Johanne Mathilde Dietrichson Portrett av Knud Bergslien OB

Knud Larsen Bergslien (15 May 1827 – 27 November 1908) 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 ...

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

, art teacher and master artist. In his art, he frequently portrayed the lives of the Norwegian people, their history and heroes of the past. Bergslien is most associated with his historical paintings, especially ''Skiing Birchlegs Crossing the Mountain with the Royal Child''.

Background

Knud Larsen Bergslien was born in

Voss Voss () is a municipality and a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen. Other villages include Bolstadøyri, Borstrondi, Evanger, Kvitheim, Mjølfjell, ...

, in

Hordaland Hordaland () was a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland was the third largest county, after Akershus and Oslo, by population. The county government was the Hordaland County Municipa ...

, Norway. His parents were Lars Bergeson Bergslien and Kirsten Knutsdotter Gjelle. Knud Bergslien was the brother of sculptor

Brynjulf Bergslien Brynjulf Larsen Bergslien (12 November 1830 – 19 September 1898) was a noted Norwegian sculptor. Background Bergslien was born in Voss in Hordaland county, Norway. He was a son of Lars Bergeson Bergslien and Kirsten Knutsdotter Gjelle. He was ...

and uncle of painter and sculptor

Nils Bergslien Nils Nilsen Bergslien (26 February 1853 – 18 December 1928) was a Norwegian illustrator, painter and sculptor. Nils Berglien was inspired from the legends, the history of Norway and the west Norwegian mountain landscape. He was known for his nati ...

. Monuments honoring the three famous Bergslien artists now exist in Bergslien park located in

Career

Birkebeinerne på Ski over Fjeldet med Kongsbarnet

Knud Bergslien enlisted in the army when he was 18 years old, but his unusual gift for drawing was soon noticed. After having been a student at the artist Hans Reusch's school of drawing in Bergen, he continued his studies abroad. Bergslien studied in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

from 1844 to 1852, 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. Si ...

from 1850 to 1851 and

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in ...

from 1855 to 1869. He belonged to the

Düsseldorf school of painting The Düsseldorf school of painting is a term referring to a group of painters who taught or studied at the Düsseldorf Academy (now the Staatliche Kunstakademie Düsseldorf or Düsseldorf State Art Academy) during the 1830s and 1840s, when the A ...

and was closely associated with follow artists Hans Fredrik Gude and

Adolph Tidemand Adolph Tidemand (14 August 18148 August 1876) was a noted Norwegian romantic nationalism painter. Among his best known paintings are ''Haugianerne'' (''The Haugeans''; 1852) and '' Brudeferd i Hardanger'' (''The Bridal Procession in Hardanger'' ...

. Norwegian artist Johan Fredrik Eckersberg had established an art school on Lille Grensen in Christiania (now

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 of ...

) in 1859. After his death in 1870, the school would be continued by Knud Bergslien together with Morten Müller. Knud Bergslien served as the director of what became the Bergslien School of Painting (''Bergsliens Malerskole''). A whole generation of Norwegian painters became his students, among them

Harriet Backer Harriet Backer (21 January 1845 – 25 March 1932) was a Norwegian painter who achieved recognition in her own time and was a pioneer among female artists both in the Nordic countries and in Europe generally. She is best known for her detailed ...

Edvard Munch Edvard Munch ( , ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His best known work, '' The Scream'' (1893), has become one of Western art's most iconic images. His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the d ...

, and

Ragnvald Hjerlow Ragnvald Amandus Pedersen Hjerlow (surname also spelled Hjerløw; February 20, 1863 – March 13, 1947) was a Norwegian painter and a teacher at the Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry. Hjerlow was born in Christiania (now Oslo) ...

. Some of his students emigrated to America including the

Norwegian-American Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...

artists, Lars Jonson Haukaness,

Carl L. Boeckmann Carl Ludwig Boeckmann (January 29, 1867 – September 21, 1923) was a Norwegian-American artist best known as a portrait painter. Biography Boeckmann was born in Oslo, Norway, the youngest of five children. In 1883, he began to study at Knud Be ...

and Herbjørn Gausta. Today, Bergslien is most associated with his historical paintings, especially ''Skiing Birchlegs Crossing the Mountain with the Royal Child'' (Norwegian: ''Birkebeinerne på Ski over Fjeldet med Kongsbarnet''). His depiction of

Birkebeiner The Birkebein Party or Birkebeinar (; no, Birkebeinarane (nynorsk) or (bokmål)) was the name for a rebellious party in Norway, formed in 1174 around the pretender to the Norwegian throne, Eystein Meyla. The name has its origins in propaga ...

skiers carrying Prince Haakon to safety during the winter of 1206 has become a national Norwegian icon. The prince grew up to be

King Haakon IV Haakon IV Haakonsson ( – 16 December 1263; Old Norse: ''Hákon Hákonarson'' ; Norwegian: ''Håkon Håkonsson''), sometimes called Haakon the Old in contrast to his namesake son, was King of Norway from 1217 to 1263. His reign lasted for 46 ...

whose reign marked the end of the period known as the

Civil war era in Norway The civil war era in Norway ( no, borgerkrigstida or ''borgerkrigstiden'') began in 1130 and ended in 1240. During this time in Norwegian history, some two dozen rival kings and pretenders waged wars to claim the throne. In the absence of f ...

