Hans Dahl
Encyclopedia
Hans Dahl was a Norwegian
painter
. Hans Dahl was famous for his paintings of Norwegian fjords and surrounding landscapes.
, on the Hardangerfjord
, in the county of Hordaland
in Norway. His talent was already evident when Dahl was 16 years old. However, it was only after service in the Swedish army that Dahl received artistic education. Hans Dahl was educated first to become a officer and became a lieutenant in 1871. He served in the Bergenske Brigade until 1874. After leaving the army, he apprenticed with Johan Fredrik Eckersberg
and Knud Bergslien
. He went to Karlsruhe
, where he studied under Hans Fredrik Gude and Wilhelm Riefstahl and then to Düsseldorf
, where his teachers included Eduard von Gebhardt
and Wilhelm Sohn. His art became associated with the Düsseldorf school of painting, which was characterized by finely detailed yet still fanciful landscapes.
until 1888, when he moved to Berlin
. Almost every summer, he was back in Norway
. In 1893, he commissioned the firm of Jacob Digre in Trondheim
to build his summer residence. is located on the banks of the Sognefjord
at Balestrand
in the county of Sogn og Fjordane
. Norwegian painter Adelsteen Normann
had settled in Balestrand during 1891. Dahl's villa was of a similar design to the villa built for Normann.
Between 1888 and 1919, Dahl lived mostly in Berlin-Wilmersdorf, and spent only the summer in Balestrand. After 1919, Dahl no longer traveled to Berlin. Balestrand became a much visited tourist destination in western Norway. German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, became one of Dahl's patrons, conferring a professorship upon him in 1910, and visiting Dahl in Balestrand several summers in a row.
Dahl resisted the transition in art from Romanticism
to Modernism
. In the 1890s a new school of art arose, and artists like Dahl were not very popular in the leading circles in the capital. He was particularly criticised by the art historian Jens Thiis
. He was severely criticized by fellow artists especially by Christian Krohg
, who was one of the leading figures in the transition from romanticism
to naturalism which characterized Norwegian art in this period. Throughout his life, he increasingly narrowed his range of topics. Dahl often described the scenery of the western part of Norway in brilliant sunshine with smiling people in national costumes. His vibrant colors and charming portrayals of young Norwegian girls in their national costume have always been very popular.
In 1902 Dahl was appointed knight of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, 1st class. Hans Dahl died in Balestrand
in Sogn og Fjordane
during 1937. His grave is located in the churchyard of Tjugum (Tjugum kyrkje).
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
. Hans Dahl was famous for his paintings of Norwegian fjords and surrounding landscapes.
Background
Hans Dahl was born in the village of GranvinGranvin
Granvin is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. The population is 964. About half of these, 444 people, live in the village of Granvin, situated at the end of a side arm of the Hardangerfjord.-Name:...
, on the Hardangerfjord
Hardangerfjord
With a length of , the Hardangerfjord in the county of Hordaland in Norway is the third largest fjord in the world and the second largest in Norway. The surrounding district is called Hardanger....
, in the county of Hordaland
Hordaland
is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark and Rogaland. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population. The county administration is located in Bergen...
in Norway. His talent was already evident when Dahl was 16 years old. However, it was only after service in the Swedish army that Dahl received artistic education. Hans Dahl was educated first to become a officer and became a lieutenant in 1871. He served in the Bergenske Brigade until 1874. After leaving the army, he apprenticed with Johan Fredrik Eckersberg
Johan Fredrik Eckersberg
Johan Fredrik Eckersberg was a Norwegian painter most noted for his landscapes. Eckersberg was a prominent figure in the transition from Romanticism to Realism in 18th century Norwegian art, both as an artistic painter and a teacher at his own art school in Oslo.-Background:Johan Fredrik...
and Knud Bergslien
Knud Bergslien
Knud Larsen Bergslien was a Norwegian painter, art teacher and master artist. In his art, he frequently portrayed the lives of the Norwegian people, their history and heroes of the past...
. He went to Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
, where he studied under Hans Fredrik Gude and Wilhelm Riefstahl and then to Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
, where his teachers included Eduard von Gebhardt
Eduard von Gebhardt
Franz Karl Eduard von Gebhardt was a Baltic German historical painter. He was born in Järva-Jaani, Estonia, the son of a Protestant clergyman, and studied first at the Academy of St. Petersburg . In 1860 he became the pupil of Wilhelm Sohn at Düsseldorf, where he permanently settled, and became...
and Wilhelm Sohn. His art became associated with the Düsseldorf school of painting, which was characterized by finely detailed yet still fanciful landscapes.
Career
Dahl had his first exhibition in Düsseldorf in 1876. Dahl lived in DüsseldorfDüsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
until 1888, when he moved to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. Almost every summer, he was back in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. In 1893, he commissioned the firm of Jacob Digre in Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
to build his summer residence. is located on the banks of the Sognefjord
Sognefjord
The Sognefjord is the largest fjord in Norway, and the second longest in the world. Located in Sogn og Fjordane county, it stretches inland to the small village of Skjolden...
at Balestrand
Balestrand
Balestrand is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center is the village of Balestrand....
in the county of Sogn og Fjordane
Sogn og Fjordane
is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality while the largest town is Førde....
. Norwegian painter Adelsteen Normann
Adelsteen Normann
Adelsteen Normann was a Norwegian painter who worked in Berlin. He was a noted painter of landscapes of Norway. Normann was the artist who invited Edvard Munch to Berlin, where he painted The Scream...
had settled in Balestrand during 1891. Dahl's villa was of a similar design to the villa built for Normann.
Between 1888 and 1919, Dahl lived mostly in Berlin-Wilmersdorf, and spent only the summer in Balestrand. After 1919, Dahl no longer traveled to Berlin. Balestrand became a much visited tourist destination in western Norway. German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, became one of Dahl's patrons, conferring a professorship upon him in 1910, and visiting Dahl in Balestrand several summers in a row.
Dahl resisted the transition in art from Romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
to Modernism
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
. In the 1890s a new school of art arose, and artists like Dahl were not very popular in the leading circles in the capital. He was particularly criticised by the art historian Jens Thiis
Jens Thiis
Jens Thiis was a Norwegian art historian, conservator and a prominent museum director. He was conservator at Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum in Trondheim 1895 and director at Nasjonalgalleriet in Oslo 1908–1941.He was unusual alert to tendencies of his time...
. He was severely criticized by fellow artists especially by Christian Krohg
Christian Krohg
Christian Krohg , was a Norwegian naturalist painter, illustrator, author and journalist.-Life and career:...
, who was one of the leading figures in the transition from romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
to naturalism which characterized Norwegian art in this period. Throughout his life, he increasingly narrowed his range of topics. Dahl often described the scenery of the western part of Norway in brilliant sunshine with smiling people in national costumes. His vibrant colors and charming portrayals of young Norwegian girls in their national costume have always been very popular.
Personal life
Hans Dahl was married to Helene Bewer, the daughter of the German painter Clemens Bewer (1820–1884). Their son was the Norwegian painter Hans Andreas Dahl (1881–1919), who died of tuberculosis at the age of 37.In 1902 Dahl was appointed knight of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, 1st class. Hans Dahl died in Balestrand
Balestrand
Balestrand is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center is the village of Balestrand....
in Sogn og Fjordane
Sogn og Fjordane
is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality while the largest town is Førde....
during 1937. His grave is located in the churchyard of Tjugum (Tjugum kyrkje).