Christian Gottlieb Vilhelm Bissen (5 August 1836 – 20 April 1913) 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 ...

sculptor. He was also a professor at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi - Billedkunst Skolerne) has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Dani ...

with great influence on the next generation of Danish sculptors and for a while served as its director. Bissen was trained in the Neoclassical tradition from

Bertel Thorvaldsen Bertel Thorvaldsen (; 19 November 1770 – 24 March 1844) was a Danes, Danish and Icelanders, Icelandic Sculpture, sculptor medallist, medalist of international fame, who spent most of his life (1797–1838) in Italy. Thorvaldsen was born in ...

but after a stay in

Paris Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

around 1880, he was influenced by Naturalism. With the equestrian statue of Absalon he turned to Neo-romanticism.

Biography

Vilhelm Bissen was born in

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 ...

as the son of

Herman Wilhelm Bissen Herman Wilhelm Bissen (13 October 1798 – 10 March 1868) was a Denmark, Danish sculptor. Biography Bissen was born at Schleswig in the Duchy of Schleswig. He was the son of Christian Gottlieb Wilhelm Bissen (1766-1847), a farmer, and Anna ...

, one of the leading Danish sculptors of his day. Young Bissen received training in his father's studio from an early age and studied at the

from 1853 to 1857, then in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

between 1857 and 1863 and finally in

Carrara Carrara ( , ; , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, in central Italy, of the province of Massa and Carrara, and notable for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some Boxing the compass, west-northwest o ...

from 1866 to 1867 where he studied marble techniques. Upon his father's death in 1868, he returned to Denmark to continue his workshop and complete his ongoing projects. These included most notably the

equestrian statue An equestrian statue is a statue of a rider mounted on a horse, from the Latin ''eques'', meaning 'knight', deriving from ''equus'', meaning 'horse'. A statue of a riderless horse is strictly an equine statue. A full-sized equestrian statue is a d ...

of King

Frederik VII Frederick VII (Frederik Carl Christian; 6 October 1808 – 15 November 1863) was King of Denmark from 1848 to 1863. He was the last Danish monarch of the older Royal branch of the House of Oldenburg and the last king of Denmark to rule as a ...

for the plaza in front of

Christiansborg Palace Christiansborg Palace ( da, Christiansborg Slot; ) is a palace and government building on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is the seat of the Danish Parliament ('), the Danish Prime Minister's Office, and the Supreme ...

(1873). His own works included a number of statues of prominent Danes. He is mainly known for a number of statues around

, including the equestrian statue of

Absalon Absalon (21 March 1201) was a Danish statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Roskilde from 1158 to 1192 and archbishop of Lund List of (arch)bishops of Lund. Until the Danish Reformation the centre of a gr ...

(1902) on

Højbro Plads Højbro Plads (literally "High Bridge Square") is a rectangular public square located between the adjoining Amagertorv and Slotsholmen Canal in the City Centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. It takes its name from the Højbro Bridge which connects it t ...

and the

Stork Fountain The Stork Fountain is located on Amagertorv in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It was a present to Crown Prince Frederik (later Frederik VIII) and Crown Princess Louise in connection with their silver wedding anniversary in 1894. It depicts three s ...

(1894) on the adjoining

Amagertorv Amagertorv (English: Amager Square), today part of the Strøget pedestrian zone, is often described as the most central square in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Second only to Gammeltorv, it is also one of the oldest, taking its name from the Amage ...

. His notable works include

N. F. S. Grundtvig Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig (; 8 September 1783 – 2 September 1872), most often referred to as N. F. S. Grundtvig, was a Danish pastor, author, poet, philosopher, historian, teacher and politician. He was one of the most influential pe ...

at the

Frederik's Church Frederik's Church ( da, Frederiks Kirke), popularly known as The Marble Church () for its rococo architecture, is an Church of Denmark, Evangelical Lutheran church in Copenhagen, Denmark. The church forms the focal point of the Frederiksstaden d ...

Christian IV Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...

Nyboder Nyboder (English: New mallHouses) is a historic row house district of former Naval barracks in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was planned and first built by Christian IV to accommodate a need for housing for the personnel of the rapidly growing Royal Dan ...

and Queen Consort Caroline Amalie in

Rosenborg Castle Garden Rosenborg Castle Gardens (Danish: Kongens Have literally The King's Garden) is the oldest and most visited park in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Established in the early 17th century as the private gardens of King Christian IV's Rosenborg Castle, th ...

. He was commissioned to make two statues of

at the septicentennial of his death in 1901, an equestrian statue for

and another gilded copper figure for the facade of the new

Copenhagen City Hall Copenhagen City Hall ( da, Københavns Rådhus) is the headquarters of the Copenhagen City Council as well as the Lord mayor of the Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. The building is situated on City Hall Square in central Copenhagen. Architect ...

which was under construction at the time. He also produced a large number of animal sculptures of which the birds on the

(1894) on

are the most famous. He participated in

Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition The Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition (''Charlottenborg Forårsudstilling'') is an annual art exhibition in Copenhagen, Denmark. The event is held at the Charlottenborg Exhibition Building (''Kunsthal Charlottenborg''). Kunsthal Charlottenborg ...

between 1857–1913 and at the World Exhibitions in London 1862, Paris 1867 and 1889 and at Chicago 1893. In 1871 he was elected a member of the Academy of Fine Arts and in 1887 a member of the Academy Council. He was Director of the Academy 1902–05. He held the positions of professor of sculpture at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts 1889-1908.

Gallery

Copenhagen statue of Absalon.jpg, Absalon (1902)
Højbro Plads Statue of Carl Christian Hall 04.jpg, Carl Christian Hall (1890)
Søndermarken N. F. S. Grundtvig by Vilhelm Bissen - DSC07150.JPG, Grundtvig (1894)
Frederik's Church Christian IV Bissen.JPG, King Christian IV (1900)
Nyboder Absalon Vilhelm Bissen.JPG, Absalon (1901)
Copenhagen City Hall

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bissen, Vilhelm 1836 births 1913 deaths Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts faculty Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Directors of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts Artists from Copenhagen 20th-century Danish sculptors Male sculptors 20th-century Danish male artists 19th-century Danish sculptors 19th-century Danish male artists

Biography

Gallery

See also

References