Auður Sveinsdóttir Laxness (20 July 1918 – 29 October 2012) was an Icelandic writer and craftswoman, credited with influencing the design and popularity of the Icelandic Lopapeysa sweater during the mid-20th century. Her husband was Icelandic Nobel Literature laureate Halldór Laxness, and Auður worked as his secretary and writing collaborator for many years. In 2002, Auður received the Grand Cross of the

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon () is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by Christian X of Denmark, King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. Nowaday ...

for her contributions to Icelandic culture.

Early life and marriage

Auður was born in the Icelandic village of

Eyrarbakki Eyrarbakki () is a fishing village on the south coast of Iceland with a population of about 570 people, not including inhabitants of the prison located there. The village is founded on the Great Þjórsá Lava. History For centuries, the harbou ...

on 20 July 1918, to Halldóra Kristín Jónsdóttir and Sveinn Guðmundsson. Her father was a blacksmith and when she was seven years old they moved to Vesturbær, the west-end of

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

. She attended the

University of Iceland The University of Iceland ( ) is a public research university in Reykjavík, Iceland, and the country's oldest and largest institution of higher education. Founded in 1911, it has grown steadily from a small civil servants' school to a modern co ...

and passed an examination at the to become an X-ray technician. She began working as an X-ray specialist at the

National University Hospital of Iceland 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, ce ...

in the late 1930s and would work there for twelve years. In 1937, she met the writer

Halldór Laxness Halldór Kiljan Laxness (; born Halldór Guðjónsson; 23 April 1902 – 8 February 1998) was an Icelandic writer and winner of the 1955 Nobel Prize in Literature. He wrote novels, poetry, newspaper articles, essays, plays, travelogues and sh ...

at her work. While she was working, she also enrolled in courses at the Icelandic Arts and Crafts School. In 1945, Auður married Laxness and the following year she graduated and passed her examinations in handicrafts. The couple had two daughters, Sigríður and Guðný, and they lived in a house called Gljúfrasteinn, located in

Mosfellsbær Mosfellsbær (, colloquially Mosó) is a town in south-west Iceland, east of the country's capital, Reykjavík. The coat of arms of the municipality is a tightly-knotted triquetra, a symbol often used in Celtic knotwork and strongly associated ...

. Auður supported her husband's writing as his secretary and "close collaborator" up until his death in 1998.

Writing, politics, and handicrafts

In 1944, Auður was among the founders of ''Melkorka'', an Icelandic women's magazine. The magazine ran from 1944 to 1962, publishing both fiction and nonfiction on women's culture and politics. Auður was active in social affairs and women's rights campaigns during her lifetime.

Auður held a position on the editorial board of crafts magazine ''Hugur og hönd'', producing articles on traditional Icelandic handicrafts such as weaving and knitting. Outside of her writing, Auður also designed her own knitting patterns for Icelandic wool, taught at Varmárskóli Elementary School in Mosfellsbær for two years and worked briefly at the

National Museum of Iceland The National Museum of Iceland ( Icelandic: ''Þjóðminjasafn Íslands'' ) was established on 24 February 1863, with Jón Árnason the first curator of the Icelandic collection, previously kept in Danish museums. Collections The second curat ...

Lopapeysa sweater pattern

In an interview with media in 1998, Auður claimed to be the originator of the famed Icelandic

Lopapeysa A lopapeysa () or Icelandic sweater is an Icelandic style of sweater originating in the early or mid-20th century, at a time when imports had displaced older and more traditional Icelandic clothing and people began to search for new ways to utili ...

sweater pattern. Although the true extent of her contributions has been disputed, historians generally believe that Auður did influence the final knitting pattern, possibly through her development of a "circular pattern over the shoulder" inspired by a book on

Inca culture The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The Inca civilisation rose fro ...

. Another theory suggests that Auður brought back a version of the sweater after a trip to Greenland and replicated it herself during the late 1940s, inspired by old Icelandic patterns and imported embroidery techniques.

Death

After spending her final years at a home for the elderly in Reykjavík, Auður died aged 94 on 29 October 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laxness, Audur Audur Laxness Women textile artists People in knitting Audur Laxness 1918 births 2012 deaths Recipients of the Order of the Falcon Audur Laxness Icelandic feminists Icelandic women artists

Early life and marriage

Writing, politics, and handicrafts

Lopapeysa sweater pattern

Death

See also

References