Paul Fjelde
Encyclopedia
Background
Paul Fjelde was born in Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
the son of Jacob Fjelde
Jacob Fjelde
Jacob H. Fjelde was a Norwegian born, American sculptor.-Background:Jakob Henrik Gerhard Fjelde was born in Ålesund Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. His father, a carpenter and wood carver had moved to the United States in 1872, though Fjelde did not arrive there until about 1887. After arriving in...
, a sculptor who emigrated from 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...
. Jacob Fjelde was a well-known sculptor in Norway when he emigrated to the United States in 1887. After Jacob’s untimely death at age 36, the Fjelde family moved to North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
in 1902. Margarethe Fjelde homesteaded with her four children in Burleigh County, North Dakota
Burleigh County, North Dakota
-National protected areas:*Canfield Lake National Wildlife Refuge*Florence Lake National Wildlife Refuge*Long Lake National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:...
. Fjelde studied art in Valley City, North Dakota
Valley City, North Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 6,826 people, 2,996 households, and 1,668 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,062.5 per square mile . There were 3,250 housing units at an average density of 982.0 per square mile...
at the State Normal School, now the Valley City State University
Valley City State University
Valley City State University is an institution of higher learning in Valley City, North Dakota, part of the eleven-member North Dakota University System. Founded in 1890 as a territorial normal school, VCSU offers four-year degrees in a number of fields in five academic divisions and graduate...
. He subsequently went to study under Chicago based sculptor Lorado Taft
Lorado Taft
Lorado Zadoc Taft was an American sculptor, writer and educator. Taft was born in Elmwood, Illinois in 1860 and died in his home studio in Chicago in 1936.-Early years and education:...
. He went on to study at the Minneapolis School of Art, Beaux-Arts Institute of Design
Beaux-Arts Institute of Design
The Beaux-Arts Institute of Design was an art and architectural school at 304 East 44th Street in Turtle Bay, Manhattan, in New York City...
, and the Art Students League of New York
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
, at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, and at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière
Académie de la Grande Chaumière
The Académie de la Grande Chaumière is an art school in the VIe arrondissement of Paris, France. The school was founded in 1902 by the Swiss Martha Stettler , who refused to teach the strict academic rules of painting of the École des Beaux-Arts. It opened the way to the "Art Indépendant"...
in Paris.
Career
Fjelde taught at the Pratt InstitutePratt Institute
Pratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
of Art and was a professor emeritus from that institution. Fjelde served as chairman of the Sculpture Department at the Carnegie Institute of Technology
Carnegie Institute of Technology
The Carnegie Institute of Technology , is the name for Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering. It was first called the Carnegie Technical Schools, or Carnegie Tech, when it was founded in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie who intended to build a “first class technical school” in Pittsburgh,...
. He was an instructor of sculpture at the National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
. He was editor of Sculpture Review between 1951 and 1955.
Among Fjelde’s most commonly recognized sculptural works is the Lincoln Monument in Frogner Park
Frogner Park
Frogner Park is a public park located in the borough of Frogner in Oslo, Norway. The park contains the world famous Vigeland Sculpture Park designed by Gustav Vigeland....
in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. On July 4, 1914, North Dakota Governor Louis Hanna presented the bronze bust of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
to the nation of 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...
. His father's brother, Dr. Herman Olaus Fjelde (1866-1918), was chairman of the committee for the Lincoln Monument.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the bust in Frogner Park became a center for silent protest against Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
. Every July 4 during the occupation, Norwegians gathered by the Lincoln bust in Frogner Park in silent protest at the affront to freedom the Nazis represented to the people of Norway. Fjelde’s bust is still prominent in the July 4 celebration that continues each year in Frogner Park.
Other noteworthy works include the statue of Col. Hans C. Heg, leader of the 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment
15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment
The 15th Regiment Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, more popularly known as the "Scandinavian Regiment", was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:...
in Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, the Wendell Wilkie Memorial in the Indiana Statehouse, the bronze portrait of Orville Wright in the Hall of Fame colonnade, the John Scott Bradstreet tablet at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
The Minneapolis Institute of Arts is a fine art museum located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on a campus that covers nearly 8 acres , formerly Morrison Park...
, and the Pioneers Memorial in Council Bluffs, Iowa
Council Bluffs, Iowa
Council Bluffs, known until 1852 as Kanesville, Iowathe historic starting point of the Mormon Trail and eventual northernmost anchor town of the other emigrant trailsis a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States and is on the east bank of the Missouri River across...
.
Fjelde received awards from the American-Scandinavian Foundation, Allied Artists of America, and the National Sculpture Society
National Sculpture Society
Founded in 1893, the National Sculpture Society was the first organization of professional sculptors formed in the United States. The purpose of the organization was to promote the welfare of American sculptors, although its founding members included several renowned architects. The founding...
. His works were exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
, 1913-1919 and the Norse-American Centennial
Norse-American Centennial
The Norse-American Centennial celebration was held at the Minnesota State Fair from June 7–9, 1925.The event served to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the arrival during 1825 of the Norwegian immigrant ship Restauration. The arrival of this ship is generally considered the first organized...
Art Exhibition at the Minnesota State Fair
Minnesota State Fair
The Minnesota State Fair is the state fair of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its slogan is "The Great Minnesota Get-Together." It is the 2nd largest fair in the United States, and the largest state fair in the United States in terms of average daily attendance, though the State Fair of Texas runs...
in 1925. He was also among the exhibitors at the Society of Scandinavian-American Artists exhibition held at the Brooklyn Museum
Brooklyn Museum
The Brooklyn Museum is an encyclopedia art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At 560,000 square feet, the museum holds New York City's second largest art collection with roughly 1.5 million works....
in 1932. His works were shown at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, 1935-36 and 1940. Fjelde served as the editor of the National Sculpture Review
Sculpture Review
Sculpture Review the official illustrated publication of the National Sculpture Society . It is based in New York City. As with the NSS, it is concerned with figurative sculpture. It features articles about the history of figurative sculpture and sculptors as well as current artists and trends.It...
from 1951 to 1955.
Other sources
- Sundby-Hanson, Harry Norwegian Immigrant Contributions to America’s Making (International Press, New York: 1921)
- Fjelde, Paul The Sculpture of Paul Fjelde (National Sculpture Review. Fall, 1969)
External links
Category: Culture, Norwegian Americans, Oslo | 5 comments