Jens Jacob Nielsen Bregnø (9 February 1877 – 26 March 1946), often referred to as J. J. Bregnø, was a Danish sculptor and ceramics designer. He collaborated with

Bing & Grøndahl Bing & Grøndahl was a Danish porcelain manufacturer founded in 1853 by the sculptor Frederik Vilhelm Grøndahl and merchant brothers Meyer Hermann Bing and Jacob Herman Bing. The trademark backstamp for Bing & Grøndahl (B&G) porcelains is the t ...

, Saxbo and Dahl Jensen Porcelain and also designed silver for Kay Bojesen. He received the

Eckersberg Medal The Eckersberg Medal (originally the ''Akademiets Aarsmedaille'' or Annual Academy Medal) is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. It is named after Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, known as the father of Danish painting. The ...

in 1919.

Early life and education

He was born in Hedensted, near

Horsens Horsens () is a city on the east coast of the Jutland region of Denmark. It is the seat of the Horsens municipality. The city's population is 64,418 (1 January 2025) and the municipality's population is 97,921 (), making it the List of cities and ...

, the son of shoemaker Mads Nielsen (1843–87) and Elise Laursen (1854-31). He changed his surname to Bregnø in 1913. He initially completed an apprenticeship as a

joiner Joinery is a part of woodworking that involves joining pieces of wood, engineered lumber, or synthetic substitutes (such as laminate), to produce more complex items. Some woodworking joints employ mechanical fasteners, bindings, or adhesives, ...

and

woodcarver Wood carving (or woodcarving) is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculpture, ...

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

and then apprenticed as a stobenason in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

from 1898. He worked as a decorative sculptor in stucco artist Hans Lamberg-Petersen's workshop 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 ...

from 1902 to 1905 and then continued his studies in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

until 1908.

Career

From 1907 to 1911, Bregnø created a number of ceramic works that were burnt in Patrick Nordström's workshop in

Islev Islev is a suburb, located approximately west of central Copenhagen, Denmark. The suburb consists of single-family detached houses and a commercial area. The suburb is connected to Copenhagen by the S-train. Islev railway station is located ju ...

. He later created numerous statuettes for

in collaboration with the company's artistic director Hans Tegner. He later also worked for Dahl-Jensen and Nathalie Krebs' Saxbo. Bregnø also created unica works in his own name that were burnt at different workshops, including Saxbo in Herlev and Hjorth in

Rønne Rønne () is the largest town on the Denmark, Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea. It has a population of 13,675 (1 January 2025). It was a municipality in its own right from 1970 until 2002, when Bornholm was a Bornholm County, county (D ...

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

. He also designed stoneware for Saxbo and silver for Kay Bojesen. His studio was located at Haraldsgade 18 in the

Nørrebro Nørrebro (, ) is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. It is northwest of the city centre, beyond the location of the old Northern Gate (''Nørreport''), which, until dismantled in 1856, was near the current N ...

district of Copenhagen. He was a member of Kunstforeningen af 18. November. A Hercules sculpture by Bregnø was installed in Nørrebroparken in 1936. It has later been moved to a new site in

Fælledparken The park Fælledparken in Copenhagen, Denmark, was created 1906–1914 by landscape architect Edvard Glæsel in cooperation with the Copenhagen Municipality on the commons (Danish: ''fælled'') previously named ''Nørrefælled'' and ''Østerfæ ...

. His statue '' The Humane Nurse'', a monument to Danish nurses, was installed in front of Bispebjerg Hospital in 1941.

Personal life

Bregnø joined the Danish Nazi Party on 28 August 1940. After the war he was blacklisted by former collaborators and received no commissions. He died on 26 March 1946 and is buried in

Vestre Cemetery Vestre Cemetery (, meaning "Western Cemetery") is located in a large park setting in the Kongens Enghave district of Copenhagen, Denmark. With its 54 hectares it is the largest cemetery in Denmark. The cemetery is landscaped and serves as an imp ...

in Copenhagen.

Selected works

* ''Danaide'' (1912) * ''Samson'' (1912, Statens Museum for Kunst) * ''Druepigefontæne'' (1929) * ''Satyrdreng med en gås'' *''Susanne i Badet'' (fountain), bronze and Cementsten * ''Læsende Pige'' ( "Poesien") * '' Lyttende Pige'' ("Samvittigheden"), Cararamarmor * ''Diana'' (

sundial A sundial is a horology, horological device that tells the time of day (referred to as civil time in modern usage) when direct sunlight shines by the position of the Sun, apparent position of the Sun in the sky. In the narrowest sense of the ...

), Bronze and tax wood plinth * ''Baccantinde'', stoneware * ''Vinhøst'' * ''Hemmeligheden'' * ''Moder og Barn'' * ''Trillinger'' * ''Firlinger'' * ''Fad. Eva og Slangen'' * ''Fad. Eva med Æbler'' * ''Satyrhoved'' * ''Geden malkes'' * ''Anger'' * ''Menneskepar'' * ''Elskende Par'', stoneware * ''Venus og Amor'' * '' Thor og Midgaardsormen'' * ''Pegasus'' * ''Lyksaligheden'' * '' Druepigen'' * ''Haarfletningen'', rec clay * ''Herkules paa Skillevejen'' * '' Nilmoderen'', bronze * ''Fuglebad'', stoneware * ''Havhexen''

Public art

* ''Herkules, Dyden og Lasten'' (1936; Nørrebroparken, later moved to

) * '' The Humane Nurse'' (1941, Bispebjerg Hospital)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bregnø, Jens Jacob 1877 births 1946 deaths 20th-century Danish sculptors Danish male sculptors Danish designers Danish stonemasons People from Hedensted Municipality Danish Nazis 20th-century Danish male artists