Bro Bro Brille door Gunnar Westman Groningen

Gunnar Millet Westman (11 February 1915 – 11 April 1985) was a Danish sculptor who developed a simple, stylised approach, often crafting figures of children.

Early life

Son of the artist Emil Gustaf Westman who established the painters association ''Koloristerne'', Gunnar Westman grew up in an artistic milieu. Westman was educated at

Herlufsholm School Herlufsholm School ( da, Herlufsholm Skole og Gods) is a private day and boarding school by the River Suså in Næstved, about south of Copenhagen. Herlufsholm was founded in 1565 as a boarding school for "sons of noble and other honest men" on ...

and first trained as a silversmith at A. Dragsted, a goldsmiths concern, before studying sculpture at 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 Rungstedlu ...

(1938–42) under

Einar Utzon-Frank Aksel (Axel) Einar (Ejnar) Utzon-Frank (30 March 1888 – 15 July 1955) was a Danish sculptor and professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. During his lifetime, he produced many sculptures, some of which stand as public monuments. U ...

. He was however deeply influenced by his early travels to Sweden where he worked as a silversmith. In particular, he was struck by the wooden figures of

Axel Petersson Döderhultarn Axel "Döderhultarn" Petersson, formerly Axel Petersson, (12 December 1868 – 15 March 1925) was a Swedish wood carver who was one of the recognized masters of wood carving, most famous for Scandinavian flat-plane style of woodcarving, Sca ...

and later by the work of

Bror Hjorth Bror Hjorth (1894 in Marma, Sweden – May 21, 1968 in Uppsala, Sweden) was a Swedish artist. Hjorth was one of Sweden’s best-known sculptors and painters, and was professor of art at the Royal University College of Fine Arts in Stockh ...

Career

Westman's early work from the end of the 1930s was strongly influenced by the folkloric Swedish style as can be seen in ''Fløjlespilleren'' (1937) and ''Sygebesøget'' (1939). Over the years, his Naturalistic approach evolved into a simpler, more stylised form, often in polychromatic ceramics. His simplified crafting can be seen in works representing children such as ''Børn ved vinduet'' (Children at the Window, 1947), and ''Gøgeungen'' and ''Børnehaven'' (1948)."Gunnar Westman"
''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon''. Retrieved 25 May 2012. Works on display include ''Kalkun'' (Turkey, 1960), ''Orm og Tyr'' (Worm and Bull, 1963) and ''Sneugle'' (Snowy Owl, 1968). He was a member of the

Grønningen Grønningen is a Danish artists cooperative whose members arrange exhibitions and similar events. Founded in 1915, it is one of the oldest and most important groupings of its kind in Denmark and currently has 54 members. It is named after the stree ...

artists association from 1946 to 1965 and of

Corner Corner may refer to: People *Corner (surname) *House of Cornaro, a noble Venetian family (''Corner'' in Venetian dialect) Places *Corner, Alabama, a community in the United States *Corner Inlet, Victoria, Australia *Corner River, a tributary of ...

from 1966 to 1985."Gunnar Westman"
''Den Store Danske''. Retrieved 25 May 2012.Dorthe Falcon Møller, "Gunnar Westman"
''Kunstineks Danmark & Weilbachs Kunstnerleksikon''. Retrieved 25 May 2012.

Awards

Westman received 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 ...

in 1967 and 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 ...

in 1975.

References

Bibliography

*''Dansk Skulptur i 125 år'', Copenhagen, Gyldendal, 1996. (da icon). {{DEFAULTSORT:Westman, Gunnar Danish sculptors Danish male artists 1915 births 1997 deaths People educated at Herlufsholm School Sculptors from Copenhagen Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal Recipients of the Thorvaldsen Medal 20th-century sculptors Westman family Danish male sculptors