Holger Damgaard (24 July 1870 – 15 January 1945) was a

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 ...

photographer. He was employed by ''

Politiken ''Politiken'' is a leading Danish daily broadsheet newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1884 and played a role in the formation of the Danish Social Liberal Party. Since 1970 it has been independe ...

'' from December 1908 as the first press photographer in Denmark. He was also a co-founder and the first president of the Danish Union of Press Photographers.

Early life and education

Damgaard was born in

Ribe Ribe () is a town in south-west Jutland, Denmark, with a population of 8,257 (2022). It is the seat of the Diocese of Ribe covering southwestern Jutland. Until 1 January 2007, Ribe was the seat of both a surrounding Ribe Municipality, municipali ...

, the son of bookseller Anton Jensen Damgaard (1838–85) and Marie Sophie Eriksen (born 1850). He received a commercial education in

Varde Varde is a Danish city in southwestern Jutland and is the primary city in the municipality of Varde, in Region of Southern Denmark. In 2015 municipality changed its motto to "We in nature" to emphasize its rural atmosphere. The town has an old ma ...

and then travelled to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

where he made a living for instance by teaching

roller skating Roller skating is the act of traveling on surfaces with roller skates. It is a recreational activity, a sport, and a form of transportation. Roller rinks and skate parks are built for roller skating, though it also takes place on streets, sid ...

Photography

In New York City, being an enthusiastic amateur photographer, Damgaard noticed the important role that press photographers played in American media. Back in Denmark, from 1900, he managed to sell a number of photographs to the weekly ''Hver 8. Dag''. He was particularly fond of the autotypy technique which gained popularity in Denmark from around 1897. In December 1908, he convinced Henrik Cavling to introduce autotypy at

. On 7 December 1908, a photograph by Damgaard featuring a group of children in front of a toy store became the first autotypy brought in a Danish newspaper. Damgaard was subsequently hired by Politiken on a permanent basis. Another major newspaper publisher De Ferslewske Blade hired Th. Larsen, who would later work for

Berlingske Tidende ''Berlingske'', previously known as ''Berlingske Tidende'' (, ''Berling's Times''), is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen. It is considered a newspaper of record for Denmark. First published on 3 January 1749, ''Berlingske'' ...

. Damgaard, Larsen and four other press photographers founded the Danish Union of Press Photographers in 1912 with Damgaard as its first president. He was known for his short response time, often arriving in his

sports car A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...

, and for often climbing structures for the best angle, something that earned him the nickname ''tårnuglen'' ("The Tower Owl") among his colleagues. He retired at the age of 70 without having had a single

sick day Sick leave (or paid sick days or sick pay) is paid time off from work that workers can use to stay home to address their health needs without losing pay. It differs from paid vacation time or time off work to deal with personal matters, because sic ...

Personal life

Damgaard married Ellen Karene Pauline Paulsen Samsøe (1 March 1879 – 25 Kune 1957). He died on 15 January 1945 in

Ringsted Ringsted is a city located centrally in the Danish island of Zealand. It is the seat of a municipality of the same name. Ringsted is situated approximately 60 km from Copenhagen. Tourism and transport Ringsted is one of Denmark's busiest ...

and is buried in Solbjerg Cemetery.

Legacy

More than 30,000 of Dangaard's negatives are now kept in the

National Library of Denmark The Royal Library ( da, Det Kongelige Bibliotek) in Copenhagen is the national library of Denmark and the university library of the University of Copenhagen. It is among the largest libraries in the world and the largest in the Nordic countri ...

References

External links

Holger Damgaard
at geni.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Damgaard, Holger 19th-century Danish photographers 20th-century Danish photographers Danish photographers Politiken photojournalists 1870 births 1945 deaths People from Ribe