Per Lasson Krohg (18 June 1889 – 3 March 1965) was a
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
artist. He is best known for
the mural he created for the
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
Chamber, located in the
United Nations headquarters
zh, 联合国总部大楼french: Siège des Nations uniesrussian: Штаб-квартира Организации Объединённых Наций es, Sede de las Naciones Unidas
, image = Midtown Manhattan Skyline 004.jpg
, im ...
in New York City.
Biography
Per Krohg was born in
Åsgårdstrand
Åsgårdstrand is a small port town in Horten municipality, Vestfold, Norway. It is also the name of a former independent municipality and a center of trade. The town is situated 10 km south of Horten, 10 km north of Tønsberg and 100&nbs ...
, Norway, the son of painters
Christian Krohg and
Oda Krohg
Oda Krohg (born Othilia Pauline Christine Lasson; 11 June 1860 – 19 October 1935) was a Norwegian painter, and the wife of her teacher and colleague Christian Krohg.
Biography
She was the second daughter of public attorney Christian ...
. The family lived in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, where Per Krohg grew up. He showed artistic talent early, and studied first with his father (from 1903 to 1907), then with
Henri Matisse
Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, and sculptur ...
(from 1909 to 1910). In the early years he worked as a newspaper illustrator and taught tango in Paris.
While in Paris, he was also the instructor of future architect
Maja Melandsø.
Krohg's work as an artist covered a wide field, from paper drawings, illustrations, and posters to set design, sculpture, and monumental paintings. After returning to Norway in 1930 he taught at the National College of Art and Design in Oslo. During the Second World War, he was a forced laborer at the
Veidal Prison Camp The Veidal Prison Camp ( no, Veidal fangeleir, german: Gefangenenlager Veidal Kvænangen) was established in Kvænangen in August 1942 by the German occupation authorities. The prison camp was a subunit of the Grini Prison Camp and, together with t ...
. In 1946 he was appointed professor at the National Art Academy, and served as its director from 1955 to 1958. Among others, his students included artists
Frithjof Tidemand-Johannessen and
Tulla Blomberg Ranslet.
Krohg created the murals for the
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
Chamber, located in the
United Nations building in New York City. He adorned many other public buildings with large
frescoes, including the Physics and Chemistry Buildings at the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
and the
Oslo City Hall. He is represented with six works in the collection at the
National Gallery of Denmark
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 ...
.
[ Per Lasson Krohg]
''Store norske leksikon''
In 1950 he received the
King's Medal of Merit
The King's Medal of Merit (Norwegian: ''Kongens fortjenstmedalje'') is a Norwegian award. It was instituted in 1908 to reward meritorious achievements in the fields of art, science, business, and public service. It is divided in two classes: gold ...
in gold, and 1955 he was appointed Commander of the
Order of St. Olav. From 1936 he was a member of the
Swedish Royal Academy of Fine Arts in
Stockholm and in 1948 he 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 ...
.
Personal life
He was married twice. In 1915 he married textile artist
Cécile Marie ("Lucy") Vidil (1891–1977). Their marriage was dissolved in 1934. He was married in 1934 to Ragnhild Helene Andersen (1908–1972). He was the father of Norwegian artist
Guy Krohg (1917–2002).
References
Other sources
*Nergaard, Trygve ''Bilder av Per Krohg'' (Aschehoug. 2000)
*Hölaas, O. ''Per Krohg. A retrospective loan exhibition of oil paintings'' (New York: Galerie St. Etienne, 1954)
*Langaard, Johan ''Per Krohg'' (Glendendal Norsk Forlat. 1931)
External links
Security Council Chamber paintingFamily genealogy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krohg, Per Lasson
1889 births
1965 deaths
People from Horten
Muralists
Recipients of the Prince Eugen Medal
20th-century Norwegian painters
Norwegian male painters
Order of Saint Olav
20th-century Norwegian male artists