Anna Syberg Anna Louise Birgitte Syberg (7 January 1870 – 4 July 1914) was a Danish painter. Together with her husband Fritz Syberg, she was one of the Funen Painters (''Fynboerne'') who lived and worked on the island of Funen. She is remembered for he ...

, Hansen's sister and Syberg's wife, and Christine Larsen, Larsen's younger sister, all of whom were artists, were also deeply associated with the group although they did not receive the same level of recognition as the men. Christine married

Sigurd Swane Sigurd Swane (16 June 1879 – 9 April 1973) was a Danish Post-impressionist painter and poet; known primarily for his landscapes. Biography Swane was born in Frederiksberg. He studied in Copenhagen at the Royal Danish Academy of Art from 1899 ...

who also moved to Kerteminde to establish their family home. Møllebakken, also near Kerteminde, became the home of Johannes and Alhed Larsen and soon developed into a meeting place for the Funen Artists at the beginning of the 20th century. They were joined by

Harald Giersing Harald Giersing (24 April 1881 – 15 January 1927) was a Danish painter. He was instrumental in developing the classic modernism movement in Denmark around 1910-1920. He is remembered as one of Denmark's most important 20th-century artists both f ...

, who married Syberg's sister Besse, and other young artists including

Olaf Rude Olaf Rude (26 April 1886 – 17 June 1957) was a Danish painter. He was a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Art from 1953 to 1956. He is remembered in particular for his paintings of oak trees at Skejten on Lolland, two of which can be se ...

, Harald Leth and Sven Havsteen-Mikkelsen who came to Møllebakken for inspiration. Another artist associated with the group was Poul S. Christiansen who came from the north of Funen and became a close friend of Zahrtmann after he joined his school in 1885. It was there that he met Johannes Larsen. As a result of their paintings of everyday country life, the Funen Painters were sometimes disparagingly called ''bondemalerne'' or the peasant painters. In 1907, there was a heated debate in the Danish press between Gudmund Hentze and

Harald Slott-Møller Harald Slott-Møller (17 August 1864 – 20 October 1937) was a Danish painter and ceramist. Together with his wife, the painter Agnes Slott-Møller, he was a founding member of Den Frie Udstilling (The Free Exhibition). Early life Born in Cope ...

and his wife, who stood up for the more intellectually oriented cultural movement in Copenhagen, and Peter Hansen who defended the Funen Painters together with Jens Birkholm, Poul S. Christiansen and

Karl Schou Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austri ...

Similarities and differences

The three main artists among the Funen Painters had much in common. They had all studied under Kristian Zahrtmann and were later all strongly influenced by

Theodor Philipsen Theodor Esbern Philipsen (10 June 18403 March 1920) was a Danish painter of Jewish ancestry; known for landscapes and animal portraits. He also did small figures in wax and clay. Biography Theodor Philipsen was born at Copenhagen to a cultured me ...

whose approach to outdoor painting and use of light and shade was often reflected in their work. As in Philipsen's artwork, the influence of

Paul Gauguin Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fr ...

and

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...

can also be seen in their paintings. Zahrtmann had however encouraged the artists to develop their own style although all three emulated his use of strong colour. Indeed, Johannes Larsen refused to be identified with a so-called "Funen School", preferring to ascribe their relationship to a common background and their close friendship.

Museums

The Johannes Larsen Museum on Møllebakken near Kerteminde is the former home of the artist and his wife Alhed. Many of their own paintings as well as those of the other Funen Painters including Fritz Syberg, Peter Hansen and

Christine Swane Christine Swane née Christine Larsen (29 May 1876 in Kerteminde – 16 August 1960 in Farum) was a Danish painter who first associated with the Funen Painters before developing her own increasingly Cubist style. Biography Christine Swane was th ...

can be seen there in surroundings which have been little altered since the colony met there at the beginning of the 20th century. *The Faaborg Museum in the harbour town of Faaborg on Funen's southern coast is also closely associated with the Funen Painters, especially Fritz Syberg and Peter Hansen who grew up in the town. The museum puts on special exhibitions of the Funen Painters' works."Faaborg Museum"
. Retrieved 13 August 2011.

Gallery

File:Legende børn.jpg, Peter Hansen: ''Legende børn. Enghave plads'' (1908) File:Peter Hansen, Pløjemanden vender, 1900-1902. 57, Faaborg Museum.jpg, Peter Hansen: ''Pløjemanden vender'' (1902) File:Syberg Overkærby Bakke. Vinter 1917.jpg, Fritz Syberg: ''Overkærby Bakke. Vinter'' (1917) File:Syberg Børnene på Fyns Hoved 1905.jpg, Fritz Syberg: ''Børnene på Fyns Hoved'' (1905) File:Syberg Anna Roser 1902.JPG, Anna Syberg: ''Roser'' (1902) File:Harald Giersing , Skovinteriør. Sorø, c. 1915.jpg, Harald Giersing: ''Skovinteriør. Sorø'' (c. 1915) File:Christensen Skovvej ved Dyrnæs 1915.jpg, Poul S. Christiansen: ''Skovvej ved Dyrnæs'' (1915) File:Alhed Larsen, Havehuset med blomstrende kirsebær, privateje.jpg, Alhed Larsen: ''Havhuset med blomstrende kirsebær'' (undated)

References

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Extermal links