Alhed Larsen
Encyclopedia
Alhed Maria Larsen née Warberg (7 April 1872, Heden near Faaborg
– 31 August 1927, Odense
), the wife of Johannes Larsen
, was one of the Fynboerne or "Funen Artists" who lived and worked on the Danish island of Funen
.
and she became a friend of Johannes Larsen
, whom she married in 1898, and of Peter Hansen
. Anna Syberg
, Hansen's sister, Marie Schou and Christine Swane
, Johannes Larsen's sister, became lifelong companions. Ahled Larsen appears to have been a central figure for the Funen Painters, frequently acting as hostess.
Alhed Larsen had also had drawing lessons from her uncle Ludvig Brandstrup with whom she stayed in Copenhagen where she worked as a porcelain decorator at the Royal Copenhagen
factory from 1890 to 1893.
When she finally married Johannes Larsen in 1898, the couple moved to Kerteminde
in north-east Funen where they soon built their new home, Møllebakken, on the outskirts of the town. The house was extended on several occasions, becoming one of the most beautiful artists' homes in the country. With its 16 bedrooms, it served as a central meeting place for the Funen Painters and their friends, in the caring hands of Alhed Larsen.
spring exhibition. With her husband, she went on study tours to Paris (1904) and the United States where she spent six months with her family in 1904. When the Faaborg Museum was opened for the Funen Painters in 1910, Larsen and the other women received little attention being treated as amateur "flower painters" by members of the acquisitions committee. In 1912, the women put on their own exhibition at Den frie Udstilling.
Larsen's subjects were principally flowers, interiors and window views. The colours are rather dark in her early work but she later depicted sunlight shining on her flower arrangements and window scenes. In 1917, she and her husband each had their own studios at Møllebakken next to the winter garden where she was able to develop her painting with more intense colour, sometimes in pastel. In the 1920s, her health deteriorated but she continued to paint, ever more impressionistically, until her death in 1927. After her death, her husband ensured that her work was properly represented in the newly founded Kerteminde Museum.
Faaborg
Faaborg or Fåborg is a Danish town with a population of 7,178 , located in Faaborg-Midtfyn municipality on the island of Funen. It was formerly the seat of Faaborg municipality. The seat of the new municipality is Ringe...
– 31 August 1927, Odense
Odense
The city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark.Odense City has a population of 167,615 and is the main city of the island of Funen...
), the wife of Johannes Larsen
Johannes Larsen
Johannes Larsen was a Danish nature painter.-Biography:Born in Kerteminde on Funen, Larsen studied art at the Free School in Copenhagen under Kristian Zahrtmann in the 1880s. There he met other painters from Funen, notably Fritz Syberg and Peter Hansen, both from the southern port of Faaborg, and...
, was one of the Fynboerne or "Funen Artists" who lived and worked on the Danish island of Funen
Funen
Funen , with a size of 2,984 km² , is the third-largest island of Denmark following Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy, and the 163rd largest island of the world. Funen is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 454,358 inhabitants . The main city is Odense, connected to the...
.
Biography
Alhed Larsen was the daughter of Albrecht Christoffer Warberg, who managed the Erikshåb estate in the south of Funen. The estate became an early meeting place for the artists who later became known as the Fynboerne. As early as 1885, Larsen began to have painting lessons with Fritz SybergFritz Syberg
Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Syberg, generally known as Fritz Syberg, was a Danish painter and illustrator, one of the reactionary Fynboerne or "Funen Painters" group living and working on the island of Funen.-Biography:Syberg, from a poor background in Fåborg, first served a house...
and she became a friend of Johannes Larsen
Johannes Larsen
Johannes Larsen was a Danish nature painter.-Biography:Born in Kerteminde on Funen, Larsen studied art at the Free School in Copenhagen under Kristian Zahrtmann in the 1880s. There he met other painters from Funen, notably Fritz Syberg and Peter Hansen, both from the southern port of Faaborg, and...
, whom she married in 1898, and of Peter Hansen
Peter Hansen (painter)
Peter Marius Hansen was a Danish painter who became one of the Fynboerne or "Funen Painters" group living and working on the island of Funen.-Biography:...
. Anna Syberg
Anna Syberg
Anna Louise Birgitte Syberg was a Danish painter who, together with her husband Fritz Syberg, was one of the Fynboerne or "Funen Artists" who lived and worked on the island of Funen...
, Hansen's sister, Marie Schou and Christine Swane
Christine Swane
Christine Swane née Christine Larsen was a Danish painter who first associated with the Funen Painters before developing her own increasingly Cubist style.-Biography:...
, Johannes Larsen's sister, became lifelong companions. Ahled Larsen appears to have been a central figure for the Funen Painters, frequently acting as hostess.
Alhed Larsen had also had drawing lessons from her uncle Ludvig Brandstrup with whom she stayed in Copenhagen where she worked as a porcelain decorator at the Royal Copenhagen
Royal Copenhagen
Royal Copenhagen, officially the Royal Porcelain Factory is a manufacturer of porcelain products and was founded in Copenhagen 1 May 1775 under the protection of Queen Juliane Marie...
factory from 1890 to 1893.
When she finally married Johannes Larsen in 1898, the couple moved to Kerteminde
Kerteminde
Kerteminde , is a town in central Denmark, located in Kerteminde Municipality on the island of Funen. The town has a population of 5,698 . It is a small harbor town surrounded by farms...
in north-east Funen where they soon built their new home, Møllebakken, on the outskirts of the town. The house was extended on several occasions, becoming one of the most beautiful artists' homes in the country. With its 16 bedrooms, it served as a central meeting place for the Funen Painters and their friends, in the caring hands of Alhed Larsen.
Artwork
Side-by-side with her role as a mother and hostess, Larsen still found time to paint. From 1900 to 1906, she exhibited five times at the CharlottenborgCharlottenborg Palace
Charlottenborg Palace is a large town mansion located on the corner of Kongens Nytorv and Nyhavn in Copenhagen, Denmark. Originally built as a residence for Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve, it has served as the base of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts since its foundation in 1754...
spring exhibition. With her husband, she went on study tours to Paris (1904) and the United States where she spent six months with her family in 1904. When the Faaborg Museum was opened for the Funen Painters in 1910, Larsen and the other women received little attention being treated as amateur "flower painters" by members of the acquisitions committee. In 1912, the women put on their own exhibition at Den frie Udstilling.
Larsen's subjects were principally flowers, interiors and window views. The colours are rather dark in her early work but she later depicted sunlight shining on her flower arrangements and window scenes. In 1917, she and her husband each had their own studios at Møllebakken next to the winter garden where she was able to develop her painting with more intense colour, sometimes in pastel. In the 1920s, her health deteriorated but she continued to paint, ever more impressionistically, until her death in 1927. After her death, her husband ensured that her work was properly represented in the newly founded Kerteminde Museum.