Inger Solveig Sitter (18 October 1929 – 11 March 2015) was a Norwegian painter, graphic artist and art instructor.

Personal life

Sitter was born in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

to Ingvar Sitter and Ebba Pelander. She grew up partly on her father's ships, which sailed in European and other waters, and partly with her mother in Antwerp, where she went to primary school.

Career

Sitter studied at the

Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts The Norwegian National Academy of Arts ( no, Statens kunstakademi) is a Norwegian Academy offering studies in the area of Fine Art. The Academy currently offers 3-year bachelor and 2-year MA programmes. The "Norwegian National Academy of the Arts" ...

at Oslo under Per Krohg,

Axel Revold Axel Revold (24 December 1887 – 11 April 1962) was a Norwegian painter, illustrator, and art professor at the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts for twenty years. He was highly decorated for his merits. Personal life Revold was born in ...

and Jean Heiberg from 1945 to 1946. She trained at the Institut Supérieur des Beaux Arts in Antwerp from 1946 to 1950. She was a student of André Lhote during 1948 and with Stanley William Hayter 1954-55 and 1956–57. She conducted various study trips to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, Sweden and

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

between 1947 and 1962. She was the recipient of numerous awards including Schäffers legat (1951), Ragnhild Keysers legat (1952), Helga og Hans Reusch' legat (1953), Fransk statsstipend (1956-57), Ragnar Moltzaus legat (1957), Hans Evensens legat (1960) and Th. Fearnleys Minnestipend (1961). During her working career she settled in various countries, mostly in Norway, Italy and France. She was a resident in Antwerp 1947–50. She was a board member of Unge Kunstneres Samfund from 1952 to 1954, board member of Norske Grafikere from 1955 to 1958, and member of the

Arts Council Norway The Arts Council Norway ( no, Norsk kulturråd, often shortened to ''Kulturrådet'') is the official arts council for Norway. Based in Oslo, it is a Norwegian state institution created in 1965 as a result of a parliamentary decision in 1964. Art ...

from 1964 to 1968. She was appointed professor at the

from 1981 to 1984. Among her works are wall decorations of the Government building in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population ...

from the 1950s (in cooperation with her husband Nesjar and other artists). Her works are included in the permanent collections of several museums, including the

National Gallery of Norway The National Gallery ( no, Nasjonalgalleriet) is a gallery in Oslo, Norway. Since 2003 it is administratively a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design. , the admission cost is 100 Norwegian kroner. History It was establish ...

and Henie-Onstad Art Centre in Oslo, at

Moderna Museet Moderna Museet ("the Museum of Modern Art"), Stockholm, Sweden, is a state museum for modern and contemporary art located on the island of Skeppsholmen in central Stockholm, opened in 1958. In 2009, the museum opened a new branch in Malmö i ...

in Stockholm, and at

Statens Museum for Kunst The National Gallery of Denmark ( da, Statens Museum for Kunst, also known as "SMK", literally State Museum for Art) is the Danish national gallery, located in the centre of Copenhagen. The museum collects, registers, maintains, researches and han ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

. Sitter was awarded the

Prince Eugen Medal The Prince Eugen Medal ( sv, Prins Eugen-medaljen) is a medal conferred by the King of Sweden for "outstanding artistic achievement". The medal was established in 1945 by the then King of Sweden, Gustaf V, in connection with the eightieth birthd ...

for painting in 1983. She was decorated Knight, First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 1998, and Commander in 2010. She was awarded the

Arts Council Norway Honorary Award The Arts Council Norway Honorary Award ( no, Norsk kulturråds ærespris) is awarded annually by the Arts Council Norway. The prize is awarded annually to a person who has made a significant contribution to Norwegian art and culture. The pri ...

in 2011.

Personal life

She was married twice, first to visual artist

Carl Nesjar Carl Nesjar (né Carlsen; 6 July 1920 – 23 May 2015) was a Norwegian painter, sculptor and graphic artist. He is best known for his collaborations with Pablo Picasso; serving for nearly twenty years as Picasso's chosen fabricator — the artis ...

(1920–2015) from 1955 to 1967, and second to gallery owner Rolf Dahlström (1927-1999). In 2015, Sitter died at the age of 85. She was buried at

Vestre gravlund Vestre Gravlund is a cemetery in the Frogner borough of Oslo, Norway. It is located next to the Borgen metro station. At , it is the largest cemetery in Norway. It was inaugurated in September 1902 and also contains a crematorium (''Vestre kr ...

in Oslo.Artists hail the late Inger Sitter
(News In English)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sitter, Inger 1929 births 2015 deaths People from Trondheim 20th-century Norwegian painters 21st-century Norwegian painters Oslo National Academy of the Arts faculty Norwegian women painters 20th-century Norwegian women artists 21st-century Norwegian women artists Recipients of the Prince Eugen Medal Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal Burials at Vestre gravlund