Billy Graham - L0055 860Fo30141612210136

Salo Grenning, pen name Pedro (5 April 1918 – 1 February 1986) was a Norwegian illustrator. He was born as Salo Goldfarb in

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...

as a son of businessman Leopold Goldfarb (from

Rajgród Rajgród is a town in Grajewo County, Podlaskie Voivodeship, Poland, with 1,609 inhabitants (as of June 2016), within the historic region of Podlachia. History Rajgród has a long and rich history, with evidence of human habitation dating ba ...

, lived 1878–1933) and Sonja Epstein (from

Suwałki Suwałki ( lt, Suvalkai; yi, סואוואַלק) is a city in northeastern Poland with a population of 69,206 (2021). It is the capital of Suwałki County and one of the most important centers of commerce in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Suwałki ...

, lived 1888–1970). His first newspaper drawing was published in 1933 in ''

Bergens Arbeiderblad ''Bergensavisen'' (lit. "the Bergen newspaper"), usually shortened to ''BA'', is the second largest newspaper in Bergen, Norway. The paper is published in tabloid format. The newspaper's webpage ba.no is Bergen's largest local newspaper webpage ...

''. He studied at the

Belfast School of Art The Belfast School of Art, is a School in thUlster University Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciencesand is physically located at the Belfast campus. Following the results of the Research Excellence Framework 2014 Ulster is ranked within ...

from 1935 to 1936, at the

Bergen National Academy of the Arts Bergen Academy of Art and Design ( no, Kunst- og designhøgskolen i Bergen) or KHiB was one of two independent and accredited scientific institutions of higher learning in the visual arts and design in Norway (The other is Oslo National Academy o ...

from 1936 to 1937 and at

Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry The National College of Art and Design ( no, Statens håndverks- og kunstindustriskole) was established in 1818. In 1996 the National College of Art and Design became part of Oslo National Academy of the Arts (''Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo'', KHiO). ...

from 1937 to 1938. He adopted the pen name Pedro in February 1941, one year after Nazi Germany invaded and occupied Norway. He fled to the United Kingdom in 1941, via Shetland (together with Leif Andreas Larsen) to Scotland. In 1944, as a soldier in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

, he participated in the liberation of

Walcheren Walcheren () is a region and former island in the Dutch province of Zeeland at the mouth of the Scheldt estuary. It lies between the Eastern Scheldt in the north and the Western Scheldt in the south and is roughly the shape of a rhombus. The two ...

and

Middelburg Middelburg may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Europe * Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...

, later becoming an honorary citizen of the latter. From 1944 to 1945 he was an illustrator in London-based newspaper '' Norsk Tidend''. After the war he was decorated with the Norwegian Defence Medal and the British Defence Medal. In 1945 he legally changed his name from Goldfarb to Grenning. He was also hired in the new newspaper ''

Verdens Gang ''Verdens Gang'' ("The course of the world"), generally known under the abbreviation ''VG'', is a Norwegian tabloid newspaper. In 2016, circulation numbers stood at 93,883, having declined from a peak circulation of 390,510 in 2002. ''VG'' is n ...

'', specifically at the initiative of journalist Asbjørn Barlaup. Pedro remained in ''Verdens Gang'' for the rest of his career. He also designed book covers. His works have been exhibited at

Høstutstillingen Høstutstillingen or Statens kunstutstilling (English: ''The Autumn Exhibition'' or ''National Art Exhibition'') is an annual art exhibition in Oslo, Norway. The exhibition is Norway's largest marking of contemporary art and takes place each autum ...

, and his works are owned by the

Montreal Museum of Fine Arts The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...

and the

National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. In July 1961 in Stavern he married Bjørg Sigrunn Støland (1924–1998). He died in February 1986 in Oslo.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grenning, Salo 1918 births 1986 deaths Artists from Bergen Norwegian Jews Oslo National Academy of the Arts alumni Norwegian expatriates in the United Kingdom Norwegian Army personnel of World War II British Army personnel of World War II Norwegian illustrators Norwegian editorial cartoonists Alumni of Belfast School of Art Military personnel from Bergen