Ørnulf Bast (25 January 1907 – 28 October 1974) was a Norwegian sculptor and painter particularly known for his public monuments.

Biography

Ørnulf Bjarne Bast was born in Oslo. His parents were Halsten Andersen Bast Birklund (1870–1952) and Ida Mathilde Kristensen (1870–1960). Bast studied at the

Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts The Norwegian National Academy of Arts () was a former Norwegian tertiary institution in Oslo, offering studies in the area of fine art. Along with four other academies, it merged to form the Oslo National Academy of the Arts (, KHiO) in 1996. ...

() from 1927 to 1930. He made several study trips, first to France from 1928 to 1929 and later to Britain, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain and North Africa, including Egypt, 1930 and 1932, and a new journey to Paris 1937. In 1940, Bast married Lajla von Hanno (1921–2010). During the

occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

, he and his wife supplied a cover-up apartment for the

Norwegian resistance movement The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian language, Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the German occupation of Norway, occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms: *As ...

, specifically for the staff of the sabotage squad Aks 13000, for some time. From 1947 until his death in 1974, Bast had a permanent residence in the summer at Fuglevik ved Rakke in Brunlanes Municipality, south of

Larvik Larvik () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Vestfold. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Larvik (town) ...

, where he also had his studio. Ørnulf Bast was awarded the King's Medal of Merit () in gold.

Career

He completed a wide range of public memorials and decorations in a quiet style, characterized by a French-dominated class flight of sculptural tradition. Of note are in

Sarpsborg Sarpsborg ( or ), historically Borg, is a List of cities in Norway, city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Østfold Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sarpsborg. Sarpsbor ...

(1937), in Bragernes square in

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and villages such ...

(1940–1952), (1947–1949) in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, (1948–1949) at in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

and (1946–1947) at St. Hanshaugen Park in

, and (1949–1950) in

Elverum Elverum () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Elverum ( ...

. Among his works were the identical bronze statues titles '' The Norwegian Lady'' dedicated in 1962, which were placed in

Moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

facing each other across the ocean. The statues were modeled after the

figurehead In politics, a figurehead is a practice of who ''de jure'' (in name or by law) appears to hold an important and often supremely powerful title or office, yet '' de facto'' (in reality) exercises little to no actual power. This usually means that ...

of the Norwegian bark ''Dictator'', home ported in Moss, which foundered and sank in the

Graveyard of the Atlantic Graveyard of the Atlantic is a nickname for the treacherous waters and area of numerous shipwrecks off the Outer Banks of North Carolina, United States, which are due to the coast's shifting sands and inlets. To a lesser degree, this nickname has a ...

off the coast of Virginia Beach on 27–28 March 1891. Despite substantial lifesaving efforts from shore, seven people died, including the captain's pregnant wife and four-year-old son. The new statues re-established old ties between the two communities, and in 1974, they became

sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is International relations, a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there ar ...

. Annual events are held at the Bast statues.''The Norwegian Lady''
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Selected works

*, 1930–31 *, 1936–39 *, 1940–52 *, 1946–47 *, 1947–49 *, 1947–49 *, 1948–49 *, 1949–50 *, 1953, *''

Kristian Birkeland Kristian Olaf Bernhard Birkeland (born 13 December 1867 – 15 June 1917) was a Norway, Norwegian space physics, space physicist, inventor, and professor of physics at the University of Oslo, Royal Fredriks University in Oslo. He is best remembe ...

'', 1960 *''The Norwegian Lady'', 1962 *'' Herman Wildenvey'', 1965–67 *, 1966–67 *, 1967–68 *'' Haakon VII'', 1969 *, 1970 *, 1977

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bast, Oernulf 1907 births 1974 deaths Norwegian resistance members 20th-century Norwegian painters 20th-century Norwegian sculptors Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit in gold