Júlíana Sveinsdóttir
Encyclopedia
Júlíana Sveinsdóttir was one of Iceland's
first woman painters and textile art
ists. Taught initially by prominent Icelandic artist Þórarinn B. Þorláksson
, Sveinsdóttir settled in Denmark
and returned to Iceland in the summers, the visits inspiring her landscape paintings, one of which won the Eckersberg Medal
in 1947.
Sveinsdóttir was an active supporter of artists and the arts. She was an early member of the Danish Female Artists' Society, and sat on the boards of the Charlottenborg Exhibition and the Danish Royal Academy of Art. Though best known for her painting, Sveinsdóttir was also a significant artist working in textiles, her commissions including a rug that decorated the court chamber of the Supreme Court in Copenhagen
.
Sveinsdóttir's interest in art was sparked at school, and by the time she was twenty she had received lessons from one of Iceland's most famous twentieth century artists Þórarinn B. Þorláksson, and travelled to Copenhagen
to study in several private drawing schools, and finally the Royal Danish Academy of Art. Apart from a brief period in the late nineteen twenties, Sveinsdóttir would make her home in Denmark
, and though she always entertained the idea of returning to Iceland to live, she never did so. However, while she spent much of her working life in Denmark, her summers were spent in Iceland, and the country's landscapes were the principal subject of her paintings. She was intensely conscious of her heritage, writing "I have always wanted to bring my works back home and defend myself. Yes, defend my absence from the country, show people what I've done, remind them that I'm woven from a more Icelandic thread than anyone else".
. Although her textile works were remarkable and attracted international acclaim, they went largely ignored in her home country for some decades, where only her paintings drew attention and reviews. It was not until the 1950s, and following the Triennial win, that there was finally in her own country a recognition of their importance and artistic merit.
Sveinsdóttir was one of a number of Icelandic artists the impersonation of whose work was the subject of a 2005 court case.
The crater
s of Mercury
are named after artists. Following the first Mercury fly-by of NASA
spacecraft
MESSENGER
, one of the newly-discovered craters
was named after Sveinsdóttir.
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
first woman painters and textile art
Textile art
Textile art may refer to:*Any one of the textile arts, those arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects*Fiber art, the creation of fine art using textile arts techniques and materials...
ists. Taught initially by prominent Icelandic artist Þórarinn B. Þorláksson
Þórarinn B. Þorláksson
Þórarinn Benedikt Þorláksson was one of Iceland's first contemporary painters, the first Icelander to exhibit paintings in Iceland, and recipient of the first public grant that country made to a painter....
, Sveinsdóttir settled in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
and returned to Iceland in the summers, the visits inspiring her landscape paintings, one of which won the Eckersberg Medal
Eckersberg Medal
The Eckersberg Medal is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts...
in 1947.
Sveinsdóttir was an active supporter of artists and the arts. She was an early member of the Danish Female Artists' Society, and sat on the boards of the Charlottenborg Exhibition and the Danish Royal Academy of Art. Though best known for her painting, Sveinsdóttir was also a significant artist working in textiles, her commissions including a rug that decorated the court chamber of the Supreme Court in Copenhagen
Courts of Denmark
The Danish Supreme Court is the highest civil and criminal court responsible for the administration of justice in Denmark. The Kingdom of Denmark, consisting of Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, does not have a single unified judicial system – Denmark has one system, Greenland another, and...
.
Learning to paint; leaving Iceland
Sveinsdóttir was born in Vestmannaeyjar (the Westman Islands), off the southern coast of Iceland, on 31 July 1889.Sveinsdóttir's interest in art was sparked at school, and by the time she was twenty she had received lessons from one of Iceland's most famous twentieth century artists Þórarinn B. Þorláksson, and travelled to Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
to study in several private drawing schools, and finally the Royal Danish Academy of Art. Apart from a brief period in the late nineteen twenties, Sveinsdóttir would make her home in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, and though she always entertained the idea of returning to Iceland to live, she never did so. However, while she spent much of her working life in Denmark, her summers were spent in Iceland, and the country's landscapes were the principal subject of her paintings. She was intensely conscious of her heritage, writing "I have always wanted to bring my works back home and defend myself. Yes, defend my absence from the country, show people what I've done, remind them that I'm woven from a more Icelandic thread than anyone else".
Sveinsdóttir and the role of women as artists
The recognition of Sveinsdóttir's work, and the slow movement toward supporting herself through her art, coincided with the organisation and gradual acceptance of women in the European artistic community. She was an early (though not founding) member of the Danish Female Artists' Society (KKS), serving on its board from 1935 to 1949 and participating in its exhibitions. The goals of the KKS included increasing female representation on decision-making bodies, improving access for women to grants, as well as providing a social and artist network. From all of these things Sveinsdóttir benefitted. From 1941 to 1949 she was on the board of the Charlottenborg Exhibition, and in 1955 she was elected to the board of the Danish Royal Academy of Art: neither of these had had any female board members when the KKS had been founded. She also benefited from access to grants, including the Tagea Brandt travel stipend in 1946.Textile art
Working in Copenhagen Sveinsdóttir created abstract rug designs of note, including a piece which won the Gold Medal at the Italian Triennial in Milan, in 1951, the first design award won by an Icelander in an international exhibition. Sveinsdóttir was later commissioned by the Danish State Artwork Fund to create a rug that decorated the court chamber of the Supreme Court in CopenhagenCourts of Denmark
The Danish Supreme Court is the highest civil and criminal court responsible for the administration of justice in Denmark. The Kingdom of Denmark, consisting of Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, does not have a single unified judicial system – Denmark has one system, Greenland another, and...
. Although her textile works were remarkable and attracted international acclaim, they went largely ignored in her home country for some decades, where only her paintings drew attention and reviews. It was not until the 1950s, and following the Triennial win, that there was finally in her own country a recognition of their importance and artistic merit.
Legacy
Throughout her career, while she did paint still lives and portraits, it was Sveinsdóttir's landscapes that aroused critical admiration and won awards, including the prestigious Eckersberg Medal in 1947. She is regarded as having been a significant innovator from the 1930s to the 1950s through her approach to the landscape subject and her colour palette.Sveinsdóttir was one of a number of Icelandic artists the impersonation of whose work was the subject of a 2005 court case.
The crater
Impact crater
In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...
s of Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...
are named after artists. Following the first Mercury fly-by of NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
spacecraft
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
MESSENGER
MESSENGER
The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging space probe is a robotic NASA spacecraft in orbit around the planet Mercury. The spacecraft was launched aboard a Delta II rocket in August 2004 to study the chemical composition, geology, and magnetic field of Mercury...
, one of the newly-discovered craters
Sveinsdóttir (crater)
Sveinsdóttir is a large impact crater on Mercury. Its dimensions are .Sveinsdóttir crater superimposed by Beagle Rupes is a distinctive feature on Mercury's landscape. Unusually elliptical in shape, the crater was produced by the impact of an object that hit Mercury's surface obliquely...
was named after Sveinsdóttir.
Awards
- 1946: Tagea Brandt travel stipend
- 1947: Eckersberg Medal
- 1951: Gold Medal, Italian Triennial, Milan
Reading
- Audur Ólafsdóttir, 'Júlíana Sveinsdóttir', in Ólafur Kvaran and Karla Kristjánsdóttir (eds), Confronting Nature: Icelandic Art of the 20th Century, National Gallery of Iceland, Reykjavík, 2001, p. 78.
- Hrafnhildur Schram, Dagny Heiddal and Harpa Thórsdóttir, Patterns of Land and Colour: Júlíana Sveinsdóttir, Listasafn Íslands, Reykjavík, 2003.