. Bergslien was honored by the

Oscar II Oscar II (Oscar Fredrik; 21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907) was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death in 1907 and King of Norway from 1872 to 1905. Oscar was the son of King Oscar I and Queen Josephine. He inherited the Swedish and Norweg ...

King of Sweden The monarchy of Sweden is the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parliamentary system: see the Instrument ...

and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

with the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III. It was u ...

, an esteemed order of Knighthood, for his 1875 painting titled ''The Crowning of King Oscar II in the Nidaros Cathedral'' (Norwegian: ''Kong Oscar II's kroning i Nidarosdomen''). Bergslien’s work is represented 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 establishe ...

Bergslien Art School students

Andreas Bloch Andreas Bloch (29 July 1860 – 11 May 1917) was a Norwegian painter, illustrator and costume designer. Biography Andreas Schroeter Schelver Bloch was born on the Hellerud farm in Skedsmo, in Akershus county, Norway, as the son of Jens Pe ...

* Cecilie Dahl *

Hans Dahl Hans Dahl (19 February 1849 – 27 July 1937) was a Norwegian painter. Hans Dahl was most known for his paintings of Norwegian fjords and surrounding landscapes. Background Hans Dahl was born in the village of Granvin, on the Hardangerf ...

Halfdan Egedius Halfdan Egedius (May 5, 1877 – February 2, 1899) was a Norwegian painter and illustrator. Biography Halfdan Johnsen Egedius was born in Drammen in Buskerud county and grew up in Christiania (now Oslo). His interest in painting and illustrati ...

* Herbjørn Gausta * Andrea Gram * Nils Hansteen * Lars Jonson Haukaness *

* Kristen Holbø * Morten Müller *

Gerhard Munthe Gerhard Peter Frantz Munthe (19 July 1849 in Elverum, Hedmark – 15 January 1929 in Lysaker, Bærum) was a Norwegian painter and illustrator. Background Munthe was born in Elverum to physician Christopher Pavels Munthe (1816–1884) and his ...

Lars Osa Lars Osa (13 August 1860 – 9 February 1958) was a Norwegian artist. He also worked with church decoration and restoration and was a noted fiddle player. Biography Lars Andersen was born in the village of Ulvik in Ulvik municipality in Hordalan ...

* Eyolf Soot *

Gustav Wentzel Gustav Wentzel (1859–1927) was a Norwegian painter. He was best known for interiors and domestic and rural scenes. His artistic style was associated with Naturalism and noted for accurate observations and attention to detail. Biography He ...

Gallery

Portraits

Image:K Bergslien Asbjornsen 1870.jpg, Portrait of Peter Christen Asbjørnsen. (1870) Image:Diriks av Bergslien.jpg, Portrait of Carl Fredrik Diriks. (1872) Image:Konrad von Maurer 1870 - detail.jpg, Portrait of Konrad von Maurer. (1876) Image:Severin Løvenskiold by Knud Bergslien.png, Portrait of

Severin Løvenskiold Severin Løvenskiold (7 February 1777 – 15 September 1856) was a Norwegian nobleman, politician and the prime minister of Norway. Family Severin Løvenskiold, the younger, was born in Porsgrunn in Telemark, Norway to Severin Løvenskiold, t ...

. (1854)

Landscapes

File:Knud Bergslien-Fjordbunn.jpg, ''Fjordbunn'' File:Knud Bergslien-Nordnorsk fjordidyll.jpg, ''Nordnorsk fjordidyll''

References

Other sources

*Dagestad, Magnus ''Dei tre Bergsli-kunstnarane'' (Classica Antikvariat.1945. Voss)

External links

Voss, the Bergslien TrackO.Væring photo agency archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bergslien, Knud 1827 births 1908 deaths 19th-century Norwegian painters 19th-century Norwegian male artists 20th-century Norwegian painters Norwegian male painters People from Voss Recipients of the Order of Vasa Burials at the Cemetery of Our Saviour 20th-century Norwegian male artists